Digital commerce has undergone a significant transformation over the past few years – not necessarily through large, futuristic breakthroughs, but through a combination of technology and shifting customer behaviour.
Nikola Mehandžić, Board Member at Monri Payments Serbia, discussed these changes with Zorana Milidrag, Global eCommerce Director at Foot Locker SEE, and Niccolò Lania, Group eCommerce Product Marketing Lead at Nexi Group.
At the beginning of the discussion, Zorana Milidrag highlighted that one of the most important changes in recent years is how we perceive customer experience. In the past, promotions were the main driver of purchases, while today, customers expect much more. Concepts such as pickup points and one-click purchasing have significantly reshaped the value proposition of e-commerce. At the same time, the way people search has evolved—visual search and advanced algorithms are increasingly influencing how customers make decisions.
Niccolò Lania continued by pointing out one of the most visible changes in the payments industry—the shift from physical wallets to digital ones. Today, payments are faster, simpler, and almost invisible to the user. He also mentioned emerging innovations such as “smile-to-pay” in China. The concept of one-click payments and digital wallets allows customers to spend more time exploring products while completing purchases in just a second. The next step goes even further—towards invisible payments. The idea is that systems recognise users and enable transactions without additional steps, sometimes even without requiring data input or confirmation.
Customers have clearly demonstrated their readiness to adopt online payments and new technologies. Examples from the region show that even more traditional users quickly embrace new habits when offered a seamless experience. This suggests that the issue with digital transformation often lies not with customers, but with merchants. Demand exists—but supply is often behind. Customer journey analyses reveal critical friction points in e-commerce, particularly in the final stage of purchase. The biggest challenges remain mandatory account creation and complex payment processes.
Another major issue for merchants is data. While companies collect vast amounts of it, it is often unstructured, poorly segmented, and difficult to use for personalisation. Without high-quality data, even advanced technologies like AI cannot deliver meaningful results. In other words, the problem is often not the technology itself, but the foundation it is built on. Innovation is not lacking—startups, tech companies, and global players are constantly developing new solutions. However, outdated IT infrastructure, as well as slow and complex systems, often prevent these innovations from being implemented effectively.
To succeed in digital commerce, companies need to focus on three key areas: operational readiness, data quality, and continuous testing. Systems must be flexible and ready for rapid change. Without quality data, personalisation and advanced solutions are not possible. And since there is no universal solution, constant testing and adaptation are essential. A key recommendation for improving digital checkout is to simplify the payment process as much as possible and align it with user habits. This includes enabling guest checkout, eliminating unnecessary steps (such as re-entering card details), and clearly presenting the most commonly used payment methods. By leveraging behavioural data and optimising payment options, conversion rates can increase significantly—by 20% or more.
The future of digital commerce does not lie in a single breakthrough innovation, but in the combination of seamless user experience, fast and invisible payments, high-quality data, and a willingness to adapt.
