Ecommerce Trends That Will Influence Online Shopping in 2025

While some ecommerce trends and technologies pass through hype cycles, others are powerful enough to change the entire course of the market. And sometimes, it can be difficult to discern which will last and which will pass. When social media first burst onto the scene, many thought it was a fad — but it changed the way we communicate, spend leisure time, and shop. Also, remember the metaverse? Many thought we’d all be shopping in a virtual world by now.

With AI advancing at a rapid clip and consumer behaviors shifting as a result, what are the ecommerce trends that will dominate in 2025 and beyond? We’ve got a few ideas.

Ecommerce trends are the evolving patterns in how people shop online — from emerging technologies like AI-powered chatbots and augmented reality to shifting consumer behaviors like mobile-first shopping and social commerce. Ecommerce trends represent the constantly changing market of digital retail, including payment methods, marketing strategies, and customer experience (CX).

For example, imagine seeing an influencer's video about a new skincare product on Instagram. Instead of going to their website, you can tap directly on the product tag in the video, add it to your cart, and complete the purchase — all within Instagram. The times they are a-changin’ — and the business that adapts as per those changes will survive.

Commerce teams have been using AI for years to automate and personalize product recommendations, chatbot activity, and more. But now, generative and predictive AI trained on large language models (LLMs) offer even more opportunities to increase efficiency and scale personalization. And the numbers prove it: Commerce professionals who use AI say it saves them an average of 6.4 hours per week.

Source: State of Commerce

Intelligent, autonomous AI agents like Agentforce can completely transform your commerce operations. From providing 24/7 customer service and personal shopping assistance to analyzing your customer needs and handling post-fulfillment communication, Agentforce can improve efficiency in every department. For instance, if you have a large product catalog that needs to be updated frequently, agents can write and categorize individual descriptions. This cuts down hours of work to mere minutes.

Need to improve product detail pages and optimize them for SEO? Agents can help generate meta titles and meta descriptions for every product. In short, AI agents will transform commerce from reactive transactions to proactive experiences. Agentic commerce is all about anticipating, negotiating, and fulfilling customer needs autonomously — even before customers realize what they want.

Data is your most valuable business asset — it’s the cornerstone of delivering great customer service. Data helps you understand your customers, make informed decisions, and measure success. The first step to putting data to use and gaining useful insights from it? Keeping it clean and organized.

This is where data management and harmonization come in. This is the process of bringing together data from multiple sources (think: your customer relationship management (CRM) and order management systems) to provide a holistic view of all your business activities. With harmonized data, you can tap into hidden opportunities and insights. When your data flows seamlessly between systems, you can predict customer behavior, optimize inventory in real-time, and deliver the connected shopping experiences that today's consumers demand. Also, this is key to improving customer satisfaction and revenue.

A truly unified platform like Commerce Cloud offers a 360-degree view of all customer interactions and business performance. It syncs customer data from every interaction like website visits, social media, purchases, and support. Plus, built-in AI analyzes vast amounts of customer data to predict their needs and automate personalized outreach at the right moment to increase conversions.

Remember when chatbot experiences felt robotic and awkward? The days of navigating complicated ecommerce sites, filling out endless forms, and clicking through multiple pages to find what you want are numbered. Thanks to generative AI (Gen AI) and LLMs, conversational commerce is getting a glow-up. Natural language processing (NLP) is revolutionizing how customers shop, allowing them to simply say, "Find me a yellow dress under $100 for a summer wedding" or "Reorder my usual coffee beans but make it decaf this time." Success in the future of commerce will belong to businesses that can adapt to how people naturally communicate‌ — ‌through conversation.

Voice commerce, AI chatbots, and text-based shopping assistants will handle everything from product discovery to checkout, making the buying process as simple as talking to that “shopaholic” friend who knows everything. Ultimately, businesses that make shopping feel effortless through the power of natural conversation will win. And this is critical since 68% of customers say they wouldn’t use a company’s chatbot again if they had a bad experience.

When things move fast, flexibility is crucial — and that’s why so many businesses are turning to composable commerce. It allows you to build your ecommerce stack from specialized, interchangeable components instead of getting locked into specific tools. With composable commerce, you can mix and match modern solutions for payments, inventory, personalization, and checkout. When market conditions shift or new opportunities emerge, you can effortlessly swap out individual components without rebuilding your entire system.

Whether your customers shop from your online store or your brick-and-mortar retail store, they expect consistent experiences across the board. With O2O commerce, you remove the frustrating divide between digital discovery and physical fulfillment. This creates seamless shopping journeys that use the best of both worlds. Consumers can now research products online, try them on with AR at home, then buy online and pick up in-store (BOPIS).

Consider this scenario: A customer browses through your catalog of sofas on your retail app, uses AR to see how one would look in their living room, reserves it in-store to test it for comfort, then makes the purchase and schedules deliver with a store associate through a point-of-sale (POS) system.

Unified commerce plays a significant role in this experience, enabled by the interconnection of online and in-store sales channels and integration between your commerce platform, order management, and in-store point of sale. This integration transforms shopping from a series of disconnected touchpoints into one fluid experience.

