If there has been one sweeping theme across the retail landscape in 2022 — and there has been — it’s supply chain. A new benchmarked study of 1,150 online consumers from Dotcom Distribution suggests several areas brands and retailers can tackle to shape the ideal customer experience, even during a period of uncertainty in the…
Two-and-a-half years into my foray going from consultant to owning my own e-commerce business, I've realized a few things. No matter what we do, what other platforms we do business on with Premo Guard, Amazon.com is still the 800-pound gorilla in the room. And that frustrates the (insert expletive here) out of me. Now I'm…
In a digital world with so many choices on where to exert your effort and budget, the question for direct-to-consumer (D-to-C) merchants is really where you should be spending your time and what channels — new or old — can deliver the desired results. Smaller brands cannot be everywhere all the time nor do they…
What a difference a year makes. At this time last year, consumers were hesitant to spend on much besides essentials and products that would make their life at home more comfortable. They were fearful about going into stores, many of which were temporarily closed due to the pandemic anyway, worried about how COVID-19 would affect…
In a rapidly changing retail environment, there's one seemingly obvious constant. A positive experience, whether with a brand, product, service or an employee, forms the foundation of meaningful customer engagement and drives sales. The imperative, therefore, is for companies in all industries to figure out how to create experiences that reflect exactly what their customers…
Amazon.com is big. Powerful, too. The vision of Founder and CEO Jeff Bezos is remarkable. It's astounding to consider Amazon’s ascension began just 26 years ago in 1994. While I don’t always agree with Amazon’s practices, I have a great deal of respect for Mr. Bezos as an entrepreneur, a visionary, and for the brand…
I'm no stranger to writing about disaster preparedness and crisis management. I live in an area where we get hit with a hurricane every few years. And while we're in uncharted waters here with the COVID-19 Coronavirus, there are some things that marketers forget about doing in times of crisis. I will leave up to…
Nike announced last week that as part of the company’s focus on elevating consumer experiences through more direct, personal relationships, it will stop selling its merchandise directly to Amazon.com. Here’s why Nike made the right decision. Partnering with Amazon undoubtedly has benefits — namely, a built-in audience and speedy delivery options. However, it’s crucial to consider…
The retail industry is feeling the effects of 15 percent tariffs imposed on Sept. 1 on a wide range of consumer imports, and is bracing for the impact of their expansion to additional goods on Dec. 15. These tariffs cover a total of about $300 billion worth of imports from China. Increases on tariffs imposed…
The retail industry, like many others, is being disrupted and permanently changed by the ever-increasing capabilities and applications of artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML). As I wrote in my last post, we're just beginning to see the benefits of AI and ML implementations in the retail sector, but they've already helped forward-thinking companies…
