What is smart commerce?
Posted: Mon Jan 06, 2025 4:41 am
They say that Web 3.0 is going to be the era of smart commerce… So it is pertinent to ask: what exactly does this concept consist of?
You could say that Web 1.0 was the era of e-commerce … But things have come a long way since then. In fact, after going through a Web 2.0 phase in which social commerce was supposed to take over (i.e. hyper-connected businesses with social networks), it seems that we are now in a Web 3.0 phase in which two words prevail: smart commerce .
And what exactly is smart commerce ? We could say that this is a new business model that not only takes into account consumer purchasing trends, but records them and uses them to enrich future purchases. It does so using current tools such as social media and new technologies.
To better understand what smart commerce is, however, it is absolutely necessary to define three other different but interconnected concepts: smart consumer, artificial intelligence and smart ecommerce. Let's address them one by one below.
The smart consumer
It is clear that the mobile phone has completely changed the way people access information and therefore also the way a consumer uses the smartphone as a tool to support any purchase impulse. Today's consumer is a digital consumer… even when shopping in the real world.
It is important to keep in mind that mobile phones are already the most commonly used device for accessing the Internet, and this is something that you need to know how to leverage in australia number data your own business's favour. To start with, in the digital world itself: it is best not to fight against everything that is beyond the control of your own e-commerce, but to establish alliances with social networks, external user opinions on products, etc.
The most interesting thing is that the concept of smart consumer is also applicable to the real world: why not put QR codes in your store that increase product information? Why not explore the possibilities of augmented reality to enrich the shopping experience? That is precisely what smart commerce is all about.
Artificial intelligence
The digital trail left by every consumer (again, in the real world or in the increasingly interconnected virtual world) may be one of those dangers that every consumer fears. The fear of being monitored is real, but that doesn't mean that monitoring (or at least monitoring within reasonable parameters) can't collect certain consumer data that can then facilitate future purchases.
The work of artificial intelligence, an increasingly complex and effective reality, consists of interpreting this trace and putting it at the service of smart commerce. However, to ensure clean and direct access by artificial intelligence to the relevant data, it is necessary to resort to terms such as usability (access to the product and information, the clearer and more intuitive, the better) or privacy (should you allow access to your e-commerce as a guest? Should you opt for mandatory registration?).
Smart e-commerce
Obviously, smart commerce has its direct application in the virtual world through the specific concept of smart ecommerce. The trend in this case is to opt for multi-channel (why not sell your products outside your own website and use external marketplaces?) and explore a good pricing strategy.
It's inevitable: consumers see the Internet as the place to find bargains... Even if these bargains involve a much more intense search that, in fact, can end up playing in favour of your own business. The question is to find a pricing strategy that is competent and attractive to serve as a springboard for your smart commerce. And, from there, straight to the Web 4.0 phase.
You could say that Web 1.0 was the era of e-commerce … But things have come a long way since then. In fact, after going through a Web 2.0 phase in which social commerce was supposed to take over (i.e. hyper-connected businesses with social networks), it seems that we are now in a Web 3.0 phase in which two words prevail: smart commerce .
And what exactly is smart commerce ? We could say that this is a new business model that not only takes into account consumer purchasing trends, but records them and uses them to enrich future purchases. It does so using current tools such as social media and new technologies.
To better understand what smart commerce is, however, it is absolutely necessary to define three other different but interconnected concepts: smart consumer, artificial intelligence and smart ecommerce. Let's address them one by one below.
The smart consumer
It is clear that the mobile phone has completely changed the way people access information and therefore also the way a consumer uses the smartphone as a tool to support any purchase impulse. Today's consumer is a digital consumer… even when shopping in the real world.
It is important to keep in mind that mobile phones are already the most commonly used device for accessing the Internet, and this is something that you need to know how to leverage in australia number data your own business's favour. To start with, in the digital world itself: it is best not to fight against everything that is beyond the control of your own e-commerce, but to establish alliances with social networks, external user opinions on products, etc.
The most interesting thing is that the concept of smart consumer is also applicable to the real world: why not put QR codes in your store that increase product information? Why not explore the possibilities of augmented reality to enrich the shopping experience? That is precisely what smart commerce is all about.
Artificial intelligence
The digital trail left by every consumer (again, in the real world or in the increasingly interconnected virtual world) may be one of those dangers that every consumer fears. The fear of being monitored is real, but that doesn't mean that monitoring (or at least monitoring within reasonable parameters) can't collect certain consumer data that can then facilitate future purchases.
The work of artificial intelligence, an increasingly complex and effective reality, consists of interpreting this trace and putting it at the service of smart commerce. However, to ensure clean and direct access by artificial intelligence to the relevant data, it is necessary to resort to terms such as usability (access to the product and information, the clearer and more intuitive, the better) or privacy (should you allow access to your e-commerce as a guest? Should you opt for mandatory registration?).
Smart e-commerce
Obviously, smart commerce has its direct application in the virtual world through the specific concept of smart ecommerce. The trend in this case is to opt for multi-channel (why not sell your products outside your own website and use external marketplaces?) and explore a good pricing strategy.
It's inevitable: consumers see the Internet as the place to find bargains... Even if these bargains involve a much more intense search that, in fact, can end up playing in favour of your own business. The question is to find a pricing strategy that is competent and attractive to serve as a springboard for your smart commerce. And, from there, straight to the Web 4.0 phase.