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PSFK Retail Conference Preview: How Pinterest Is Helping Retailers Design Seamless Discovery-To-Purchase Journeys, Online And Off https://ift.tt/2FGs0Xp Before speaking at PSFK's Future of Retail 2019 Conference on January 16, Amy Vener of Pinterest shares key insights on how the social inspiration platform is helping brands bring the discovery stage of shopping to ecommerce, as well as why visual search is the future of digital retail While the digital shopping experience continues to expand and transform, it can still fall short of consumers’ expectations, particularly during stages like product discovery. Retailers increasingly feel pressure to make the shopping experience seamless and offer customers optimized levels of convenience and choice, something that social discovery platform Pinterest is particularly poised to serve, and currently focusing on enabling. Ahead of the Future of Retail 2019 Conference this January, PSFK caught up with Amy Vener, retail vertical strategy lead at Pinterest, to preview what she’ll share on stage about the potential of technology like Pinterest’s visual search capabilities to enhance retail experience on and offline, and how it can help create more relevant shopping experiences as well as shorten the distance between inspiration and purchase. Could you describe the work that you do for Pinterest, and how it serves any broader consumer and industry trends you see taking place? As the retail vertical strategy lead, I help our retail partners understand how to best use the Pinterest platform to achieve a competitive advantage within their industry. Pinterest has more than 250 million consumers using the platform each month to discover all kinds of personally relevant ideas for their life. The visual discovery that takes place leads to great opportunities for retailers to introduce the right products and services to each consumer in the moments that matter most. It’s been a lot of fun to work with the retailers that are taking the time to understand this kind of consumer behavior and use it to provide meaningful shopping experiences. How do you help connect retailers with Pinterest? Having been in both the merchandising and marketing organizations on the retailer’s side of the house, I have a real appreciation for all the work that goes into consistently delivering their sales numbers. What we think is different about how retailers work with Pinterest is that on our platform the consumer’s journey involves the retailer. Consumers expect brands and their products to be the content they’re on Pinterest for in the first place. This alignment gives both the consumer and the retailer a shared experience, providing both with the discovery and the ability to buy/get/do. Telling this story is great, because everyone wins when it’s done right. Who are your primary retailer users today, and how do they leverage the platform to enhance their business? Both traditional and digitally native retailers have seen positive results on the platform. We believe that the key to growth on Pinterest is understanding the full consumer journey, and measuring success through that lens. The holiday season is a great example for demonstrating this point. While Thanksgiving marks the official start of holiday shopping, people on Pinterest start planning for the holidays in September. People use Pinterest to find new holiday ideas for decorating their home, planning what they want to wear and what they might cook early on in the process. This time of early consideration, before deciding what they will ultimately buy, is where retailers are finding new growth to their business. Being there in the early phases of researching and discovering earns retailers the chance to be there for the decision. Measurement methodologies that span across the initial consideration to the final purchase capture this value, and provide the right ammunition for bigger investments because of the incremental growth. Are there any insights you can share on the importance for retailers today to implement social media platforms like Pinterest into their strategy? We’ve found that 9 out of 10 people buy things because of what they discovered on Pinterest.* We believe that the open mindset people have on the platform during life’s planning moments makes Pinterest a highly successful purchasing funnel that many brands are taking advantage of. In fact, 72% of Pinners say that Pinterest even inspires them to shop when they aren’t actively looking for something specific.* In addition, Pinners are 39% more likely to be active retail shoppers and spend 29% more than people who don’t use Pinterest.