We’re always online, scrolling through social media platforms. When we’re not shopping under the influence of a digital creator, we’re actively discovering products on social. And that’s why more than two-thirds (67%) of global shoppers have made a purchase through social media this year. With over 5 billion monthly active users on platforms like Instagram, Facebook, Snapchat, and TikTok, social commerce is rapidly evolving from simple "swipe up to shop" links to sophisticated, AI-powered shopping experiences embedded directly within social platforms. TikTok Shop, Instagram Checkout, and Facebook Marketplace now offer native payment processing, inventory management, and even customer service‌.

Advanced features like live shopping streams, influencer-powered storefronts, and AR try-on filters are transforming social feeds into immersive shopping destinations. It’s fostering a community where discovery and purchase happen simultaneously. Social commerce is shifting from driving external traffic to creating complete shopping experiences within the apps customers already love.

Thanks to new social commerce tools — like Gen AI for content creation and integrations with social platforms — shopping experiences are getting better, faster, and more engaging. This trend is blurring the lines between shopping and entertainment, with customers now expecting every purchase to be as engaging and seamless as their social media experience.

Imagine watching a livestream where you can chat with the host, see products up close, and snag deals all in real-time. Live commerce is fully transforming how we discover and shop online. Brands are turning product launches into must-watch events, complete with limited-time offers, flash sales, and exclusive access that create urgency and FOMO among viewers. This format combines the personal touch of in-store assistance with the convenience of online shopping, as hosts provide detailed product explanations, styling tips, and honest reviews while viewers engage with each other in real-time.

And China is leading the market here by owning about 30.9% of the global live commerce market. But the U.S. isn’t falling behind — 49 million consumers are using live commerce. What does this mean? Just like we enjoy shopping at brick-and-mortar stores with a friend, we're realizing that online shopping doesn't have to be a solo mission either. This makes people way more engaged and much more likely to buy something than they’d from a static product page.

Attracting new customers is important, but it’s also critical to retain your existing ones. That means you need to find ways to increase loyalty and build brand love. Loyal customers buy more frequently and spend more per purchase over time, increasing the customer's lifetime value (CLV). But here’s the thing: despite actively seeking out brand loyalty programs, they want meaningful rewards and experiences. So, what’s the key to a successful loyalty program? In a word: personalization.

Generic "buy 10, get 1 free" loyalty programs are being replaced by AI-powered tools that create unique rewards based on individual customer behavior, and purchase patterns. Instead of earning standard points, customers now receive personalized offers like early access to products they've browsed, discounts on their favorite brands, or experiences tailored to their lifestyle. For example, free fitness classes for health-conscious shoppers or exclusive popup events for fashion enthusiasts.

And AI can help here. It can analyze shopping habits, seasonal trends, and social media activity to predict what each customer values most. This helps you deliver loyalty programs that feel handpicked rather than mass-produced. This hyper-personalization transforms loyalty from a transactional relationship into an emotional connection. Your customers feel truly understood and valued by brands that anticipate their needs before they even express them. This is precisely why 84% of loyalty program members admit to purchasing more with such programs.

At least 79% of shoppers say UGC influences their purchasing decisions. That’s because it adds credibility, authenticity‌, and social proof to your marketing efforts. As generative AI makes it easier for brands to create their own collateral, authentic user-generated content that features reviews and genuine brand love will become rarer — and thus more valuable. Most shoppers usually watch reviews before making a purchase, and UGC provides value by showcasing real opinions and experiences.

UGC moves beyond generic product descriptions and polished professional photography by showing real-world usage and styling. For example, UGC creators show how clothing ‌fits different body types or how to style pieces in everyday situations. Instead of passively consuming ‌online reviews, UGC nudges ‌consumers to actively participate in their reviews. With an increase in AI-generated content and highly professional advertising, this authentic storytelling will give you an edge.

Take a cue from e.l.f Cosmetics. The #eyeslipsface (ELF) TikTok challenge perfectly exemplifies this strategy. The beauty brand created a catchy original song encouraging users to showcase makeup looks with their products. This generated billions of views and millions of user videos. Even better? The business features UGC across its official channels, turning organic fan creations into powerful social proof in their marketing campaigns and on its website.

Subscriptions are no longer restricted to niche markets. They’re revolutionizing diverse industries from food and beverage to clothing and apparel. Subscriptions have the power to transform a one-time purchase into predictable revenue streams for ecommerce businesses, while providing consumers with convenience through automated deliveries — and often discounted pricing. Subscriptions create deeper customer relationships, encouraging regular engagement with brands. And that’s why we see it across beauty, food, fitness, and digital services.

Trends may flip and evolve fast! But your tech stack should make those trends work for you. With a solid CRM like Commerce Cloud, you can act fast and make informed decisions, thanks to the built-in AI insights. It’s equipped to help you scale and make quick changes to your digital storefront. Personalize every interaction, and make sure you evolve with the changing times. Commerce Cloud can help you get there.