News and Analysis
Why One Version of the Truth Is Vital to a Retailer’s Success
When walking into a Walmart, customers know exactly what to expect, as the brand provides a consistent experience from merchandise to employee interactions, no matter the location. With over 10,500 stores, Walmart employs 2.1 million associates. From a managerial standpoint, that number can seem daunting. Providing a consistent experience across all store locations can be […]
A Dozen Predictions for Multi-Location Brands
Over the past few years, we’ve seen cosmic shifts in consumer shopping and dining behaviors. Our lives have been forever changed by the pandemic and the proliferation of a wide range of technologies (not to mention supply chain challenges). Our focus on multi-location brands qualifies us as futurists, so here are some of our observations […]
Brand Marketers Strike a Balance Between Personalization, Privacy
Individualized marketing is a powerful tool for brands looking to engage with customers on a deeper level, but with one wrong step, personalization can quickly become creepy. Although 62% of consumers today say they expect personalization from their favorite brands, just 40% say they actually trust brands to use their data responsibly and keep it […]
Commentary
Your Flagship Store Should Be Digital in 2021
The customer experience must be the central tenet for all brands in 2021. The retail changes that occurred in 2020 have made e-commerce the highest and most important expression of your brand. A digital-first approach to retail is now required to create frictionless experiences across channels.
Latest Posts
Local Businesses Face Negative Reviews Due to Coronavirus Safety Requirements
Google has taken several important measures to assist businesses during the pandemic, but none so far can prevent customers angry about coronavirus-related restrictions from lashing out at businesses attempting to follow public health best practices or the letter of the local law. “The review space has never been harder than right now,” wrote GatherUp co-founder and reputation management expert Mike Blumenthal.
But there are also possible strategies for survival.
No Longer Alternative: The Rapidly Approaching Future of Local Payment Methods
In Asia, consumers typically prefer mobile e-wallets. Various bank transfer methods are popular across Europe. And in Latin America, many consumers rely on cash to pay for online shopping. These local payment methods (or LPMs) have been previously referred to by the industry as alternative payment methods (APMs), but the reality is that they are — globally speaking — no longer the alternative. These LPMs facilitate the needs of different geographies, cultures, and domestic economies across the globe.
Yet despite the fact that most consumers across the globe rely on LPMs, we’re still seeing a lack of adoption of these payment methods by online merchants in the US and UK. But, as we dive further into the digital age, it is a matter of when, not if, the trend will need to shift. Let’s explore the unique factors driving consumer behavior, payment preferences, and how merchants can best position themselves for the future of commerce.
With Walmart+, Retailer Combines Digital Subscription Service and Physical Stores
Regardless of which retailer comes out on top, there’s no doubt that many will see Walmart’s decision to launch a digital-first membership program as a turning point in brick-and-mortar retail and a concession on Walmart’s part that e-commerce is the way of the future, displacing rather than complementing old-school retail.
Marcel Hollerbach contends that Walmart’s decision to launch a membership program points to just how well positioned retailers with physical locations are in the current climate, with the ability to quickly facilitate things like in-store returns and same-day deliveries of items that take much longer to ship by mail.
Heard on the Street, Episode 54: Augmenting Local Commerce
AR’s impact on local is playing out in many ways, including Google’s “internet of places” aspirations to let you point your phone at storefronts to reveal information like business details and reviews. It’s also happening in brand advertising activations to let consumers visualize products in 3D through mobile AR interfaces.
M7 founder Matt Maher tells us there are several advantages to this new flavor of brand marketing. AR’s immersion creates strong consumer engagement, which can be seen in metrics like session lengths. In-store activations mean lower-funnel impact near the point of purchase.
Pay to Get Rid of Ads on Social Media? Consumers Say Maybe, Maybe Not
Nearly 60% of respondents overall said they’d be at least somewhat willing to pay for social media, and that figure could likely climb if a small monthly subscription fee were added. Twingate contends that Facebook/Instagram would only need to charge users $2.07/month, and Twitter $1.61/month, to earn via subscription fees what they earn via ad revenue. Respondents said they would pay $5.24 and $4.75/month, respectively.
But inertia and apathy are strong, money is even tighter outside the US market, and surveillance advertising, and the size of its audience, are the X-factors that catapulted Facebook to the top of the global corporate order. I’d bet Google, Facebook, and, increasingly, Amazon, will be slow to give up the surveillance revenues and walled-garden ecosystems that have made them this century’s most powerful corporate actors.
5 Localized Ad Platforms for SMBs
Localized ad platforms could also see an increase in use in the coming months among SMBs that want to cut down on unnecessary costs. Many of the localized ad platforms aimed at the SMB market take a self-serve approach, allowing business owners to adjust their budgets and adapt their strategies as conditions evolve.
Here are five localized ad platforms that are focused on helping merchants get back on their feet.
The David Strategy: How Small E-Commerce Stores Can Beat Big Brands
Sometimes it definitely seems like there’s just no competing with the big names in any given industry. They take up most of the advertising space. Their retail stores are massive. And their digital marketing budgets are practically unlimited, providing access to better rankings, more traffic, and a larger share of the customer base.
However, while it may seem so, the truth is that the Davids can actually outdo the Goliaths rather than just try to keep up. This is especially true in the world of e-commerce, provided that you invest in the right kinds of strategies. In this post, we’ll look at five effective tactics small e-commerce stores can use to beat big brands.
Marketers, Give the People What They Want: Control
There’s a reason ad blocking exists — because many ads aren’t very good, and because consumers rarely get to choose the ads to which they’re exposed to If we change that dynamic by putting the power in their hands, there’s a huge fringe benefit: Ad recall and favorability go up. And if the consumer chooses your ad specifically, favorability and ad recall surge even higher. Why? Because they own the experience and have control. We’re talking stickiness, something every brand wants for their advertising.
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