** In short, we think that the audience on Pinterest is extremely valuable. What insights do you have on what consumers expect from retailers and from the shopping experience today? Consumers are looking for meaningful shopping experiences, in stores and from their phones. Consumers want to be able to discover ideas that are personal to their individual tastes, and once they discover these ideas, they want to be able to shop—anytime, anywhere. Today, the digital shopping experience isn’t great. Discovery is hard, and taking an action once you do discover something that you like is even harder. There is enormous pressure for retailers to make the shopping experience seamless and to give consumers new levels of convenience and choice. Pinterest partners with retailers to provide this to consumers. You emphasize the importance of personalization and contextualization in retail strategy. Can you expand upon this, and explain how Pinterest serves these ends particularly well? Retailers need to understand the attributes of the customer—how, when and what they buy—and use that information to personalize products and services to the shopper from the first moment of discovery, creating a consistent experience across channels. With the rise of consumer expectations around personalization, we’re seeing the most innovative retailers approach our platform in new and inspiring ways. We’ve partnered with Target to integrate our visual search technology into its mobile apps. With Lens, Target will make it easier for their guests to discover relevant products based on their personal style. A customer can take a picture of something they like in-store or elsewhere in real life and discover visually similar products available to buy at Target. This is the first integration of Pinterest Lens into a retail environment. Technology can help create more relevant shopping experiences and shorten the distance between inspiration and purchase. For example, The Home Depot’s ‘Built-in Pin’ campaign used Pinterest insights to identify trending colors and home decor styles and featured them in a fast motion video that shows how the look can be created. The Pins give in-market consumers the confidence to create stylish looks in their own home—making the inspiring feel achievable. What do you plan on sharing at our future of retail conference? The impact of meaningful shopping experiences, and how we’re partnering with retailers to provide this in-store and digitally. How does Pinterest plan to continue evolving moving forward? Anything you can share? There’s been a lot of technology innovation in the retail industry over the course of the last few years, from chatbots to voice assistants that have impacted the consumer shopping experience. For some retailers, these innovations can be distracting to their business. At the core, retail is about introducing consumers to new ideas that inspire them to make a purchase. The future of retail centers on the ability for people to have discovery experiences. For Pinterest, this comes in the form of visual search, that is people using their eyes, like they always have, instead of tapping text or calling out commands. Thanks to cameras in everyone’s pocket and the 175 billion Pins on our platform, we are creating digital consumer shopping experiences that mirror what it’s like to shop in the physical world. For example, if you’re shopping for running shoes in a store, you begin by visiting the shoe department, then pick out a running shoe. This would be similar to a discovery experience you have on Pinterest. Visual technology powers everything on Pinterest, from the content recommendations to the way we serve ads. Image recognition and machine learning fuel innovative new products like Lens and Shop the Look. This technology delivers different visual marketing solutions to retailers. Unlike text or voice, visual search sits squarely in the native shopping environment consumers already understand; like with the running shoes above, it’s similar to how they shop in physical stores today. Shifts in consumer behavior can feel subtle when they’re happening, but they have long-lasting effects on our expectations, buying habits and brand relationships. Retailers can get ahead of these changes and ensure a future of continual discovery by investing in the power of visual search. Even in a world of competing voices, the one that leaves a lasting impression is visual. * GfK, US, Multi-vertical Pinterest in the Path to Purchase among its Weekly Users, Dec 2017 ** Oracle Data Cloud DLX ROI, “Pinterest Retail Audience Profile Report”, May 201 For more inspiring insights from pioneers like Amy who are transforming the retail experience, come see an entire panel of speakers from today’s most innovative brands at PSFK’s annual Future of Retail 2019 Conference, tickets available now. Mobile Marketing via PSFK http://www.psfk.com/ November 27, 2018 at 09:57AM
