Jen Gray says, “It may be July, but now is the time to start thinking about the holiday season. Although it’s one of the most important times for driving revenue, the holiday season is difficult for brands to set themselves apart from competitors andCONNECT with customers in meaningful ways. Therefore it’s important for marketers to harness emerging technology to drive customer engagement. From receipt validation to building sharable content, brands have more tools at their disposal than ever before as they prep their strategies for the biggest spending season of the year“. Four... [...]

Sucharita Mulpuru says, “The hottest topic in eCommerce these days seems to be “buy buttons.” The energy though appears premature. Pinterest announced its buyable pins with a press conference and sentimental Hallmark-like videos though the buyable pins are actually hard to find. Facebook, the king of all social networks, announced a buy button more than a year ago but it’s been relatively mum on the details (and they appear to only have one formal eCommerce partner). Media reports and blog posts of Instagram, Twitter, and Google doing the same seem to further excite merchants and vendors... [...]

Sucharita Mulpuru says, “The hottest topic in eCommerce these days seems to be “buy buttons.” The energy though appears premature. Pinterest announced its buyable pins with a press conference and sentimental Hallmark-like videos though the buyable pins are actually hard to find. Facebook, the king of all social networks, announced a buy button more than a year ago but it’s been relatively mum on the details (and they appear to only have one formal eCommerce partner). Media reports and blog posts of Instagram, Twitter, and Google doing the same seem to further excite merchants and vendors... [...]

Graham Charlton says, “Users of site search are more likely to convert than the average user, so ecommerce sites should strive to produce the best possible experience.  Here I’ve compiled a list of site search best practices, along with some excellent examples from retailers. Search boxes and functionality There’s more to search box and site search functionality than you may think. The placement and design of search boxes can make a difference to usage, while the addition of certain features makes for a better search experience. Make the search box easy to spot The prominence... [...]

Luke Richards says, “It’s another month and therefore another fresh update to our massive Internet Statistics Compendium.  As usual, we’ve scoured the length and breadth of the internet for the choicest stats and trends from across the digital landscape. This month the Customer Experience arm of the compendium saw some great additions which I thought I’d highlight today; looking at how multiple touchpoints during the customer journey are improving the experience for consumers as well as the return for shops. Brands with more digital touch points are more likely to be selected... [...]

Charlie Keegan says, “After pouring money into marketing for your ecommerce company, you want to know where your traffic comes from, right? The launch of a particular campaign could involve pay-per-click ads, email marketing, social media posts, blogs, guest posts, and mentions in online magazines. How could you possibly track where your buyers found you with so many possibilities? There are quite a few attribution models available, with perhaps the most widely used being Google Analytics. It’s true that Google Analytics will help you identify the click that led buyers directly to your... [...]

  Graham Charlton says, “Microcopy is often overlooked, but it can have an important impact on the user experience.  In an ecommerce context, microcopy is those little pieces of text which explain what to write in a form field, or the wording of a call to action. Here are some examples of how it can be used… Microcopy, or transactional content In our recent Implementing Content Strategy guide, this kind of copy is referred to as transactional content by author Dr Mike Baxter“. How ecommerce sites can use microcopy ‘Econsultancy’ Blog  [...]

Patrick Kulp says, “Video ads on Facebook are right around the corner. Facebook will be giving video publishers an extra push to publish video directly onto its platform as it shores up its massive video platform, it announced on Wednesday. SEE ALSO: Think Facebook is a media powerhouse? Just wait til its video player takes over The social network is starting to run ads between videos for a small group of publishers including Fox Sports, the NBA and Funny or Die. Those companies will receive 55% share of ad revenues that run against their videos — the same split offered by YouTube. Facebook... [...]

Tucker SchreiberTucker Schreiber Tucker Schreiber says, “Keeping your online store on trend can be the difference between staying relevant and losing sales. This applies not only to the products that you’re selling, but how you present them. In this post, we’ll take a look at three design trends you can leverage to keep your online store looking fresh! A Bit About Design Trends Some designers think “trend” is a dirty word, but it’s really just a way to identify interesting patterns in the collective style habits of our culture. By definition, a trend is... [...]

Morgan Jacobson says, “An inspiring call-to-action is equal parts design and psychology. Prompting the desired response is never easy, especially as consumers become savvy to the tricks and tactics that online retailers use. The last thing you want is for your CTAs to be labeled “click-bait,” but you have to get buyers to convert somehow, right? We’ve shared a lot of tips over the years for creating compelling CTAs. While some of the components may change a little over time, the basic requirements remain. An image of the product or service, some compelling copy, and a button that stands... [...]