A new report reveals that 93% of organizations say their existing technology is limiting their ability to succeed in ecommerce.
The 2025 Digital Commerce Landscape Report, released by Elastic Path in partnership with research firm Vanson Bourne, highlights the business challenges tied to outdated technology. Among those challenges are difficulty scaling during high demand, increased cybersecurity risks, and lost revenue opportunities.
The report surveyed 200 IT leaders and business decision-makers from manufacturers, retailers, and wholesalers in the United States and the United Kingdom. The findings underscore how legacy systems are preventing companies from remaining competitive, with 72% of respondents agreeing that outdated technology is holding them back.
Despite the widespread recognition of digital commerce as a strategic priority — with 45% of organizations ranking it among their top three business goals — many companies struggle to execute their strategies due to technology constraints. Among those that did not rank digital commerce as a top priority, 37% cited outdated infrastructure as the primary reason.
How old technology limits ecommerce success
“Almost every organization is facing technology limitations that are negatively impacting their ecommerce businesses,” said Bryan House, president of Elastic Path. “To meet the needs of a rapidly evolving market, composable commerce is required to address both integration challenges and the need for enhanced capabilities.”
Customer retention emerged as a key challenge. The report found that 56% of respondents are dissatisfied with their storefront’s ability to retain customers. Meanwhile, 49% struggle to maintain customer loyalty. As customer acquisition costs rise, 31% of organizations focus on customer retention strategies, and 38% are investing in loyalty programs. Subscription management is also a focus. 44% of respondents prioritize upgrades to their subscription capabilities.
Integration issues are another obstacle. Over half (51%) of organizations are dissatisfied with the ease of integrating their systems with other platforms and third-party applications. And 52% report challenges with creating and managing APIs. As a result, 43% of organizations face difficulties integrating their commerce platforms with third-party technology. Meanwhile, 32% say rigid IT systems require time-consuming custom development work.
Artificial intelligence (AI) is emerging as a critical tool for maintaining competitiveness. The report found that 45% of organizations feel pressure to adopt AI and other emerging technologies. And 86% fear being left behind if they do not incorporate AI into their digital commerce strategies. The most common planned use for AI is improving SEO and content creation (50%), followed by implementing AI-powered chatbots (49%).
Despite these challenges, 95% of respondents agree that their digital commerce strategies need improvement. However, more than 40% lack the budget to fully invest in new ecommerce platforms, suggesting that incremental improvements may be more practical than large-scale technology overhauls.
The study was conducted in January and February 2025, surveying decision-makers from companies with annual revenues between $25 million and $500 million.
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