3 Business Trends and Predictions for 2025

The events and innovations of the last decade have completely transformed the landscape of running a business. Some operational processes have fallen out of practice, the relationship between employer and employee has evolved, and new tools have been built.

With all this recent change to the business world, it’s a safe bet that more is still to come. While no one can predict the future, business owners can trace recent trends and use them to plan their next moves. There’s plenty to speculate on, but here are just a few trends that might help business owners stay ahead of the curve in 2025.

The growth of e-commerce

The Boston Computer Exchange (BCE), a platform where users could buy, sell, and trade computers, pioneered the online marketplace concept known as e-commerce many companies have built on. While the seeds for e-commerce were planted by BCE all the way back in 1982 (a full 13 years before Amazon and Ebay existed), the industry has been extremely busy during the past decade:

• E-commerce now makes up 20% of global retail sales, according to Forrester
• Retail e-commerce grew from $1.3 to $4.4 trillion dollars from 2014 to 2024, growing over 3 times in size.
• E-commerce sales are expected to reach $6.8 trillion by 2028.

Considering these statistics, it’s safe to say that e-commerce will remain a behemoth in the retail sales space. Got a business website with WordPress? Here’s how to set up e-commerce on your WordPress website.

The takeaway for e-commerce

As an owner of an LLC, sole proprietorship, or corporation trying to earn market share, e-commerce simply cannot be neglected as it continues to grow over the next decade. Now that 20% of retail sales happen online, it’s imperative that you take advantage of the world’s growing acceptance and reliance on online purchasing options.

With so many online platforms available to sell goods through, make sure you enter 2025 with your e-commerce bases covered.

The growth of AI as a tool

Contentious as it may be, artificial intelligence (AI) is a tool that many business owners are using to increase company productivity. From supporting customer service teams to aiding in the creation of cybersecurity tools, AI has been making waves in recent years.

• Email communication – If you’re communicating with clients via email regularly, consider using AI to clean up your replies.
• Software development – If you’re writing code for software, AI might be able to speed up the process by writing basic starting code.
• Accounting – AI can be very helpful for completing monotonous, repetitive tasks like loading relevant transaction information onto an invoice template

It’s a very safe bet that business culture is trending towards a stage where humans and technology are even more collaborative.

The takeaway for AI

As a business owner going into 2025, you should be cognizant of the ways that AI can help your business. Small businesses can use AI effectively in quite a few areas. Whether you’re leaning on AI to compensate for weaknesses, or using it to speed up processes, its utility for businesses cannot be denied.

The ongoing prevalence of remote work

Remote work exploded in growth during the 2020 pandemic. While the amount of individuals working from home has since decreased, many workers still favor positions with this option. As technology continues to advance, the number of jobs that are able to be performed remotely will grow as a result. Examples include:

• Data analysis
• Web design
• Video editing
• Software engineering
• Graphic design

This is far from an exhaustive list of jobs that can be performed remotely, or at the very least as a hybrid role split between home and the office.

The takeaway for remote work

All in all, remote work is now considered a bonus in one’s compensation package. The flexibility to perform a role remotely is attractive to potential employees, and could allow you to seek out the best talent for your company by casting a wider net. To make the transition to remote work easier, design a comprehensive on-boarding process to ensure productivity.

Northwest partners with business owners to provide the resources you need to succeed. With teams full of experts and sophisticated tools, we’re here for 2025, and for the long haul. Reach out to us today for all your business maintenance and registered agent needs!