The original version of this piece appeared as a Forbes post. Marketers face challenges when crafting loyalty programs that cater to Gen Z, a core consumer demographic with distinct values, commercial preferences, and digital habits. The key to attracting and retaining Gen Z lies in respecting their preferences for autonomy, convenience, and authenticity. To achieve ...

The original version of this piece appeared as a Retail Customer Experience post. Customers today want options. They don’t want to be limited to one method of shopping; instead, they expect the flexibility to visit a brick-and-mortar store, check out online, or use an app.  To meet this demand, brands need to adopt an agile ...

The original version of this piece appeared as an Adweek post. Consumers today prioritize the values and ethics of the companies they support, and they are more likely to remain loyal to brands that align with their own beliefs. In fact, research shows that customers are willing to pay more for products or services from ...

This piece originally appeared as a Retail Customer Experience post. Marketers have entered a new era focused on data privacy. Google plans to retire the third-party cookie, and Apple has already downgraded its mobile identifier as part of ios 14.5. Plus, governments from California to China are cracking down on data collection without consumer consent. ...

This piece originally appeared as a Digital Commerce 360 piece. Data gathered directly from consumers allows retailers to understand them on a deeper level, including such aspects of their identity as their life stage, the social or workgroups they belong to and their professions. Google’s recent announcement that it won’t allow cookie-based tracking in Chrome ...

This piece originally appeared as a Retail Customer Experience post. COVID has forced consumers online, and that's where they'll stay even after the pandemic is over. More consumers have gravitated in even greater numbers than anticipated to purchase online. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, Americans spent $791.7 billion in 2020 on e-commerce, up 32.4% ...

This piece originally appeared as a Forbes post. It is now common to tout the importance of collecting zero-party data. This information, which consumers knowingly and proactively provide brands in exchange for value, powers privacy-safe marketing strategies and is generally more accurate than probabilistic, often cobbled-together third-party datasets. But how do brands and retailers that ...

This piece originally appeared as a Retail Touchpoints post. Marketing is often first on the chopping block during a recession, and with GDP contracting two quarters in a row, retail marketers are working hard to determine how to make each dollar go further. Many organizations will cut marketing spend in a bid to preserve margins. ...

This piece originally appeared as a TotalRetail post. Deal-based marketing has often been associated with competing for customers based on the lowest possible price point. Traditionally brands that needed to sell products or tickets in a hurry partnered with deals sites to move these items at a large discount. However, this model doesn't maximize the ...

This piece originally appeared as a TotalRetail post. When we think about big revenue-generating opportunities on the calendar, we typically focus on November and December, particularly Black Friday. But sales on Black Friday last year — both in-store and online — dropped below pre-pandemic levels. Heading in the opposite direction is May, which is quickly becoming one of ...