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How Paid Access & Subscriptions Will Replace Publishers’ Advertising Revenues By 2022 https://ift.tt/2PXA5fm A new survey predicts the growth of paywall, paid-memberships and subscriptions and how these strategies will replace advertising as the key revenue generator for digital media publishers While the publishing market is expected to achieve over $45 billion in annual revenue in 2018, the sector continues to disrupted by a small number of technology players. We all know that companies like Facebook, Google and YouTube have changed the way we consume content and media owners have had to make radical shifts in their strategies for not only content form and distribution. What’s also important to understand is that media companies need to find new ways to generate revenue. Compounding the challenges is the duopoly growing its control of the market. An estimate by Salesforce suggests that Facebook and Google will receive 75% of all advertising revenue in 2019—that’s up from 61% in 2017. That doesn’t leave a lot of $ for the tens of thousands of publishers across the world. Through a survey with senior executives at digital publishers and content owners, researchers at Wallkit tried to understand how the market was reacting to the ongoing pressures. The research found that businesses in the sector expected a radical shift in the way it makes money: from ad-supported to paid-content. Current Distribution Landscape The survey by Wallkit researchers also showed that the majority of media executives (46%) believe that paid content will be a critical strategy for their business in the next 3 years. Exploring The Paid-Content Trend The survey also showed a rise in expected share of revenues from subscriptions and paid memberships. Digital media executives said that 20% of sales came from this type of activity in 2018 but expected this to rise to 43% by 2022. Content Control It will be very interesting to see how the media market develops in the next few years. The challenge the sector could face is whether the audience is ready to pay for subscriptions from multiple publishers using subscription software suppliers like Memberful, Piano and Scroll. An alternative is required. That’s why I have taken my knowledge from developing a membership system for PSFK and have been working with a startup team to develop Wallkit to provide a network approach that satisfies the media business and consumer’s appetite to pay for content. If you’d like to understand the survey results more—or if you would like to discuss how a networked subscription system like Wallkit could help your media business—drop me or the team at Wallkit a line: pf@wallkit.net. While the publishing market is expected to achieve over $45 billion in annual revenue in 2018, the sector continues to disrupted by a small number of technology players. We all know that companies like Facebook, Google and YouTube have changed the way we consume content and media owners have had to make radical shifts in their strategies for not only content form and distribution. What’s also important to understand is that media companies need to find new ways to generate revenue. Mobile Marketing via PSFK http://www.psfk.com/ November 27, 2018 at 06:31AM Interview Part Two: Inscapes Meditation App Developer On Designing A UX For Busy Consumers11/27/2018
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Interview, Part Two: Inscape’s Meditation App Developer On Designing A UX For Busy Consumers https://ift.tt/2PVKxDX App developer Jared Cocken tells PSFK how Inscape uses sophisticated data technology to build a better mindfulness experience and help users form a meditation habit. Inscape is a meditation community and retail platform with both a brick-and-mortar space as well as a robust digital offering via smartphone app. Marshaling user data and machine learning, the app is able to deliver curated content for every individual, using technology to create a more meaningful mindfulness experience. Previously, PSFK spoke to Inscape founder Khajak Keledjian about his professional evolution from head of New York boutique Intermix to meditation enthusiast helping to bring mindfulness to the masses. Here is the second part of PSFK’s Inscape coverage, this time in conversation with its app designer, Jared Cocker. PSFK: Could you tell us a bit about the Inscape app experience? Jared Cocken: We recently updated to Version 3. A few things went into the redesign for it. The main issue that prevents people from building any kind of healthy habit, whether that’s going to the gym or brushing their teeth or meditating, is all of the other stuff that’s happening in their life. One of the things that’s undervalued in design in general is simplicity. If you look at something like Uber, they didn’t actually invent the concept of you booking a car—they just made it much easier. The default view was the map of where you were. All you had to do was hit the button, and the car would come and get you. Your credit card was already taken care of. They made that habit much easier to use. The same thing goes for us. One of the things that we’ve done with Version 3 is machine learning. There’s an AI system behind the content now. When you open up the app, it’s a one‑screen interface. Once you go through with the onboarding and you’ve said, “I need help with sleep,” or “I need help with stress,” or “I need help with relationships,” we use that as the first cue for what content we should show you. Then, based on what you actually listen to in the app, and what other people like you listen to in the app, we make the next recommendation. We’re constantly in the background. The system looks at the content that someone is most likely