Retail & Ecommerce

Amid all the handwringing about screen time—plus the demise of Toys "R" Us—one could easily imagine that kids have lost interest in toys. But they haven’t.

Most consumers want a product delivered the second they order it, and Amazon is betting on that behavior to drive more sales by offering free one-day shipping on Prime-eligible products. An October 2019 CivicScience survey found that a plurality of US internet users would rather order a low-cost item (less than $5) via Amazon than buy it in-store.

Proximity mobile payments are reshaping traditional payment methods in Latin America, providing consumers with a faster, more convenient and streamlined payment experience for their everyday purchases. This year, we forecast that 13.3% of Latin America smartphone users ages 14 and older will make at least one proximity mobile payment. That represents 33.4 million individuals or 6.7% of the region’s population.

Reviews play a central role in the path to purchase, and many consumers don’t just skim them before purchasing—or passing on—a product. Some will spend anywhere from a few minutes to more than an hour to make sure they’re making the right choice.

Consumers are constantly in search of convenience, particularly in the form of timesaving. In the past 12 months, numerous direct-to-consumer (D2C) meal plan services have emerged, offering consumers an alternative solution to home cooking without paying a dreaded visit to the grocery store—or spending time trying to figure out a recipe.

China has proven to be a hotbed for digital innovations, especially in the past few years. During this time, marketers worldwide have observed the latest trends coming out of the country, applying what they learn to their own markets.

Mobile dethroned TV in 2019 as the channel where US adults spent the most time. While it may be a symbolic threshold for now, it’s still notable that the average US adult spent 3 hours, 43 minutes (3:43) on their mobile devices in 2019, compared with the average 3:35 spent watching TV. As recently as 2016, US adults watched nearly an hour more of TV than they spent on their smartphones and tablets (4:05 vs. 3:08).

Though social commerce conversions will remain a challenge, the mid-funnel opportunity is growing. Instagram’s continued rollout of shoppable content features is helping brands and influencers spotlight product content and forge a better path to purchase. Pinterest has also introduced features to make it easier for retailers to upload and promote product content. And video-first platforms Snapchat and TikTok are both testing shoppable content features.

eMarketer principal analyst Andrew Lipsman discusses one thing that summed up 2019 for him and some of his predictions for 2020, focusing on the delivery wars.

Marketers have embraced location data for several reasons. It can help personalize experiences for customers, better isolate customer paths to purchase, create better customer segments, and identify opportune moments to target potential clients. But new restrictions on collecting location data will make it more costly for advertisers in 2020.

While our 2019 prediction of digital’s influence on the reinvention of brick-and-mortar has materialized, it may have also undersold Amazon’s omnipresence in the space. The 800-pound gorilla of retail will continue to cast a wide shadow.

For brands and retailers in some categories, Amazon is a significant channel for ecommerce sales. And that often means paying for prime placement on Amazon properties, including in search results. We estimate Amazon will have earned 72% of its $9.85 billion in net US digital ad revenues from search ads in 2019.

eMarketer principal analyst Mark Dolliver, junior analyst Blake Droesch and vice president of content studio Paul Verna talk about YouTube's harassment policy change, Uber's new security report, TV shows with the most longevity, what people are watching on Disney+, where the bar code came from, and more.

Social networks like Instagram, Snapchat and TikTok have ramped up their social commerce efforts in the past year, shifting toward an ecosystem where users can discover, shop and purchase products one place. Initially, these social commerce features were only offered to brands, but now social networks are experimenting by bringing the same tools to influencers.

eMarketer senior forecasting analyst Cindy Liu discusses our US sales numbers for Wayfair and the reasons we’ve pegged it the fastest-growing ecommerce retailer for 2019.

eMarketer global director of public relations Douglas Clark compares our in-store sales and retail ecommerce forecasts and talks Macy’s, Walmart and The Home Depot.