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Why Modern Marketing Teams Should Consider Going Headless

April 28, 2022 No Comments

A few years ago, I shared my perspective on the notable rise the industry as I was tracking in businesses adopting a headless architecture. At that time there was no doubt that a headless system would become a significant enabler of today’s visual economy.

Fast forward to today, and it has become even more apparent that headless is more than tech vendor jargon. It’s a must-have for businesses, especially those that rely heavily on a media-first, highly visual user experience.

As I explained back then, a headless digital asset management (DAM) system decouples the master asset library from one centralized interface, enabling asset consumption from other systems via custom or pre-built interfaces. Adoption of headless DAMs is accelerating, and I have a front-row seat to watching brands today reap the benefits.

Modern marketing teams — especially within organizations that have a complex technology stack with multiple content systems — must evaluate how they can take advantage of headless DAMs to increase flexibility and stay competitive in the visual economy.

Pain Points of Traditional SaaS Applications

A side-effect of the pandemic is the massive investment businesses have made in their online presence to create user experiences that engage, convert and cultivate long term loyalty. With 84% of consumers saying that a video has influenced them to buy something, it’s more important than ever for brands to deliver the images and videos online shoppers are drawn to.

Because of this, managing rich media quickly and efficiently has become a necessary yet daunting challenge. Basic features of content management systems (CMSes) cannot efficiently organize, source, optimize and deliver visual assets at the scale needed today.

Traditionally, SaaS applications are deployed in either of these two ways, both of which have significant downsides:

Best-of-breed applications: Despite their innovative features for business functions, independent best-of-breed applications tend to render operations more complex and create silos. Fixing the related issues is a time-sink for developers and marketers alike.
All-in-one platforms: This is a unified and streamlined approach through which applications seamlessly integrate with one another. Though efficient, all-in-one platforms can lack advanced components.

With headless applications, brands can eliminate these roadblocks and deliver engaging experiences to their audiences.

Well-Structured APIs and Path to Going Headless

Headless DAMs are ideal for organizations with a complex technology stack with multiple content systems, teams and workflows.

For these organizations, having concise and well-structured APIs that efficiently process media assets and metadata creates an appealing user experience. They must have well-tested technology integrations to store their metadata along with the media assets.

That way, businesses can seamlessly integrate their other platforms and best-of-breed applications to organize, search and manage visuals through an embedded or customized UI.

Headless Leads to Agility, Customization

To keep pace with the rise in media demands and consumption, brands must have a consistent structure in which to successfully manage, transform and deliver those assets. Headless technologies makes this possible by providing features that are:

Scalable: Different teams can share the same content repository across all the websites, apps and systems for creating and delivering experiences, ensuring consistency and efficiency. Besides being accessible through the main UI, all DAM functionalities can be extended into existing systems and workflows, leading to higher user adoption and creating a true single silo-less source of truth.
Flexible: With robust APIs and SDKs, developers can use their programming language of choice to build a custom interface or to integrate with other systems, simultaneously increasing developer productivity.
Agile: Building a best-of-breed stack with a headless architecture allows for agile replacements or upgrades to the stack, adapting to changing business needs while adopting new trends and technologies.
Customizable: In contrast to the one-size-fits-all approach of even the best-performing traditional DAMs, a custom UI built on top of APIs enables functionalities that meet specific business needs.

These distinct advantages enable businesses to process all media types efficiently and create more compelling visual storytelling across different channels. It also enables faster time-to-market to meet consumer demands.

Enabling Faster, More Engaging Visual Storytelling

Headless commerce, headless content management, headless DAM — these phrases reverberate throughout conversations in enterprise software today, as brands strive to meet consumer needs and acquire the technology necessary to manage each piece of the storytelling puzzle. Every industry has a story to tell.

Marketing teams across all industries, from retail and ecommerce to media and technology, are always looking for ways to improve customer engagement without sacrificing internal efficiencies. And going headless may well be the answer.