to complete, based on the last thing that they completed, based on the time of day. That home screen also changes based on time of day. If you come in in the morning, you might be more likely to see content around commuting, for example, or an energy meditation to get you going. In the afternoon, it might be something again to raise your energy a little bit. In the evening, it’s probably more likely that you would see something to calm you down. As you swipe through these, we give you these three recommendations at any time of day to give you enough choice to make a decision— but not too much choice. We’re also avoiding the problem of Netflix, which is, “I spend more time looking for a show to watch than actually watching the show.” We need to get you into the content as quickly as possible. If for some reason you don’t like one of the recommendations that we show you, we also learn that and you’ll then look inside explore menu. The other thing we’re seeing is, people don’t come to us and say they want to learn meditation. What they want is a solution to a problem they have. If someone is not sleeping, they’re looking for a solution for sleep; if they’re stressed, they’re looking for a solution for stress. Same thing for relationships, with problems at work. Meditation is just the tool that we’re using to help them with that particular problem. We also have at the top these daily playlists, a mix of things that is permanent. A permanent playlist might be breathers under five minutes or energy meditations under five minutes. Then you’ll have ephemeral playlist as well, which could inspired by things like what’s happening with the stock market. When something like that happens we create a bundle of content specific to that day. It could be Valentines Day, it could be Christmas, Hanukkah. We can be a little more fun with those things. They can be specific to times of the week as well. For people who don’t like Mondays, you can have a playlist on a Sunday night. We can create content around dating issues on specific days of the week where people use dating apps more. Once we’ve proven that the painkiller content works. Then we can get them into the vitamin. We can get you to sleep, that’s the first problem. The second problem is how do we help you deal with the anxiety or the stress or the challenges that are actually causing that sleeplessness? That’s the one, two‑step system we’re using now. From a sharing standpoint, we noticed that a lot of people were going onto Instagram Stories and posting a screenshot of whatever meditation that they completed, and tagging us in it. We added this fun little feature for basically taking a selfie and assigning a template to it, then sharing that to Instagram Stories, which people are doing and is a little indication of where we might go in the future. We’re beginning to use photography of people in the app that are a representative of all the people who come in here, because it’s a community. A lot of people think traditionally of meditation as being an inward looking thing, which of course it is. But you’re doing that in order to be a better friend, to be a better colleague, to be a better spouse. It’s about how meditation can help you be basically a better citizen of the world. We’re trying to capture that community vibe and the essence of what happens upstairs inside the app, which has resonated well. Could you explain a bit about how the content is made? Typically, there’s a two‑step process. The first is that we’re constantly looking at our own analytics. If we see that something is resonating well, we’ll reach out to users and we’ll ask them why they liked a particular piece. We’ll get to the understanding—was it the music, was it the voice, was it the duration, was it the theme? What about it was successful, so we can make more of that particular thing? Then if there is something that we haven’t got in the library at the moment, we will do a lot of research in terms of what that should be. When we make a new series, that series has to do two things. It has to be the painkiller and the vitamin. We look at something like love and relationships for example. We will create a new series on love and relationships. If that series goes well, you look at what you can do next within that category. You can just give someone who has challenges in that particular topic more, but new types of content. You might go from relationships with friends to intimate relationships or relationships at work for example. We research that thoroughly, and then we write the scripts for that particular piece. We decide what the background music is, and then we go into recording, then it’s just a standard production process. Then that gets rolled out to the app or upstairs in the studio, then the analytics starts churning away in the background and we can understand when people are listening to it if there’s a particular chapter that resonates or session that resonates better with people. We also go in and tweak the content a lot. If we find that we’re getting feedback on the duration of a piece, we can change the duration, the music