Summary:

E-commerce has a big role to play in the success of the fashion industry even in hard situations like a pandemic. There are several practices that helped during those times. Read to know how? and which?

Fashion is a statement that represents your style, personality, and emotions. Fashion industry is inspiring numerous art styles and artists from all around the world. But, a pandemic endangered this industry and its artists’ survival. Then e-commerce came as an aid to save the fashion industry and its artists from the adverse business effects of the pandemic. Here, we will evaluate why the fashion industry needs e-commerce? But, before starting with the answer I would like to emphasize a bit more about what fashion e-commerce actually is?

What is Fashion E-commerce?

A truly mesmerizing field I will say. And also a brutally competitive online business. Here, standing apart from the crowd needs:

• A lot of creativity
• Knowing what your customers need
• The correct use of helpful tools 

Talking of helpful tools, t-shirt design software is the best investment you can make for upgrading your fashion e-commerce. Through this, you can give your customers the freedom of personalizing their own t-shirts. It has many in-built helpful tools like clip-art, fonts, colors, stickers, and whatnot to help your customers. You can make your customers feel as if they are painting a plain canvas with their favorite hues and designs. Once they are done, you can simply print it and deliver it.

The Apparel Industry and The Pandemic

Pandemic played a vital role in bringing e-commerce in the lime-light. For the majority of the year, businesses and industries have almost come to a halt. But, this human health crisis brought e-commerce in many industries. So, now apparel and fashion and other industries are healing rapidly with the aid of e-commerce during the pandemic. Now, the question here is how the e-commerce industry helped fashion and clothing businesses worldwide?

E-commerce fashion industry: Statistics Underneath

According to the reports, the global online fashion market was worth $533 billion in 2018, and now is predicted to grow to $872bn by 2023.

The 5 remarkable e-commerce opportunities that are driving this growth are:

• Increases online access
• Encourages people to start earning money from selling online (without a shop investment)
• Expands worldwide markets outside the West
• Harness the force of celebrity and influencer culture
• Innovates advances to make experiential e-commerce

The greatest threats to set up brands on e-commerce sites include:

• Demise of brand devotion due to market fragmentation
• Expense of fighting online return rates as high as half
• Pressure from purchasers to utilize morally sourced and only green assembling materials
• Fast fashion’s capacity to make and release fashion on request

How E-commerce Can Help Fashion Designers to Harness This Growth

The pace at which the e-commerce apparel industry is growing, you can’t just miss it, especially if you are a fashion designer. And to make it more simplified for you, we have a list of methods of how e-commerce can help fashion designers to develop their business successfully.

Provides a Worldwide Platform

This is one of the primary benefits of e-commerce in the fashion industry. By using the right e-commerce website, you can get a platform to showcase your talents and creations. Because why should one stay limited to only local audiences or sales when one can make customers across the whole wide world? E-commerce helps you in boosting your sales and customers by globally marketing your products. 

Creates a Brand

Besides assisting retailers with developing their business, e-commerce also helps them with building up a brand. Majority of the audience engagement and their purchases depend upon the brand they are purchasing from. Customers and sales count can give you a reasonable report of how significant a brand name is.

These are the points that represent e-commerce’s significance in the fashion business, particularly for fashion designers.

Best Practices for an Apparel Seller

Here, are some daily practices you can do to enhance and maintain your e-commerce and social appearance: 

Social Media Presence

Choosing the right social media presence is very important. Each social media platform possesses its own pros and cons, some platforms may suit some brands a little better than yours or vice versa. For fashion e-commerce, Instagram is the most influential platform. Instagram’s simplistic design and easy-to-use features draw the audience’s attention to photos. Through this, fashion retailers can market their products on their primary functions, design and appearance. Coming to promotions now. The most common and helpful promotional practice on Instagram is doing the partnership with popular influencers. Influencers can be celebrities too. Another option is promoting your products through Instagram ads. You just need to pay an amount online according to your requirements and expectations.

Website Appearance 

This falls as one of the most important things for any online business. It is probably the first thing any customer sees and judges a brand.