Feature Image Credit: marv

By Sanjay Sarathy

Sanjay Sarathy is VP developer experience at Cloudinary, a provider of end-to-end digital media management solutions. With more than twenty years experience in leading global marketing programs, his work spans tech start-ups and established market leaders in SaaS, Big Data, analytics and e-commerce.

Sourced from CMS Wire

In News

Marketing marketers: the unique challenges of your agency’s marketing team

April 27, 2022 No Comments

By Georgie Monaghan

Agencies’ in-house marketing teams have a unique job – what Propellernet’s marketing director Georgie Monaghan calls ‘marketing marketers.’ How can they navigate it? She takes us through those challenges, from managing resources to dealing with the struggle of not being able to talk about some of your best work.

It’s the question that I’ve begun to dread and I’m not sure why: “So, what do you do?” Oh, shit. My brain runs through all possible answers. “I’m in marketing.” Nope, they will collar me in to helping with their aunt’s dog grooming company. “B2B marketing.” Do they know what B2B means? “I market marketers.” Well, that is what I do but now I sound like a dick; there’s a blank nod; the conversation changes. The moment’s gone.

Rob Mayhew’s hilarious and very honest portrayal of agency life has got me reflecting on my own role recently – which is ultimately to market some of the UK’s leading marketers. It’s a role that comes with its own unique challenges. So, for the brave marketer marketers, this one is for you.

Finding resource

There is none. If you’re doing your job right, everyone is manically busy and resourced to the max. But to do your job, you need resource – to write content, to write award entries, to run an event… the list goes on.

This is a good problem to have, and it’s one that I’ve faced a lot in agency roles. How do you tackle it?

First, you’ve got to be clear why an opportunity deserves resource. It’s not just about monetary investment – for a business that sells time, why is this important?

Second, be proactive: what can you do to limit the resource needed? Can you ghost write elements of response you need? Everyone works differently, so learn how key stakeholders like to operate and create a plan based around them individually.

Finally, be flexible. Agency life is fast-paced; to enjoy the role, you have to be able to flex. Yes, set your deadlines and meet them, but don’t beat yourself up if everything on your well-articulated marketing strategy doesn’t happen. Keep track of those things, monitor and report on them, and voice when things really are impacting your performance.

And yes, you will invariably be there with one minute to go still trying to get an award entry uploaded.

Marketing agency budgets

Often, the events you would love to target are astronomically out of reach. Award entries add up. And random expenses from across the business get thrown your way.

As with resource, be flexible and proactive and build business cases. Beyond the data you can see, business development, client services and HR need to be your best friends to keep track of incoming leads; common threads across upsell opportunities; and brand perception when it comes to recruitment.

We’re doing the most amazing work – but you can’t tell anyone about it

This happens so often in agency life. You win a new client… but you can’t announce it. And of course, you’re getting the most amazing results for that client, but you can’t case study them or put them forward for an award. There’s nothing we can do about it. It’s just one of those things. It cuts deep. Smile, move on and drink a large glass of wine while reading the new win updates the following week.

Brand messaging

I vividly remember sitting in a meeting with the recommended agency register and them saying: “Don’t say it’s your people that make you different… of course it is, everyone says that. What really makes you different as an agency?” This has stuck with me throughout my career, brand and agency side. People, their skills and their contacts often come and go. Why should a client work with you as an agency? What can you bring them over another agency? What is true and genuine to your brand? These are big questions that you won’t be able to answer on your own. But you’ll be flying when you know what they are.

You’re marketing the experts

No one said this was going to be easy, but let’s be honest: that’s why we love it. When you present your marketing strategy for the year, you are doing this to a room full of people who are paid to build out marketing strategies day in and day out for some of the world’s leading brands. Intimidating or what? But you know your agency, you’ve got under the skin of your brand and have used all the data and insights you can to build out those recommendations into a strategy. You’ve got this.

And, in regards to being at the forefront of a fantastic industry, full of brilliant minds – well, there’s no other place I’d rather be. Here’s to the silent army of marketing marketers. I salute you.

