Last week, retailers met in Philadelphia to network with colleagues and learn about all the exciting things going on in digital commerce. This report looks back at the speakers, education sessions and news that captivated attendees.
If you missed something at this year's show, you can check out videos, session materials and photos from the Summit. You can also read up on all the news coverage of the event.
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Innovations in technology have driven consumers to expect more convenience and personalized experiences from retailers, challenging merchants to keep up, speakers said at the Shop.org Digital Summit in Philadelphia last week. "You can take data and technology to make a good company a great company," said Doug Mack, CEO of online branded sports apparel retailer Fanatics.
Pinterest unveiled a major expansion of its "buy" button at the Shop.org Digital Summit last week, adding three new e-commerce platforms, thousands of Shopify stores and major retailers including Bloomingdale's and Wayfair.com. The number of buyable pins on Pinterest has grown to more than 60 million since the first ones were launched in June, the company said.
Retailers' biggest digital challenge will be getting their arms around the explosion of fast-changing technology, Singularity University Executive Director Salim Ismail told attendees at the Shop.org Digital Summit. "Never in the history of humanity have so many technologies been moving at this doubling pattern, at this accelerated pace," he said.
Mobile is key as retailers continue to expand their omnichannel efforts, speakers said at the Shop.org Digital Summit. "Mobile is at the top of virtually everyone's to-do list," said Sucharita Mulpuru, vice president and principal analyst at Forrester Research.
Flaws are hot, perfection is not -- that's why your Egg White McMuffin isn't perfectly round, said Rohit Bhargava, CEO and founder of Influential Marketing Group. Other less-obvious retail trends include: marketers who want to help as well as sell and shareable social experiments such as Dove's "real beauty" campaign, he told attendees at the Shop.org Digital Summit in Philadelphia.
Reflektion, a tech company specializing in real-time personalization, was named the winner in dozens of entries in the latest Shop.org Digital Commerce Startup of the Year competition at the Shop.org Digital Summit in Philadelphia. Reflektion drew high marks for its efforts in personalization that allow retailers to track online shoppers in real time and get to know them as individuals. "We're returning to what has always been a successful strategy for retailers and that's to listen and respond to customers at an individual level," Reflektion CEO Sean Moran said.
Personalized e-mail campaigns have helped brands including Ugg and Teva to boost online sales, said Joey Colman, senior marketing manager for e-commerce at parent Deckers Brands. Deckers and fashion brand Lilly Pulitzer are using analytics to personalize marketing efforts, executives said at the Shop.org Digital Summit last week.
Omnichannel retailer QVC has grown to a $9 billion company under CEO Mike George, who took the reins in 2006 and took action in 2013 to improve the mobile experience and reverse flagging online sales. Half of the retailer's sales now come through digital channels, and 25% happen on mobile devices, George told attendees at the Shop.org Digital Summit.
Mobile will never be the only channel retailers use for marketing, but with 1.4 billion smartphone units in use today, it's not a channel that can be ignored. At the Shop.org Digital Summit, Facebook Director of Advertising Research Daniel Slotwiner offered a look at mobile tools and strategies that can help retailers connect with new audiences.
Abercrombie & Fitch has made moves toward inclusiveness to boost sales, and it's putting mobile first as young shoppers trade hanging out at the mall for getting together in the digital world, A&F Senior Vice President of Digital and E-commerce Billy May said. "It's not enough to optimize for mobile, you have to transform for mobile," he told attendees at the Shop.org Digital Summit last week.
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