Hey, it's Chase and Jimmy here.

The eCommerce landscape has shifted more in the last 18 months than in the previous five years combined.

AI assistants are completing purchases for customers. Checkout friction is disappearing. Customers expect seamless experiences across every channel, not just email.

And the data proves it (more on that soon).

If your strategy hasn't evolved since 2024 (2025 even), you're already playing catch-up.

Today we're breaking down the five trends actually shaping eCommerce in 2026 and what you need to do to stay competitive.

Also inside:
✔️ Get out of Gmail promo box $99 lifetime deal
✔️ The top 10% of ecommerce agencies do these 5 things differently
✔️ Quick clips: This week's top eCom news stories

Let’s dive in.

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5 eCommerce trends shaping how brands grow in 2026

Remember when entering your credit card info for every purchase was just... normal? Now you can buy something with a Face ID scan in three seconds, and AI assistants are literally shosurepping for you while you sleep.

The way people discover, evaluate, and buy products has fundamentally changed in the last 18 months. And the brands that are still running playbooks from 2023 are already behind.

Here are the five trends actually shaping ecommerce right now, and what you need to do to keep up.

AI and agentic commerce are changing how customers discover and buy

People are already using AI assistants like ChatGPT to research products, compare options, and make purchases without ever opening a browser. This is called agentic commerce, and it's not some distant future scenario.

The numbers tell the story:

• ChatGPT is driving 15-20% of referral traffic for major retailers right now

• Shopify reports AI-driven traffic is up 7x year over year

• Orders from AI searches are up 11x

Customers are asking questions like "What's the best moisturizer for dry skin under $50?" and AI is recommending products, comparing options, and sometimes even completing the purchase in the same session.

Why should you care? If your products aren't showing up in those recommendations, you're invisible to a growing segment of shoppers. And unlike traditional SEO where you could game rankings, AI recommendations are based on relevance, reviews, product data quality, and availability. You can't buy your way to the top.

Discovery is shifting from visual browsing to conversational search. Customers aren't scrolling through product grids anymore. They're describing what they need and expecting AI to surface the right answer.

Action steps to implement

Start tracking AI-driven traffic. Look for referral sources from ChatGPT, Perplexity, and other AI platforms in your analytics. If you're seeing traffic from these sources, that's your signal to invest here.

Optimize your product data. AI pulls from product descriptions, reviews, specs, and availability. Make sure your product pages are detailed, accurate, and easy for AI to parse. Include clear benefits, use cases, and key attributes.

Monitor how your brand appears in AI results. Periodically search for products in your category using AI tools and see if you show up. If competitors are appearing and you're not, you have a visibility problem.

Build flows for AI-origin traffic. Customers coming from AI assistants are high-intent. Create specific email and SMS flows for this audience that reflect their research-driven mindset.

The brands that figure out agentic commerce early will have a major advantage in discovery and conversion over the next few years.

Channel strategy is shifting from email-first to true omnichannel

Email is still critical, but it's no longer the only channel that matters for retention. The landscape has evolved:

• SMS has moved from nice-to-have to primary engagement channel

• Social commerce through TikTok Shop and Instagram is driving actual revenue, not just awareness

• Customers expect seamless experiences no matter where they interact with you

The shift isn't just adding more channels. It's about coordinating them so each one plays a specific role in the customer journey instead of all doing the same thing.

Why should you care? Customers don't think in channels. They think in moments. They might discover you on TikTok, research on your website, buy via SMS, and re-engage through email. If those experiences feel disconnected or redundant, you lose them. Brands that master omnichannel aren't just present everywhere. They're strategic about what each channel does best and how they work together.

Action steps to implement

Define the role of each channel. Email is great for storytelling, education, and deeper content. SMS works for time-sensitive offers, restock alerts, and high-intent moments. Social is for discovery and community. Stop using all three the same way.

Coordinate your messaging, don't duplicate it. If you're sending the same promo via email, SMS, and social, you're wasting touches. Tease in one channel, deliver in another. Use email for context, SMS for urgency.

Build SMS as a retention channel, not just transactional updates. SMS isn't for shipping notifications anymore. It's for VIP offers, early access, exclusive drops, and high-value customer engagement.