By Georgie Monaghan

Sourced from The Drum

In News

Partner marketing: how to collaborate for a win-win-win scenario

February 25, 2022 No Comments

By Phil Jones

Partnerships can be an excellent way to expand reach, spread the load and create a more collaborative coordinated marketing approach. The Marketing Practice’s head of inside sales and data strategy Phil Jones interviews its client ServiceNow to find out how it views partnerships, and offers tips on how to cultivate a successful mutually-beneficial relationship.

When it comes to B2B routes to market in the technology sector, ‘two’s company, three’s a crowd’ couldn’t be further from the truth. Partnering up with other organizations makes sense for vendors, partner organizations and clients alike. Vendor organizations can increase revenue and market penetration and strengthen client relationships. Organizations that fall into the ‘partner’ category – which covers anything from distributors and resellers to systems integrators and consultancy firms – can offer clients a broader range of sophisticated propositions. And clients often receive a more bespoke, integrated response to the problem they’re looking to solve.

That’s not to say it’s easy. It can be challenging to coordinate teams and offerings within a global multinational – add a partner or three into the mix, and the complexity increases accordingly. So I asked Carl Shanahan, senior manager of the technology partner program at ServiceNow, to share his tips on creating and managing partnerships that add value to all parties.

How do you decide which partners you need?

The customer’s always right. So, if your customer is coming to you saying I want to use your product, and I also want to use your competitor’s product, you have to figure out with partners how you do that. The partner’s job is to fill the areas that either your technology doesn’t do, your salespeople don’t cover, your services don’t provide or a vertical market in which you don’t know how to walk and talk.

Equally, you might spot a market opportunity that means you actively seek certain partners; or there may be a strategic account that you can’t crack alone.

What should the starting point be for a successful partnership?

Successful partnership programs are focused on solving the customer’s biggest business challenges. They require strong cross-functional collaboration across technology, marketing and sales teams. Start building your partnership by identifying the value that you will each get out of it – which new routes to revenue does the partnership open, and what further opportunities might appear as the partnership develops?

Looking for ways to optimize the partner experience and add value should be an ‘always-on’ activity. So I look at all three steps in the partnership – technical, marketing and sales – to determine where they are getting stuck, make the program more accessible for them, and make it easier for them to raise their hand and get help.

How do you align objectives?

Focus on building your offering around customer challenges. A big part is really hooking into the conversation with the partner about how they grow and expand their revenue as a company. What markets or new business opportunities can we open for them? How can your partnership open up new routes to revenue and reduce time to value?

A long-term partner of ours had customers coming to them asking for software apps and integrations. At that time, they offered implementation and wraparound services only, but we worked with them to help them develop a technology offering too. In less than a year, we’ve been able to open up a new line of business for them: now they can sell customers a great application with a services model, set it up for them, customize it as required and provide ongoing support.

How do you take a joint offering to market?

Keep it simple. Limit your plan to a page with two or three goals that you decide on together. These goals can include entering a new market, targeting specific companies or growing your user base.

Focus on building your messaging and marketing where you’ve already had success, such as a particular industry or account. Sometimes partners can be resistant to a narrow focus on a few customers or markets. But that focus allows us to illustrate why customers need this proposition and, more importantly, the value the partner can offer, given its understanding of the market and the customer’s very specific business problem.

How can you anticipate and overcome challenges?

Different partners have different capabilities, offer different benefits and require different levels of support. Take the time to learn how each partner operates. Research how each partner makes money, what the sales process looks like and what training or support they might need.

The people element often gets overlooked. Yes, you want to make it easy for partners to self-serve, but if partners don’t have a support system to reach out to, they will quickly become frustrated with the process and move on. In addition, since partners are often selling dozens of other products (some of which may be your competitors), you need to be proactive in understanding how you can support each partner to add value to its customers and progress joint opportunities.

How do you get sales teams onboard?