volume, or people don’t understand an instruction around breathing, we will actually go in and rerecord that particular part of that session to make it more clear. Could you speak about where you see the app going, its next steps? There are a couple of things that this space in general needs to do. Like I said before, one of the biggest challenges that people have is habit formation. Once someone is inside your app and they’re listening to content, they tend to form a habit around that thing. The thing that distracts them is everything else that they’re doing. We would look at ways that we can improve the habit‑forming nature of the app to encourage people to come back in. Everyone says that they’re busy, but people are busy checking Facebook, WhatsApp, Instagram, Snapchat, all of these, or watching something on Netflix. These moments that we have every day just vanish. Meditation, like the gym, is something that requires work and it’s much easier to be passive and go through your Instagram feed like everybody does it. Why would someone be more interested in meditation? How can we encourage that to happen? That’s one thing we could look at. Then there’s just the connection between all of the things that we’re doing at Inscape. It’s not just the app. We look at this holistically. For or people who come to the studio or are using the ecomm or any of the other things we’re working on, how do those things better connect together? Seems like such a wonderful tool to help build people’s habits [around meditation]. Right, and it’s not all or nothing. You might get a casual user of the studio who comes once a month but listens to the app several times a week and maybe comes in and gets a book or a candle. It’s about how we can create experiences for them. They can take the content with them, but what are the other things that they can buy or have around them that recreate a little bit of that experience? It’s very rewarding when you have people who have previously been using something else, medication for anxiety or sleep, for example, telling you that they’re not using anything anymore except meditation. That’s one of the things that we aim to do. We aim to help people in reducing that reliance if possible. If that’s not possible, then at least give them another layer of protection against the things that might be causing anxiety or lack of sleep. We’re another tool in the toolkit. Inscape is driving value by designing tools with its consumers’ unique needs in mind. For more ideas from similar inspiring retailers, see PSFK’s reports or newsletters. Mobile Marketing via PSFK http://www.psfk.com/ November 27, 2018 at 06:16AM
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How Brands Like Floyd Drive Loyalty By Involving Consumers In Product Development https://ift.tt/2r85OM4 Retailers like Target and Sephora are turning to consumers in order to gather data, gauge desires and develop product assortments or experience offerings Consumers feel a sense of ownership over their favored brands and want to help contribute to their lasting success. Brands are accordingly providing initiatives that invite trusted members and loyal fans into the research and development process to share their expertise and feedback on products and services. This approach not only deepens the level of engagement, but also creates buzz and a built-in audience of committed customers. Here’s how top retailers are extending their reach to promising consumers, strengthening their loyalty as well as creating opportunities to analyze their own strengths and weaknesses: Target Studio Connect Floyd Sephora For more examples of how brands are giving consumers the opportunity to contribute to and improve products and services, visit PSFK’s Future of Retail 2019 report. Consumers feel a sense of ownership over their favored brands and want to help contribute to their lasting success. Brands are accordingly providing initiatives that invite trusted members and loyal fans into the research and development process to share their expertise and feedback on products and services. Mobile Marketing via PSFK http://www.psfk.com/ November 27, 2018 at 06:09AM Digital Publishers Waste Money Solving Same Tech Problems https://ift.tt/2BAgrgE For years, digital publishers have had to spend heavily on technology ensure their websites run smoothly. But as they face more intense competition from Facebook and Google, which have billions to invest in research and development, digital media producers should consider adopting a common publishing platform. Jesse Knight, Chief Technology Officer at Vice Media for seven years, says digital publishers spend too much time and money creating customized content management systems to meet their individual needs. Common technical standards for the industry may help publishers avoid duplicating their efforts. The money they save could be spent on creating original content, Knight says. “It’s as if every record label had their own dev team building their own version of iTunes or Spotify,” Knight writes in an editorial for Harvard’s NiemanLab. He said he spent his years at Vice