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Omnichannel Retail Trends for 2022

by Nate Holmes, March 2, 2022


It seems like every interaction is an opportunity for marketing today. From bus banners to digital ads and everything in between, marketing is all around us. So much so, that it can often feel like noise. So how do brands really stand out from the crowd?

In 2022, it’s not enough to just have a marketing presence across channels, brands need to ensure their messaging is consistent, compelling, and connected. This distinction is the key difference between multichannel and omnichannel marketing. While these concepts can occasionally be confused, neither of them are particularly new. What is new and evolving is the marketer’s ability to execute their ideas. 

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Topics: e-commerce

How to Win on the Digital Shelf

by Nate Holmes, October 4, 2021

Instead of a physical retail shelf full of choices, the digital shelf is made up of every customer experience your buyers have with your product — search results, mobile apps, websites, social media, in-store shopping, etc. If you want to win on the digital shelf in e-commerce you need to stock every location with high-quality product information. 

This change from physical to digital is challenging for some, but it also presents a big opportunity. You now have more control over the appearance of your product and story (e.g. branded videos and 360º photography). To start stocking your digital shelf, identify and prioritize your most important products, clarify price points, invest in search engine optimization (SEO) strategy, and garner as many reviews as possible. 

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Topics: Content Strategy, PIM, e-commerce

Omnichannel vs. Multichannel: What’s the Difference?

by Nate Holmes, August 23, 2021


Omnichannel and multichannel may sound like they're the same thing, but in reality, these two strategies are quite different. Although they both involve many digital channels and steps along the customer journey, multichannel focuses on pre-defined sales pathways for each channel, and omnichannel focuses on how you sell based on evolving customer behavior.

Both are effective e-commerce strategies and you often have to get multichannel selling right before you’re able to excel at omnichannel e-commerce. Let’s explore the key differences between the two and take a look at how to choose which approach is right for you.

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Topics: Marketing, e-commerce

Product Information Management

by Serai Schueller, August 6, 2021


E-commerce wouldn’t exist without product information; plain and simple. The problem is there’s a lot of quality information needed to support a single product. A digital buyer can’t take a product off the shelf, feel its weight, and experience it in the same way they can in person. They rely on the information they read, see, and hear about a product online — the product’s specs, text about its benefits, how-to videos, images, and so much more. 

Organizations need accurate, robust, up-to-date, compelling product information to compete (and ultimately win) in the digital arena. Managing all of this information is challenging without the help of product information management (PIM). Today we’ll discuss what PIM entails and how it’s helping a wide range of organizations and roles harness the true power of their product information to find greater e-commerce success. 

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Topics: PIM, e-commerce

Omnichannel E-commerce: What You Need to Succeed

by Nate Holmes, July 26, 2021


It’s increasingly difficult to orchestrate a cohesive customer experience across multiple channels and touchpoints. And at the same time, it’s never been more important —
customers spent US$861.12 billion online with U.S. merchants in 2020 (up 44.0% year over year). You need to build a seamless omnichannel e-commerce experience to capture your share of these growing online sales.

That means you’ll need to prioritize the mobile experience, understand how your customers like to shop, establish a strong brand position, and create a consistent experience across platforms. We’ll cover the basics of those areas and give you some tips for launching your own omnichannel e-commerce strategy. First, let’s start with a clear definition of what omnichannel e-commerce is. 

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Topics: e-commerce

Product Branding 101: Examples, Advantages, and Strategy

by Nate Holmes, July 5, 2021


We’re exposed to product branding every day. From the coffee cup we’re handed at Starbucks to the toothpaste we choose from the shelves of grocery stores and the ads we see on our smartphones. Companies like Coca-Cola, Apple, and Starbucks have product branding that is so recognizable we take it as a normal part of our environment.

When you hone and execute your product branding strategy to this level, you get some serious advantages. One of them is that people recognize your product and buy it without having to qualify whether or not your product is good enough. Let’s take a closer look at the definition of product branding, learn about some of the advantages of getting it right, and take a look at some of the most successful product branding examples.

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Topics: e-commerce

How DAM Streamlines Content Workflows and Helps Deliver Omnichannel Experiences

by Nate Holmes, June 14, 2021


Every year comes with more digital touchpoints, new product content demands, and an increasingly complex omnichannel customer experience. At the same time, e-commerce is growing faster and faster — customers spent $861.12 billion online with U.S. merchants in 2020 (up 44.0% year over year). It’s never been so important to deliver personalized content at every step of the customer journey or so difficult to orchestrate.

While some brands are struggling to keep up, others use a digital asset management (DAM) solution to streamline their content workflow and deliver an omnichannel customer experience. New Balance and Fanatics have both stepped up to the challenge to deliver omnichannel customer experiences that are consistent, positive, and personalized. Here’s how they’re doing it. 

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Topics: Customer Stories, e-commerce

8 Essential E-commerce Tools for Growing Your Business

by Nate Holmes, August 24, 2020


The steady growth in e-commerce sales over the past three decades has been significantly accelerated by the coronavirus crisis. Research from McKinsey found that since COVID-19, there's been a 15-30% increase in consumers who make purchases online, suggesting that digital shopping is here to stay.

But a successful e-commerce strategy requires a unique combination of tools to engage customers, generate sales, and fulfill orders as seamlessly as possible. We’ve compiled a list of these essential tools for you to consider adding to your marketing technology (martech) stack.

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Topics: e-commerce

Why Your Business Needs PIM for E-commerce

by Nate Holmes, August 3, 2020

In today’s digital landscape, staying ahead of the curve is more important than ever as brands vie for profitability in a crowded, competitive online marketplace. Finding an effective approach to managing product information is critical...it allows you to be confident that your product data is complete, consistent, and up-to-date at every stage of the process.

A product information management (PIM) system can help you manage data associated with your product lines. PIM e-commerce solutions offer significant benefits that can promote higher profitability in today's fiercely cutthroat consumer and B2B markets.

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Topics: PIM, e-commerce

Managing Product Attributes: A Guide

by Nate Holmes, July 13, 2020

My dog Rosie may only weigh 18 pounds but she is a power chewer. So when I search for dog toys online, you bet I rely on product information to find ones that can withstand the crushing strength of her little puppy jaws.

Understanding what information your shoppers need to shop and purchase online is critical.

Read on, as we discuss the basics of developing and communicating the attributes of your products in the marketing field, including a definition of these attributes, their importance, and best practices for attribute management.

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Topics: PIM, e-commerce

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