Make sure sales understand the value of working with partners. Train your sales teams to identify opportunities to bring in partners to enhance each other’s portfolios, drive bigger, more strategic deals, and help them close more sales. Share stories of how the partners are helping customers realize the value of company solutions. For example, partners can provide valuable customer feedback helping to shape product roadmaps, increase speed to market and test new propositions contributing to the overall solution development.

By Phil Jones

Sourced from The Drum

In News

Relevance remains in retail as marketers juggle to balance physical and digital outlets

August 31, 2021 No Comments

By Olivia Atkins

The physical demise of high street clothing brand Topshop signalled the turn of the UK’s retail sector. As the flagship store closed in 2021, the physical became digital, and the brand was picked up by online retailer ASOS – a move demonstrating the appetite and continued willingness of UK consumers to shop virtually. As the rise of online shopping continues, how can marketers seize the digital opportunity? And is there a role for the physical store anymore?

In a panel discussion spearheading The Drum’s latest Deep Dive: The reinvention of retail and ecommerce, The Drum’s Olivia Atkins speaks with experts from VMLY&R COMMERCE and Heal’s on how to assess the changes in customer experiences; the technology pushing the sector forward; and how agencies and retailers can prepare for what lies ahead.

Brand purpose is here to stay

E-commerce in the UK grew by 46% last year as the pandemic forced stores to close, driving consumers online from the lockdown convenience of their homes.

“People who buy online now are used to buying online – they’ve adapted to the price and the convenience of it; and recognize the advantages of doing so,” said Debbie Ellison, global chief digital officer at VMLY&R COMMERCE, who believes these habits may be here to stay.

Online shopping saw many customers become more aware of their purchases and look into the purpose of the brands they’re buying from – a trend perpetuated by Gen Z.

Ellison recognizes the spending power of Gen Z and their influence in pushing retail trends forward. She suggests brands need to become more relevant to their audiences or risk seeming redundant.

She thinks, “retailers should respond to their shopper’s needs and communicate their brand purpose at shelf – whether that’s in a physical or digital space. In physical retail environments, marketers easily understand their local community and how to engage there. This same logic needs to be applied in the digital sphere.”

David Kohn, customer and e-commerce director at furniture retailer Heal’s, agrees: “Purpose is the single biggest social consumer trend that we’re seeing at the moment. In retail, that translates to being a brand that stands for something – whether that’s environmentalism, diversity or even quality design.”

Physical versus digital

Despite the surge in online shopping, retailers should work to embrace both virtual and physical spaces for their brand, as certain purchases may require prospective customers to shop in-person to get a sense of their desired products.

Ellison said: “Over the last year, there’s been a pent-up demand globally to get back in-store with consumers wanting to experience something special. Retailers will be listening to that and thinking how to differentiate their offerings across channels.”

The focus for retailers is to understand the role and purpose of every space they have. Ellison suggests that in-store offerings could feature more sensory experiences where the social aspect of shopping is considered along with how to improve the service and looking at how consumers interact. Technology also works to scale up connected experiences, by automating backend processes and improving the consumer’s experience.

Kohn adds: “Technology in-store can be useful for getting your consumers to imagine. At Heal’s, we try to bring them into our world and get them to visualize our products in their home.”

He’s excited about the prospect of incorporating new technology like virtual reality (VR) in stores, believing it will be a great device for reviving storytelling methods in retail.

Merging e-commerce with in-store

“We’ve all moved online; we’re all inspired and purchasing within milliseconds,” says Ellison. “But now that the gap between inspiration and purchase has converged, how is that going to translate into the physical retail space? How will creativity be brought through each touchpoint to deliver on both the emotional and functional aspects of buying?”

Despite this change in habitual consumer behaviour, Kohn suggests that retailers need to reassess how they use each space and set them up accordingly to ensure they cater to customer needs. He gives the example of Heals’ online in-store teams who work to connect customers online with relevant store team members.