Track cross-channel behavior. Look at how customers move between channels before they convert. Are people discovering on social and buying via email? Browsing your site and converting via SMS? Use that data to optimize your flow.

The best retention strategies in 2026 aren't single-channel. They're orchestrated across every touchpoint.

Consumer behavior is shifting toward value, transparency, and belonging

Customers are more selective about where they spend. The shift is happening across three key areas:

• Value over price: They're not just looking for cheap. They want quality, experience, and alignment with their priorities.

• Transparency as baseline: Customers want to know where products come from, how they're made, and what the brand stands for.

• Community over transactions: They're drawn to brands that feel like communities, not just places to shop.

This isn't about performative values or surface-level storytelling. It's about customers making purchase decisions based on whether a brand feels trustworthy, authentic, and worth being part of.

Why should you care? Price wars don't build loyalty. They attract deal hunters who'll leave the second someone undercuts you. But when customers feel connected to your brand, understand your value, and trust your transparency, they stick around. The brands growing right now aren't necessarily the cheapest. They're the ones that make customers feel good about buying from them.

Action steps to implement

Communicate value, not just price. When you promote an offer, lead with what customers get, not just what they save. "Free shipping, exclusive access, and priority support" is more compelling than "20% off."

Be transparent about your supply chain, pricing, and values. Don't make customers guess. Tell them where your products come from, how they're made, and what you stand for. This builds trust faster than any marketing copy.

Build community into your retention strategy. Create spaces where customers can engage with each other, not just with you. User-generated content campaigns, exclusive communities, or loyalty programs that feel like clubs all reinforce belonging.

Show up consistently on the things you say matter. If you talk about sustainability, your packaging better reflect it. If you talk about supporting small businesses, your actions need to match. Customers see through inconsistency instantly.

The brands that win long-term are the ones customers want to support, not just buy from.

Payment and conversion friction is disappearing fast

Every barrier between "I want this" and "I bought this" is being systematically removed:

• Buy now, pay later (BNPL) is standard, not special

• One-click checkout is becoming table stakes

• Passwordless authentication is rolling out everywhere

• Guest checkout is expected, not optional

Customers expect the buying process to be instant, flexible, and frictionless. If your checkout requires account creation, manual address entry, or more than two taps, you're losing conversions.

Why should you care? Conversion rate optimization used to be about better product pages and stronger CTAs. Now it's about removing every possible point of friction in the purchase flow. The brands with the smoothest checkout experiences convert more traffic into revenue without spending a dollar more on acquisition.

Action steps to implement

Offer BNPL as standard, not a perk. Integrate Afterpay, Klarna, or Shop Pay into your checkout. Customers expect flexible payment options, and offering them increases AOV and conversion rates.

Enable one-click checkout wherever possible. Shop Pay, Apple Pay, Google Pay; make it possible for customers to buy in a single tap without filling out forms.

Optimize your mobile checkout flow. Most traffic is mobile. If your checkout doesn't work flawlessly on a phone, you're hemorrhaging conversions. Test it yourself. If it takes more than 30 seconds to complete, simplify it.

Use autofill and smart defaults. Pre-populate fields where possible. Default to the fastest shipping option. Make the path of least resistance the path you want customers to take.

Remove unnecessary steps. Do you really need customers to create an account before checkout? Probably not. Let them buy as a guest and collect their info after the purchase when trust is higher.

The less someone has to think or work to complete a purchase, the more likely they are to finish it.

Retention and first-party data are the new competitive advantage

The landscape is forcing a strategic shift:

• Customer acquisition costs keep climbing

• Paid ads are more expensive and less effective

• Third-party cookies are disappearing

• Tracking pixels and retargeting don't work like they used to

This is pushing brands to focus on retention and building direct relationships through owned channels. That means collecting first-party and zero-party data so you can personalize without relying on third-party tracking.

The difference: first-party data is what you collect through customer interactions (purchases, site behavior, email engagement). Zero-party data is what customers intentionally share with you (preferences, goals, product needs).

Why should you care? The brands that own their customer data and relationships will have a massive advantage over the ones that rely on rented audiences and third-party platforms. Retention is also just more profitable. Increasing retention by 5% can boost profitability by 25-95%. Your existing customers are your most valuable asset, and the brands investing in keeping them are the ones growing sustainably.