A poorly designed website could result in lower sales and customer engagements. For those reasons, online fashion stores generally put a lot of thought and creativity into building their online appearance. Some of the most vital areas to focus on while creating a successful e-commerce website are:

• A simple and easy to navigate homepage 
• A sleek design and relevant color combinations that represent your products and the brand as the main focus. 
• Clear and concise information on all the main areas of business like delivery process, types of product, etc
• Efficient and fast website. If it looks amazing but takes ages to load on certain platforms, then customers are going to give up on your website and put their money somewhere else

Best Ways to Communicate With Customers 

E-commerce businesses have a list of options available when it comes to communication with their customers including:

• Live Chat – A simple and fast way to connect with your customers via the website or social site. It is a good way for solving simple queries quickly during working hours.
• Email – Best for updating customers about the orders, offers, newsletters, launches, and whatnot. Keep your customers up to date with all the latest promotional events and fashion styles. 
• Phone – Good for solving queries faster and more personally than Live Chat.
• Social Media – For winning a relationship in the long run, the best practice would be becoming a part of the buyer’s social life. This way you can gain their trust. How? By showing your products, services, and updates through the grids. You can give your contact number or email address on social media. This will help customers to contact you directly via phone too if required. You can even use comments to communicate with them for solving their queries

Wrapping Up

The world of e-commerce is developing with updating features at a staggering rate and keeping your customers or being on top of information has never been more necessary. It is clear that e-commerce is the best way to gain an understanding of your customers’ requirements and needs. But it is equally necessary to maintain the existing loyal customers too. As e-commerce will continue to develop, competition will increase between retailers. And to thrive here, you will need knowledge of marketing communication, and presenting your innovative ideas.

Frequently Asked Questions

What crucial role did e-commerce play for the fashion and apparel industry during the pandemic?

E-commerce was critical because it allowed fashion businesses to continue operating when physical stores were shut down. It shifted sales online, preventing the industry from coming to a complete halt during a global crisis. This move helped many designers and retailers stay in business and begin healing from the economic effects.

What are the biggest financial threats fashion brands face when selling products online?

Brands face the high cost of fighting consumer return rates that can be as high as fifty percent. Another threat is the potential loss of customer loyalty due to the market being fragmented, making it harder to stand out. Managing these return costs is essential for a profitable online apparel business.

How can a fashion e-commerce site use a t-shirt design tool to increase customer engagement?

Using a t-shirt design software allows you to offer customization, letting customers design their own unique apparel. This feature makes the shopping experience more interactive and personal for the buyer. Giving customers control over the design process is a great way to build brand connection and boost sales.

Which social media platform is most important for a fashion e-commerce brand to use?

Instagram is the most influential platform for the fashion e-commerce sector because its design focuses heavily on images and appearance. This visual emphasis allows apparel retailers to immediately market the look and design of their products. Partnerships with popular celebrities or local influencers are an effective way to promote clothing on this platform.

What specific features must a successful fashion e-commerce website have to attract customers?

A successful website needs a sleek, yet simple design so customers can easily find what they need. Most importantly, it must load quickly; a slow website will cause customers to leave and shop elsewhere. Clear information about delivery and product types should also be easy to find.

What is the most effective way for an online fashion business to build brand trust and loyalty over time?

The best long-term way to build strong customer relationships is to become a consistent part of their social life. You can achieve this by regularly posting updates and product previews on social media grids. This steady presence gains their trust by showing transparency and making your brand relatable.

Besides selling locally, what is the biggest advantage e-commerce gives a fashion designer?

E-commerce provides a vast, worldwide platform, allowing a designer to market and sell their creations globally. This eliminates the limits of local sales and vastly increases the potential customer base. Going global can boost sales and give a small brand a much larger audience engagement.

Should I worry about making my website look perfect before ensuring it is fast and efficient?

No, you should prioritize website efficiency and speed over just the overall look. While a great design is important for first impressions, a slow loading website will quickly frustrate customers and cause them to leave. The appearance means little if the site is too slow to browse or load images properly.

Why is using email a superior communication practice compared to live chat for fashion retailers?

Email is better for sending important updates about orders, new product launches, and promotional offers to large customer lists. Live chat is great for quickly solving simple customer queries during business hours. Email allows you to maintain a continuous, up-to-date conversation with a broad base of existing, loyal customers.

What does “experiential e-commerce” mean in the context of fashion, and why is it a driver of growth?

Experiential e-commerce refers to innovative advances that make the online purchasing process more engaging and interactive for the customer. This growth is driven by things like virtual try-ons or customization tools, which offer a shopping experience closer to being in a physical store. This innovation helps brands stand out in a brutally competitive online market.