“As a brand, you’ve got to think carefully about your customer’s purchase journey,” he says. “Try to understand where the customer fits in and what you can do to move them along that process. That’s where the fusion between in-store and online can come into being.”

It’s been a trying time for retailers but having a clear understanding of what consumers need and want from each space will only help brands to move more seamlessly between their online and physical offerings. Customers are already overwhelmed by the amount of choice available to them in the marketplace, so brands need to work hard to stand out.

“Selling products is not enough anymore,” said Kohn. “You’ve got to look at the wider needs of your customer and work towards fulfilling those.”

Ellison agrees and concludes: “Brands need to walk in their customers’ shoes and really look at how they will show up in a connected way across all their different channels.”

By Olivia Atkins

Sourced from The Drum

In News

How the pandemic has re-shaped the family shopping agenda

August 23, 2021 No Comments

By Rimi Atwal

As part of The Drum’s Retail Deep Dive, Netmums managing director Rimi Atwal argues that by comparing and contrasting pre and post-pandemic family mindsets, brands can effectively target this demographic.

The pandemic has driven seismic change in virtually all aspects of our daily lives – from workplace norms, to the provision of education; from travel to entertainment, and how, why and when we shop.

At Netmums, we conducted in-depth quantitative and qualitative research into the lives of UK families to mark our 20-year anniversary at the end of 2019.

Although we didn’t know it at the time, our insight captured the priorities for UK families in that key moment immediately preceding the pandemic, and the dramatic impact it would have on our lives and values.

To fully understand the shifts that have taken place for all UK families, Netmums conducted further research in May 2021. We revisited the questions we had posed 18 months previously and were able to track how families’ priorities and lifestyles had changed, and what new factors are shaping how they spend their money and time.

It became immediately apparent that attitudes to shopping and spending have shifted significantly. In our 2021 survey, 34% of parents say, ’since the pandemic I have changed the brands I buy’, 59% agree ’since the pandemic, delivery efficiency and cost is most important to me’, and 65% say now that, ’price is usually my first consideration’.

Digging deeper into our insight, the story is a complex one. Obvious pressure points like cost and convenience come to the fore, but even more striking is the shifting sense of family priorities and concerns – from global to local, outwards-facing to inwards-facing, and from environmental to social.

Global to local

A core 2019 finding was 90% of parents declaring the environment a key consideration in their everyday purchasing decisions.

However, in 2021, the environment has fallen down the pecking order. When asked to rank family priorities:

82% cited equal opportunities for their children
76% said managing screen-time
65% said environment/climate change

By 2021, 66% parents, ‘wish brands and retailers made it easier to purchase sustainably and ethically‘ – down from 75% in 2019. Today, less than half (48%) of parents agree ‘I would be prepared to pay a little bit more if a brand I like demonstrated a real commitment to the environment‘.

In terms of global issues, today, social inequality and mental health emerge more frequently than environmental concerns, probably as a direct result of the way the pandemic has emphasised the impact of social inequalities on health outcomes and underlining the importance of good mental and physical health.

Outward-looking to inward looking

In 2021 family worries about the outside world have been replaced by a focus on improving and investing in self, the family unit and the home. Parents cite ‘family bonding time’ as a key priority and emphasise their desire to invest in special occasions and spend more on family time:

61% are focused on getting fitter
50% are planning to spend on home improvements
68% want to invest in more family events/entertaining
52% want to save money

Greater ambivalence to tech as a positive force

Another emerging trend is a shifting attitude to technology in our lives – just three per cent of parents want to buy more tech in 2021, compared to the 76% of parents in 2019 who enthused technology made their lives easier through time-saving solutions like online shopping and internet banking.

Moreover, 76% of parents cited managing everyone’s screen-time as a major challenge in their lives in 2021, versus the 52% of parents in 2019.

Lessons for retail brands

It’s not surprising that the past two years have shifted the dial on family spending behaviours and priorities. But as we emerge from the third national lockdown, what can retail brands do to connect with UK families and align with their new priorities?

