eMarketer forecasting analyst Eric Haggstrom and principal analyst at Insider Intelligence Andrew Lipsman discuss Amazon's retail and ad businesses as well as Jeff Bezos stepping down as CEO. They then talk about Walmart's new partnership with The Trade Desk, whether vaccinated shoppers will want to return to stores, and what click and collect's future looks like.

eMarketer principal analyst at Insider Intelligence Andrew Lipsman discusses how holiday shopping in 2020 actually went: how much was bought online, whether "shipageddon" came true, and the retail winners and losers. He then explains the implications of Walmart's ecommerce boss leaving, Poshmark's and Affirm's IPOs, and why Peloton is buying Precor.

To buy or not to buy–here’s why internet users turn away from brands when online shopping

The pandemic accelerated payments industry digitization across the entire landscape, as merchants turned to ecommerce to keep doors open, consumers eschewed cash in favor of electronic and contactless payments, and payments technology providers rapidly developed and launched new solutions to keep up.

The returns process has always been a hassle for many shoppers—particularly the task of having to ship something back. Amid the pandemic, these pain points are just as prevalent, if not more so.

eMarketer senior analyst Bill Fisher and principal analyst at Insider Intelligence Karin von Abrams discuss what they're paying attention to in 2021 and why: How Brexit will impact online shopping, Amazon's European rivals, and new EU tech regulations.

Latin American ecommerce giant Mercado Libre has benefitted immensely from the pandemic, as stay-at-home orders forced consumers to buy online. According to our inaugural forecast on Mercado Libre, the online marketplace’s sales will surge 46.5% in Latin America by the end of 2020, to $20.51 billion. And it still has room to grow in several key markets—even where it already dominates.

The pandemic has had a profound impact on Latin America’s retail industry. Mandated stay-at-home orders in several countries forced retailers to close physical stores, wreaking havoc on many companies’ bottom lines.

Singles' Day, which took place last month, registered another record-breaking year. Annual sales growth on leading ecommerce platforms Alibaba and JD.com rose 85.6% and 32.8%, to RMB 498.2 billion ($72.1 billion) and RMB 271.5 billion ($ 39.3 billion) respectively.

Amazon’s ad revenues along with its retail sales have increased as consumers continue to shift to ecommerce at elevated rates.

More than a year since launch, Verishop has made strides in the marketplace landscape. In addition to boosting discoverability efforts and continuing to work with direct-to-consumer (D2C) brands, the company is also dipping its toes in the social commerce arena.

The UK is something of a global leader when it comes to retail ecommerce. As a proportion of total retail sales, only China will trump the UK in ecommerce sales penetration this year (41.2% versus 30.9%, respectively). The UK’s fulfillment and delivery infrastructure is, as one would expect, quite mature.

Despite what should be historic headwinds, we are projecting marginally positive holiday season growth rates amid unprecedented channel-shifting behavior. In short, ecommerce’s impressive showing this year will make up for a sizable deficit at brick-and-mortar retail.

The 2020 US holiday season, set amid the backdrop of a pandemic-driven consumer economy, will see an unprecedented shift to ecommerce.

Marketers will spend $17.37 billion on advertising on ecommerce sites and apps this year, according to eMarketer’s first-ever forecast of ecommerce channel ad spending. Ad spending on ecommerce properties will be up 38.8% from 2019—an acceleration of spending growth, thanks to the pandemic. By the end of this year, ecommerce channel advertising will represent 12.2% of US digital ad spend.

eMarketer is pleased to moderate a Tech-Talk Webinar featuring Zenreach's John Kelly, CEO, and Robert Cornell, vice president of sales. They will discuss how brick-and-mortar retailers can use data collection to build customer profiles, track subsequent visits and past purchases, and design retargeting campaigns.

The retail industry will continue to lead the pack in terms of digital ad spend in 2020, and the lockdown has helped retail solidify its position. This year, UK digital ad spending in the retail sector will reach £3.02 billion ($3.85 billion).

We recently spoke with Leila Kashani Manshoory, founder and CEO of Alleyoop, about the challenges of remote photoshoots, the company’s recent pop-up partnerships with Bloomingdale’s and Verishop, and its foray into augmented reality (AR).

To effectively understand and adapt to consumer shopping trends this holiday season, a measurement framework that prioritizes business outcomes is key.

Over the past few months, retailers have experienced an ecommerce boost as a result of the pandemic and overall change in consumer shopping behavior.