The Australian ecommerce landscape is set to undergo significant changes in 2024, according to the global eCommerce and marketplace accelerator, Pattern. The company has outlined its top five predictions that it believes will shape the landscape, with advancements in artificial intelligence (AI), brand research, personalisation, and marketplaces at the heart of the evolution.

Merline McGregor, General Manager at Pattern Australia, explained, "The Australian retail landscape will take an evolutionary step-forward over the coming year, driven by changing consumer expectations and the rapid integration of technology in ecommerce. It's not just about selling products; it's about creating meaningful connections and delivering value in a digital world where change is constant."

The first prediction stressed the need for brands to rethink their major sales event strategies in light of recent data. Pattern's Cyber Weekend Benchmark Report showed that consumer demand for sales peaked earlier than ever in 2023, with searches for Black Friday increasing by 51% compared to 2022. "Brands extending Black Friday sales risk damaging profit margins and conditioning consumers to expect constant discounts... Brands should instead focus on product differentiation and targeting consumers with personalised offers as strategies to navigate the changing sales environment," McGregor advised.

The second prediction anticipates brands increasingly utilising AI for efficient marketing activity. AI tools such as Chat GPT are revolutionising social media copywriting and meeting the demand for cost-effective and rapid imagery. However, Pattern highlights that this growing reliance on AI raises ethical questions and scrutiny around the quality and uniqueness of AI-generated content.

Pattern's third forecast indicates that social media platforms will play a central role in brand research and discovery in 2024. McGregor explained, "Brands must understand and embrace social media's role in consumer pre-purchase research. They can do this through collaborating with creators to amplify their voice, blending passive promotion with active engagement."

As for the fourth prediction, the marketplace sector in Australia is expected to mature and evolve. Pattern's 2023 Marketplace Consumer Trends Report revealed that 88% of shoppers bought from platforms like eBay, Amazon, or Catch in the past year. McGregor advised that in a competitive retail environment, "brands need to be present where their customers are, which is increasingly on marketplaces like Amazon and now Temu."

The last prediction centres on the transformation of personalised selling, fuelled by advanced data analytics and AI. To succeed in an increasingly competitive online sales environment, McGregor concluded that brands must "dive deep into shopper data and become smarter with how they use their platforms ... to form genuine, profitable connections with customers."