Judging by successful campaigns recently created by Netmums for high profile family brands, it’s clear that marrying brand credentials with what families want right now, is key.

Our recent Quorn campaign is a strong example of a brand who understands the mindset shift. While the campaign maintains its pre-existing focus on sustainability, it also positions the brand as one that easily enables healthy eating and family time. Bringing this concept to life, are family cookalong videos, co-created with Netmums’ editorial team and celebrity chef, Lisa Faulkner, with Netmums users joining virtually from their own kitchens.

Family stalwart brand, Fairy, is another example of a brand demonstrating clear understanding of an evolving customer mindset. The ‘Fairy Cares’ campaign, set to launch in September, will empathise with families’ challenges post-pandemic by offering both practical advice and resources, and emotional support. At the campaign’s heart is a clear commitment from Fairy to support all parents, boost their inner confidence and help celebrate family moments at a time when traditional support systems are reduced and anxiety at an all-time high.

And building out of 2021’s key insight that 98% of parents rank family health and wellbeing as their top priority, Petits Filous’ partnership with Netmums in creating a ‘Happy Healthy Kids’ hub, has been a resounding success. Delivering on parents’ needs for fun and healthy lifestyle ideas for the whole family, from healthy snack recipes to activity ideas, Petit Filous is positioning itself as the brand that will keep kids healthy and happy all year round.

As these brand partnerships show, connecting with a family-focused customer base must be about positioning the brand as the answer to what families need, right here, right now. And the only way to find out what families need, right here, right now, is to ask them and listen to what they say and how they feel.

For more on the reinvention of retail, check out The Drum’s Retail hub, where we explore everything from livestreaming e-commerce to AR shopping and conscious consumerism.

Feature Image Credit: Netmums

By Rimi Atwal

Sourced from The Drum

In News

Unlocking the virtual reality for the in-store shopping experience of the future

August 19, 2021 No Comments

By Stefano Hatfield

As brands and consumers seek a return to the physical retail space post Covid-19, the technology that has enabled ecommerce to fill the gap as stores were closed will play a vital role in the recovery of that same bricks-and-mortar retail. Shoppers, particularly in the UK, want a “connected shopping” experience.

The pandemic has obviously hit the UK high street, but shoppers are ready to return, particularly if the ease of online shopping is blended with the richness of the in-store experience. Some 40% of UK shoppers use their mobile in-store to look up more information on a product. And there is a huge increase (80%) among Gen X shoppers who say they will use augmented reality (AR) in shopping over the next five years.

These are the headline findings of a new report, ‘Future of Shopping’, based on a global survey of 20,000 shoppers by trends agency Foresight Factory, for Snap Inc. Technology, rather than sounding the death knell for bricks-and-mortar retail, has led to an irreversible shift to omnichannel that genuinely benefits both shoppers and retailers.

As we have seen over the past 18 months, when new technologies are built primarily around human behaviour, rather than imposed because of internal business needs, their impact can be positive. Yes, online shopping has disrupted bricks-and-mortar retail over the past two decades. However, technology has also helped retailers navigate the increasing overlap between online and physical environments, now a part of our lived experience.

The report reveals that consumers worldwide feel their shopping experience has been greatly enhanced by camera technology and accompanying digital innovations. It is clear that shoppers are keen to get back into stores, but they also want to keep all the advantages of technology when they return; for example, instant access to stock information or home delivery service.

Britons seem more wedded to online shopping, particularly for clothes, than others. Some 44% plan to do the majority of clothes shopping online, above the global average of 38%. Only 34% of Brits said buying in-store was their favoured method of shopping – compared with 43% globally. But nearly half (49%) of Brits missed the social aspect of shopping and more than half (51%) found the inability to try on products frustrating.

This desire to blend online and in-store highlights how vital the mobile phone has become across the shopper journey and explains why the new consumer habits forged in the pandemic are here to stay. However, consumers have missed the social component of physical shopping, so e-commerce advertisers need to greater humanize their brands online.