building a global-first platform that spanned more than 12 brands and was used by offices in 35 countries. That investment became less meaningful as audiences shifted their media consumption to smaller-screened mobile devices, reducing the need to create a splashy website that looked great on desktop screens, he said. Knight makes a solid case for more teamwork in the industry. Publishing has its bitter rivalries, which can hamper cooperation among companies vying for a shrinking pool of ad dollars. When it comes to technology, perhaps the industry’s “frenemies” can work together to develop some common standards that cut costs. Knight even suggests digital publishers work together as a “media union” to tackle broader threats to the industry. Those challenges include the ongoing fight against ad blockers, the need for flexible content management systems that can scale upward and Google’s updates to its search algorithms, which can stifle online content discovery. Digital publishers have long sought an out-of-the-box solution that would alleviate the need for greater customization. As Vice Media learned, all-in-one publishing platforms, like Drupal, CQ and WordPress, were limited. They also had a reputation for being slow to adapt to technological changes. In the absence of common standards, some publishers are working to monetize their investments by licensing their digital development platforms. Vox Media’s Chorus, The Washington Post’s Arc, New York Media’s Clay and Hearst’s MediaOS are available to other publishers, Knight notes. Publishers can also consider Brightspot, Contentful and WordPress, but should be mindful that these platforms weren’t developed specifically for the media industry, he adds. Knight’s recommendations are prescient as digital publishers look for ways to cut costs and prioritize their funding among competing projects. As the industry faces bigger threats from Facebook and Google, publishers need to prioritize their core competencies in content development to differentiate their brands. Mobile Marketing via MediaPost.com: mobile https://ift.tt/2oB2PsH November 27, 2018 at 06:09AM IAB Ad Revenue Continues Upward https://ift.tt/2BBE9ct The IAB internet advertising revenue report 2018, for the first six months conducted by PwC and sponsored by the Interactive Advertising Bureau, shows the IAB internet advertising revenue report, now in its 23rd year at November 2018, revenues increase 23.1% from HY 2017. Year-to-date revenues continue to show strong growth with agility, commerce, audio, Gen Z’s, and digital video highlight as this year’s growth drivers. Revenues grew 22.9% between Q1 and Q2 2018. Mobile commands 62.5% of total digital ad revenues, while Q2 2018 revenues reach $25.6b and the first 6 months reach $49.5b. The top 10 companies command 76% of the market, and
The background of the PwC | IAB internet advertising revenue report says that the IAB internet advertising revenue report, conducted by PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP (“PwC”) on an ongoing basis, provides results released quarterly. The “IAB internet advertising revenue report” was initiated by the interactive advertising Bureau (IAB) in 1996, and utilizes data and information reported directly to PwC from companies selling advertising on the internet, as well as publicly available corporate data. The results reported are considered to be a reasonable measurement of internet/online/mobile advertising revenues because much of the data is compiled directly from information supplied by companies selling advertising online. The report includes data reflecting desktop and mobile online advertising revenues from websites, commercial online services, ad networks and exchanges, mobile devices, and email providers, as well as other companies selling online advertising. Internet advertising revenues in the United States totaled $49.5 billion for the first six months of 2018, with Q1 2018 accounting for approximately $23.9 billion and Q2 2018 accounting for approximately $25.6 billion, says the report. Revenues for the first six months of 2018 increased 23.1% over the first six months of 2017. Internet advertising revenues in the United States totaled $25.6 billion in the second quarter of 2018, an increase of 7.2% from the 2018 first quarter total of $23.9 billion, and an increase of 22.9% from the 2017 second quarter total of $20.8 billion. Advertising revenues delivered on mobile devices totaled $30.9 billion in HY 2018, a 42.0% increase from the prior half year revenues of $21.8 billion. Advertising delivered on a mobile device now makes up 62.5% of total internet advertising revenues. “Over the course of the last 23 years, this report has served as the official tracking mechanism of the size of the digital advertising industry and the trends propelling its ongoing rise. This 2018 half year report continues to drive awareness of the great influence of this industry, and specifically the great transformation that has occurred in the advertising ecosystem,” says the PwC | IAB internet advertising revenue report from David Silverman, Partner, PwC.