Action steps to implement

Build zero-party data collection into your flows. Ask customers what they care about, not just what they bought. Use preference centers, quizzes, and surveys to collect information they willingly share. Then use that data to personalize future messaging.

Create post-purchase experiences that drive retention. Don't go silent after someone buys. Use email and SMS to onboard them, educate them on product usage, ask for feedback, and offer complementary products. The post-purchase window is where loyalty gets built or lost.

Segment beyond demographics. Stop segmenting by age and location. Segment by behavior, engagement, purchase frequency, and lifetime value. Use AI to predict which customers are likely to churn and intervene before they do.

Offer value in exchange for data. Customers will share preferences, product needs, and personal info if you give them something valuable in return. Early access, personalized recommendations, exclusive content; all of these work.

Build a loyalty program that actually drives behavior. Loyalty programs aren't just points and discounts. The best ones create tiers, unlock perks, and make customers feel like insiders. Use them to collect preferences, reward engagement, and increase LTV.

The brands that build retention strategies around owned data will be the ones that grow profitably while acquisition costs keep rising.

These trends aren't isolated, they're interconnected

AI is changing discovery, which changes how you show up in the buying journey. Omnichannel is about meeting customers where they are, which requires better data and coordination. Consumer behavior shifts mean you need transparency and community, which feeds retention. Frictionless payments increase conversions, which gives you more customers to retain. And retention depends on first-party data, which lets you personalize at scale.

The brands that understand how these trends intersect are the ones building sustainable, scalable growth.

Here's what to prioritize:

• Start tracking and optimizing for AI-driven traffic now

• Coordinate your channels instead of duplicating effort across them

• Build value, transparency, and community into your brand positioning

• Remove every bit of friction from your checkout experience

• Invest in retention and first-party data collection as your primary growth lever

You don't need to execute all of this at once. But you do need to understand where the market is moving and start building toward it. The brands that wait will spend the next two years catching up.

The top 10% of ecommerce agencies do these 5 things differently

Omnisend analyzed 717 agencies managing 2,990 brands to understand what separates top performers from the rest. The best agencies generate $170K per client annually and $16.70 per subscriber; not by working harder, but by working smarter.

What top-performing agencies do:

• Add SMS to their channel mix (agencies using SMS generate 202% more revenue on average)

• Run A/B tests regularly (192% higher revenue compared to those that don't test)

• Launch the first automation within 8 days of onboarding instead of weeks later

• Run 5.3 active automations per client, covering the full lifecycle; not just cart recovery

• Send 5.4 campaigns per month consistently, maintaining steady communication without oversending

The difference isn't one big decision; it's small, consistent improvements that compound over time. Top agencies also retain clients longer (1,020 days on average) and generate 45% of total email revenue from automations, not campaigns.

→ Read the full study

Quick Clips:

• NRF says 2026 is shaping up strong: NRF is forecasting 4.4% retail sales growth this year (above the 10-year average of 3.6%) driven by a consumer who keeps spending even when sentiment is low. The catch: that growth won't be evenly distributed, with higher-income households expected to carry most of the weight.

• AI is everywhere in ecom; but the handoff is broken: A LogicBroker survey of 600+ enterprise ecom leaders found 96% have invested in AI, with nearly half planning to drop $1M+ more in the next 12 months. The top use cases are all customer-facing, but the real gap is the moment AI passes the baton to a human; most brands are underinvesting there, and customers are feeling it.

• Facebook is paying creators to show up: Facebook's new "Creator Fast Track" program offers up to $3K/month guaranteed pay for creators with 1M+ followers on TikTok, YouTube, or Instagram who start posting Reels. The platform paid out nearly $3 billion to creators in 2025... and clearly wants a bigger piece of the creator economy pie.

• Ferrero goes bold in Brazil: Ferrero is acquiring Brazilian protein snack brand Bold Snacks, marking its entry into the better-for-you segment in South America. Bold Snacks built its name through a digital-first playbook and a growing protein portfolio; a familiar formula Ferrero has used to scale similar acquisitions in Europe and North America.

Annnnd that’s a wrap for this edition! 

Thanks for hanging with Chase and me. Always a pleasure to have you here.

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🤘 Jimmy Kim & Chase Dimond

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