The report identified several other key takeaways:

Growth in e-commerce during Covid-19 will be sustained

81% of UK shoppers are expecting to do the same amount or more online shopping in the next 12 months compared to last year, with only 19% indicating they plan to do less.

A post-lockdown return to physical retail

Shoppers returning to store post-lockdown will seek the social and tactile experiences they have missed in the last year, albeit combined with the convenience and safety of shopping online. But bricks and mortar stores must act fast to ensure they do not lag behind shopper expectations.

Technology will drive shoppers into stores

Some 35% of global consumers would visit a store specifically if it had interactive virtual services such as a smart mirror that allowed them to try on clothes or makeup.

Mobile will connect brands and consumers across the shopper journey

One in three global consumers choose the mobile phone as their preferred shopping channel, and 50% of Generation Z and millennials say they never go shopping without using one. These trends will only continue, not least in the area of price comparison.

Virtual testing could accelerate e-commerce further

Some four in 10 consumers globally state that not being able to see, touch, and try out products puts them off online shopping. Retailers will therefore need to invest heavily in try-before-you-buy technology to help encourage purchase and reduce the potential need for returns, by enabling consumers to more tangibly engage with products.

Shoppers will demand widespread AR

Within five years we will see a 57% increase in Gen Z shoppers who use AR before buying. Significantly, 56% of consumers who have used AR when shopping claim it encouraged them to make a purchase. The mobile phone will be the core tool.

New technology could reduce the number of online items that are returned annually by up to 42%. The study estimates that the cost of online returns now amounts to around $7.5 billion each year – and £377m in the UK alone.

Resale platforms cement their position as a credible alternative

Four in 10 consumers globally have bought and sold something via resale platforms, which attract shoppers searching for cheaper prices and unique products. Second-hand goods no longer come with stigma, but are a more desirable, sustainable alternative. Retailers like Levi’s, Ikea and H&M are moving into the branded resale space.

The key trends identified above talk to the blurring of consumer needs and expectations across physical and digital shopping channels. They reflect shoppers’ primary demands (beyond pricing): convenience, social interaction and product testing.

Ed Couchman, general manager, UK, Nordics and DACH, at Snap Inc. says: “People thought the internet and technology was a threat to physical retail but this report clearly shows that those who harness the benefits of tech are best placed to thrive post pandemic. Shoppers want to read reviews, compare prices and try on items using AR – but they also enjoy the experience of going into a shop, speaking to staff, and looking at items. They want the best of both worlds.”

The ‘Future of Shopping: Global Report 2021’ from Snap is available here

By Stefano Hatfield

Sourced from The Drum

In News

Netflix readies video games push with hire of Oculus exec

August 18, 2021 No Comments

By Jennifer Faull

Netflix is expanding into gaming opportunities

Netflix is set to bring video games to its platform next year having made its first key hire to lead the push.

Mike Verdu was previously head of virtual and augmented reality at Facebook, where he worked with developers to bring games and other content to Oculus.

Prior to that, he spent his career leading the gaming efforts at companies including EA, Zynga and Kabam.

He will now lead Netflix’s push into creating content beyond TV shows and films. Netflix hasn’t been shy in talking up its ambition to be a major player in the $90bn video games industry.

It’s likely that some games will be tied to its most popular shows, such as Stranger Things. On its most recent earnings call, chief operating officer Greg Peters – who Verdu will report to – said its users “want to immerse themselves more deeply and get to know the characters better and their back stories and all that stuff”.

He said: “Really we’re trying to figure out what are all these different ways that we can increase those points of connection, we can deepen that fandom. And certainly, games is a really interesting component of that.

“And there’s no doubt that games are going to be an important form of entertainment and an important sort of modality to deepen that fan experience. So we’re going to keep going, and we’ll continue to learn and figure it out as we go.”

According to Bloomberg, which first reported Verdu’s hire, the first games are slated to appear on the platform within the next year. Rather than sitting on a separate site, they will appear alongside current content as a new programming genre. It is not expected that users will be charged extra to access games.