Mobile Marketing via MediaPost.com: mobile https://ift.tt/2oB2PsH November 27, 2018 at 06:09AM
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What B2B CMOs Need to Know About Successful Influencer Marketing https://ift.tt/2BAmjq9 The post What B2B CMOs Need to Know About Successful Influencer Marketing appeared first on Online Marketing Blog - TopRank®. Mobile Marketing via Hubspot https://ift.tt/2wiHYzh November 27, 2018 at 05:51AM Cyber Monday Forecast As A $7.8 Billion Day, Supported By $2B From Smartphones https://ift.tt/2r3x4es Cyber Monday got off to a solid start with online sales reaching $531 million as of 10 a.m. Eastern. Based on the initial numbers from data generated by about 80 of the top U.S. online retailers, Adobe Analytics predicts a $7.8 billion day at 18.3% growth year over year (YoY). The prediction makes the online shopping day the biggest in U.S. history, with smartphones contributing more than $2 billion in online sales for the day. But retailers could have seen higher numbers during the weekend. Adobe estimates out-of-stock products cost retailers an estimated $140 million in lost online sale for Nov. 24 and Nov. 25. That estimate puts losses at $120 million on Thanksgiving and about $177 million on Black Friday. More than 2% of product page visits saw out-of-stock messages during the holiday weekend, up slightly over the season average of 2.12%, but below Thanksgiving at 3.26% and Black Friday at 2.85%. advertisement advertisement Come Monday morning, Cyber Monday shoppers relied heavily on their mobile devices. Smartphones accounted for 58.9% of visits to retail sites, up 32.1% YoY. Desktop contributed 34.7%, and tablets 6.4%. While online shopping shows sizable gains this year, the hours between 10:00 p.m. and 1:00 a.m. Eastern should bring in $1.6 billion, about $200 million more compared to an average full day in the year, according to Adobe. Conversion rates are expected to peak above 7.3% for the season, about 2.5 times higher compared with the rest of the year. Adobe forecasts that consumers have spent $50.6 billion online between November 1 and November 25, 2018, accounting for 20% growth YoY. Perhaps a revised upward advertising outlook can explain some of the increase in online purchases. Pivotal analyst Brian Wieser on Monday revised his 2018 U.S. ad-growth estimates 1.7 percentage points to 6.5%, and projects that 2019 will expand 4% versus his previous forecast of 3.5% for 2019. The lower estimate was a result of slower growth in the third quarter of 2018, he wrote. Wieser cited several economic indicators for the upward revision such as the higher personal consumption expenditure growth rate, and an increase of industrial production. Consumers buying through smartphones contributed about $15.3 billion, up 56% YoY. Thanksgiving drove $3.7 billion, up 28% YoY; and Black Friday about $6.22 billion, up 23.6% YoY. Interestingly, Adobe reported that Denver had the biggest shopping baskets since Thanksgiving with orders averaging $163, compared with the U.S. average of $138. San Francisco came in at $157 and New York at $157. Shopify’s data for holiday sales tracked high with estimates that weekend sales rose about 60% YoY, wrote Baird Equity Research analysts in a note published Monday. “Based on company disclosures and our analysis of Shopify’s global sales tracker, we estimate that total holiday weekend sales (Thursday through Sunday) totaled roughly $1.4 billion for Shopify, including $255 million on Thanksgiving, $573 million on Black Friday, $300 million on SMB Saturday, and $250 million on Sunday,” per the research note. Mobile Marketing via MediaPost.com: mobile https://ift.tt/2oB2PsH November 26, 2018 at 03:09PM
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Black Friday Attracts Large Sales And First-Time Buyers, Studies Show https://ift.tt/2Kx5VcG Black Friday appeared to be a strong retail sales day despite bad weather in some parts of the country. Mastercard SpendingPulse predicts that Black Friday spending will be 40% larger than that of an average day in the 2018 holiday season. The company says that the clothing/special apparel category had good early traction, as did the electronics and interior furnishing sectors. Cold weather in the East and storms in the West could be driving some sales online, particularly in the department store sector, the company says. But online revenue should fill in these brick-and-mortar soft spots, it adds. Cyber Monday should also be strong, based on 2017 patterns. Last year, an average day during the holiday season brought in $1.1 billion in online retail sales, and that could hit $2 billion per day this year. Meanwhile, Bluecore reports that 57% of all Black Friday sales were to new customers, and predicts that 21% of these shoppers will buy again within 94 days of Black Friday, with an average of 1.7 purchases. In addition, 30% of shoppers considered their purchases up to two weeks in advance, showing that email marketing played a role in driving some to the stores. Overall, retailers saw a Black Friday order volume 307% over that of average days. The apparel sector realized a 450% hike, and jewelry 420%, Bluecore adds. The technology vertical saw a 353% rise and footwear 327%. For every dollar spent on an average day, retailers saw these numbers on Black Friday 2018:
Almost 6% of first-time Black Friday customers in 2017 purchased again on Black Friday this year. “Though retailers see a significant number of first-time customers on Black Friday, the winners will be those that are able to convert these new shoppers into valuable long-term customers,” states Rob Holland, COO of Bluecore. He adds: “Even more significant than total Black Friday sales numbers is the number of first-time buyers that become repeat buyers over time.” Bluecore, which claims to manage more than 500 million customer IDs, examined consumer behaviors and purchases across 161 retailers. Criteo reports that sales transactions rose on Wednesday morning, with bigger sales volumes occurring on Thanksgiving (2X-3X baseline) and Black Friday (over 4X baseline). Strong sales continued into Saturday. On Thanksgiving, there was a mid-afternoon “Turkey Dip” in sales when people were eating. However, the early morning and later p.m. hours showed strong gains versus the prior year. Black Friday was the strongest day, with desktop and mobile reaching over 4.5X the prior week’s baseline. Desktop purchases in Japan hit 50% over baseline on Friday night, with Japanese consumers also increasing their shopping on Singles Day.
