More and more companies are focused on offering a personalized and high-quality customer experience, adapting their solutions to the specific needs and desires of each consumer. This drive comes from a “Customer Centric” approach, where businesses focus on providing a positive customer experience to be more competitive and increase their profits.
This approach poses a significant challenge in omnichannel experience, where the customer interacts with the brand through multiple channels. In the digital age, this has led to the concept of “Concierge Commerce,” similar to the personalized service provided by a luxury hotel concierge.
Traditionally, the concierge is that figure capable of anticipating the guests’ needs to ensure a smooth and enjoyable experience. Retailers are increasingly inspired by this concept to virtually meet the needs of consumers, bringing Concierge Commerce to life. This digital concierge not only welcomes customers but guides them throughout their journey, offering personalized recommendations, assistance, and support every step of the way. By adopting this idea, brands can elevate consumer satisfaction, foster loyalty, and stand out in the competitive current market. It’s no longer just about selling products or services; it’s about creating unforgettable experiences and building lasting relationships with customers.
Concierge Commerce simplifies the way of online shopping, driving emerging trends such as voice shopping, video commerce, or live shopping. Just like a concierge welcomes guests in a hotel, its digital counterpart welcomes users at any access point to these channels to help them and guide them.
According to the latest data from the Mexican Online Sales Association (AMVO), Mexico has become one of the most attractive markets for e-commerce, as the value of the eCommerce Retail market in this country reached 658.3 billion pesos, with a year-on-year growth of 24.6%. This study also indicates a significant increase in the presence of new digital buyers in the last year. This landscape enhances the appeal of Concierge Commerce for an increasingly omnichannel audience, interacting with different touchpoints in a single purchase.
The integration between physical and digital retail is already the norm, and smartphones play a key role acting as a bridge between both worlds. In fact, smartphones have not only positioned themselves as the most used touchpoint before completing a purchase but also act as facilitators that increase personalization, propose payment options like Tap to Pay, and support trends like virtual or concierge assistance.
Voice Assistant Shopping on the Rise
The smartphone is not the only device driving a change in shopping behavior. Voice shopping has emerged as a significant trend, reshaping the customer experience in recent years. Enabled by assistants like Alexa, Google Assistant, and Siri, consumers can now make purchases using their voice. These assistants are integrated into smart home speakers or accessible through mobile phones, an innovation based on advanced AI algorithms that accurately interpret consumer requests, guiding them through the purchasing process. Worldwide, e-commerce transactions through voice assistants have increased to reach $20 billion, quadrupling since 2021. The appeal of Voice Commerce lies in the widespread adoption of smart speakers and voice assistant applications, offering a simplified shopping experience through voice and Conversational Interfaces. However, there are still barriers, such as exclusive provider restrictions, hindering broader adoption. For example, only Amazon Prime members can shop through Alexa, limiting that concierge function to a single platform.
Video Commerce Evolves into Live Shopping
Another rising trend, driven by platforms like TikTok, is Video Commerce. Its mechanics are quite simple: an influencer promotes a product with a video, whether recorded or live, and introduces a link that redirects to a landing page or website where you can purchase the item.
Video Commerce is not exclusively tied to social media but can be considered a subset of the current predominant trend: live shopping. A strategy that serves retailers to showcase their products with a live stream and allows simultaneous interaction with shoppers in real-time. Although The Wall Street Journal claimed that social media purchases will become a $100 billion market in the United States by 2025, there is still a long way to go in Mexico. According to the AMVO, in 2023, almost 70 million people made online purchases, yet the penetration of Live Shopping is still low, at 1-2%.
Live Shopping has proven to be a tool capable of aiding ecommerce operations, regardless of the type of product being sold. The Live Shopping app offered by VTEX allows for creating interactive experiences for online stores, strengthening the connection with customers, and boosting online sales, with a significant impact on metrics such as a 28% increase in engagement rate and a 16% increase in add-to-cart rate.
Several brands are already embracing Live Shopping, such as Real Madrid, the successful Spanish football team, who, along with Adidas, conducted their first live stream through the VTEX platform. Through the team’s landing page, more than 13,000 followers could register and get all the information about the event in which players from Real Madrid, such as Fede Valverde and Éder Militão, participated. Those who joined the online event could watch interviews, participate in game proposals, and of course, acquire all kinds of sports apparel. Sales exceeded €30K during the two-hour stream.
Concierge Commerce thrives in the realm of live shopping, but its potential transcends this channel. The digital concierge is not limited to one trend; it is a master key of all, weaving voice, video, and live interactions into a fabric of unforgettable shopping experiences. From the first encounter to the final transaction, it creates a journey that leaves lasting impressions, transforming each moment of the purchase into a memorable stay in the modern commerce “hotel.”