The move into gaming comes as Netflix continued to battle it out against Amazon Prime and Disney+ for new users in the competitive streaming market.

Netflix reported a dramatic slowdown in subscribers for the first three months of 2021.

As a result of the pandemic, it added 36 million subscribers in 2020 to pass 200 million subscribers worldwide. It predicted the surge would continue this year and said it expected to add six million users to the platform in the first quarter of the year. However, it only managed to add four million and now expects to add about one million subscribers in the current quarter, which would be its slowest growth on record.

By Jennifer Faull

Sourced from The Drum

In News

The on-demand economy will fuel shoppable video

July 5, 2021 No Comments

By Thomas Hobbs

The global pandemic has boosted consumer appetite for shoppable video and accelerated the move towards an on-demand economy.

At The Drum’s Digital Transformation Festival, during a fireside chat, Stuart Heffernan, head of e-commerce at Pernod Ricard, and Nicola Spooner, vice-president of strategy for Unruly, asserted that post-pandemic consumption habits were here to stay and would fuel a shoppable content boom.

On-demand e-commerce

“This past year has been revolutionary for e-commerce,” said Heffernan. “In the space of a year, on-demand retail and players have boomed globally.”

Uber’s acquisition of the drinks delivery platform Drizly, Pernod Ricard’s recent stake in on-demand grocery platform Glovo and the rise of delivery apps in mature e-commerce markets such as the UK all suggest this trend will continue.

Heffernan also remarked: “On-demand will stick around because people get hooked on convenience and are prepared to pay a premium for it. Uber Eats’ alcohol sales have increased significantly – that’s a premium price point for standard products because it is pure speed and convenience.”

Connected TV growth

The two also spoke about the rise of ‘hometainment’ and how it dovetailed with the rise in super-fast, on-demand e-commerce.

Spooner said: “Consumers are accessing more content in an on-demand capacity than ever before. We don’t predict that slowing because now that people have trialled that kind of method of indulging in content, they’re not going to want to let it go.”

She added that while she could foresee a consolidation in subscription services, there would always be a thirst for on-demand quality content. “For brands, that brings an exciting opportunity because we’re delivering a lot of creative shoppable solutions.”

According to a recent study from Unruly, 72% of UK advertisers say connected TV (CTV) is a key part of their video advertising strategy. There is also a huge amount of optimism about the medium’s future, with all media agencies and 77% of brands saying they plan to invest more in CTV during the next 12 months.

The pandemic-induced boom of branded ‘hometainment’ experiences, such as showing how to make cocktails or advice on pairing food and wine, has readied consumers for shoppable content from brands.

Heffernan argued that this would continue to be the case even after lockdowns ends.

“Even if the pandemic has completely gone away by January next year, it will still be cold and wet and I will still be sitting at home. So, if a Jameson brand ambassador reaches me through the right media targeting, then yes, I will engage because it’s something to do on a Wednesday night.”

Unruly’s Spooner said that making branded content shoppable and serviceable by the on-demand apps consumers have grown to depend on during lockdown will induce impulse purchasing.

According to Unruly and research consultancy MTM, 90% of digital advertisers plan to increase their CTV spend in 2021.

“Shoppable content really opens the doors to impulse purchasing,” said Spooner. “If you are watching content around cooking and there is the contextual placement for Jameson’s cocktails or Viejo wines, I – as a consumer – could be inspired and take action immediately.”

From awareness to conversion

Both panellists agreed that TV is no longer about brand-building but about conversion, adding that advertisers should now augment campaigns with shoppable elements.

“There are plenty of ways to add shoppable elements to campaigns,” said Spooner. “It could be a light touch brand bar over the top of an amazing TV creative or an on-screen QR code so that consumers can scan it with their phone, which is location-enabled, and have that experience in their front room in moments.”

Ultimately, shoppable video will allow marketers to build video into every stage of their marketing plan rather than simply viewing it as an awareness boosting tool.