Mobile Marketing via MediaPost.com: mobile https://ift.tt/2oB2PsH November 26, 2018 at 01:02PM 8 Ways Gen-Z Moms Differ From Millennial Moms https://ift.tt/2KySYiJ Yes, you read that right: Gen-Z moms. Just when you thought you had figured out the behaviors of millennial moms, here come Generation-Z mothers. The oldest of the latter cohort are 25 years old and are entering motherhood with all the spending that moms represent to the U.S. economy. It’s predicted that the Gen-Z population will control more than $44 billion in spending by the year 2020, according to Futurecast. When you consider that 85% of household income is controlled by moms, according to BSM Media research,research, you realize it’s time to focus on this powerful consumer segment. For marketers who assume that Gen-Z moms will mimic the behaviors of the millennial mom population, nothing could be further from the truth. Don’t believe it? Consider this list of eight qualities that differentiate these two segments of mom consumers. Tech Savvy vs Digital Natives. Millennial moms are tech-savvy, having adopted technology as it evolved during their childhoods, and today they navigate online easily. The Gen-Z mom is a digital native who was born into technology and therefore lives online innately. From artificial intelligence to virtual reality, Gen Z moms will expect to interact with brands fluidly between technologies. advertisement advertisement Multitaskers vs Uber-taskers. Millennial moms can juggle family and life using technology, typically bouncing between two screens, while Gen Z moms will be uber-taskers, more efficiently using four to five screens to manage the demands of family life. Scroll vs Filters. The millennial mom scrolls social media to discover new products for her family, while the Gen-Z mom uses the same type of filtering processing she used as a teenager on Snapchat and Instagram. Filters either mentally or physically allow her to skim through ads, images, and videos quickly to determine if the messaging is relevant to her needs. Futuristic vs Realistic. The Gen Z Moms2B have been watching and learning from millennials. They know what happens when you begin a family strapped with student loans and big futuristic plans, so they elect to be realistic. They live in the present and cautiously spend their money. Pinterest Planners vs Dinner Kit Planners. Family meal planning will take on a new look with Gen-Z moms, who will apply their efficient use of technology to order meal kits and prepped meals for their families. Pinterest may still inspire her like her millennial predecessors, but she’d rather spend her time bonding with her children than fighting over the glaze on her cake pops. Online shopping vs Thrifting. Mobile shopping may have been efficient for the millennial mom, but the Gen-Z mother wants more from the products she buys. As a teenager, she saved money and repurposed products by thrifting, and she’s likely to continue to enjoy the thrill of seek and find with her family’s needs. Mini-Van Moms vs Uber Moms. Getting to where you need to be easily, quickly, and without the challenges of parking and expense of car maintenance is appealing to the Gen-Z mom, who has been ride-sharing since she was a teen. Expect to see Uber and Lyft add car-seat-ready vehicles to their options as the Gen-Z mom segment grows. We’re also likely to see more kid-friendly carpooling services emerge to meet the demands of busy Gen-Z moms. Creative vs Innovative. Millennial moms may be known as the Pinterest generation, sharing their creative products on Etsy, but Gen-Z moms will use their knowledge of technology to be the innovation generation. These women have been digital entrepreneurs since they were teens, and as adults, brands can expect to see them kick it up a notch with one-of-a-kind and first-ever product ideas. Mobile Marketing via MediaPost.com: mobile https://ift.tt/2oB2PsH November 26, 2018 at 12:15PM |
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