Technology for Evolving Ecommerce Date:   Wednesday , October 08, 2014 Founded in July 2011 in Silicon Valley, ShopClues.com is India\'s first managed marketplace that connects buyers and sellers online and offers a trusted and safe online shopping experience. E-commerce took sometime to arrive in India, but it took very little time to grab the limelight to become one of the most promising industry sectors. Over the last decade, ecommerce has evolved into $47 billion industry and is already giving traditional retail a run for its money. It has a lot of opportunity to offer the industry players and is expected to contribute around 4 percent of India’s GDP by 2020. Shoppers are warming up to online commerce that gives them the change to shop at will from the comfort of their homes. E-commerce thrives on technology and digital practices. In the coming years,with the rise of social networking and adoption of mobile devices,there will be a sea change in the way enterprises interact and transact with consumers. Several technology changes are sweeping the ecommerce sector: Big Data Analytics The tech-savvy consumer is looking for personalization of his/her shopping experience. While consumers are getting connected, the proliferation of digital activity leaves behind a record of their behavior and preferences which provides the much needed pools of knowledge and data. This clearly indicates that social revolution has given way to one of the most significant trend in e-commerce today which is Big Data and Analytics. Manufacturers and merchants from different sectors have begun to link their products with smartphone apps. This results in the consumer benefitting from digital experience and their data usage leaves behind insights for merchants. ShopClues.com believes data analytics is fundamental for any business and we are a data intense company. We extensively capture data and analyzeit to obtain shopping trends and consumer interests. It helps us stay abreast of market needs and this proactive approach gives us good conversions. Online sites are also trying to break barriers and are offering customers with real-time shopping experience through facilities like online chat, suggestion facilities, answers to queries, etc. Mobile Commerce The mobile phone is fast emerging as the ubiquitous device for every Indian, not just in the metro cities but also in tier 2/3 towns. The smartphone is no longer just a communication device but a powerful channel for advertising and anywhere commerce. ShopClues.com is a technology company in the retail space and the biggest challenge for the firm like ours is to keep pace with rapidly evolving technology. Mobility has been part of our business strategy from day one because we understand the pulse of the consumer. We recently launched a mobile app for Android phones. The app was developed in-house by our technology team. This was the third app we developed- the previous two being apps for our pick-up boys and another one for our merchants to manage their online stores. Smart Innovations ShopClues.com has ensured faster checkouts while shopping by introducing the ‘Express Checkout’ feature. Regular customers on our site usually choose the same shipping address and mode of payment for each transaction. So, the Express Checkout feature retains this information automatically applies it during checkout, reducing the effort and transaction time by nearly 80%. ShopClues.com has also introduced new retail formats the Wholesale and Factory Outlet models. While the wholesale model allows our customers to buy bulk products at discounted rates, the factory outlet model gives our consumers the chance to get their hands on the world’s best loved brands, all under one roof and at pocket-friendly prices. For the current fiscal ShopClues.com.com is focusing on achieving growth and differentiation in our services and products. We have rolled out an extensive customer engagement program that includes ATL and BTL initiatives. ShopClues.com.com is also investing in building our technology capacity which is an integral part of any e-commerce portal. E-commerce in India is going to be the third biggest market after US and China, so this is the time for all players to ramp up their efforts towards reaching out to the new-age customer.