Online Marketing

Truly connecting with customers and meeting their expectations is hard these days. Channels that were once effective are in decline. Customers are growing immune to the ads, emails and cluttered news feeds they see each day. Data privacy restrictions are making it harder to gather actionable data on those customers. These are all challenges that…

As retailers gear up for 2024, they find themselves in an ever-changing market ... yet again. They understand shoppers and offer them value in a world where customer privacy is coveted, third-party cookies aren’t an option, and anonymous shoppers reign, representing a bulk of transactions. The technologies powering e-commerce platforms continue to evolve, but now…

Is it just me, or is advertising getting weirder? There was a time not long ago when brands and ad agencies would talk about the big idea and the importance of telling a compelling story. But these days, with TikTok dominating the social media landscape, it seems like big ideas are being traded in for…

No other advertising channel has ever grown as fast as commerce media. In just five years, the market went from $1 billion to $30 billion — more than twice as fast as it took social media advertising to achieve the same milestone. And by all accounts, commerce media is just getting started. Retailers have a…

For small businesses, the holidays aren’t just the most wonderful time of year, they’re the most critical for driving sales and gaining new customers. While independent shops are popular for those who want unique and meaningful gifts for their loved ones, big-box retailers look to dominate the space through advertising and can’t-miss offers. With powerful…

Direct-to-consumer brands (DTCs) have experienced tremendous growth in recent years, fueled by the pandemic and by younger customers who prefer to make purchases online. Data-driven and requiring real-time investment decisions, DTCs have relied almost entirely on social media for their advertising outreach, given its immediate engagement capabilities. However, in recent years the DTC advertising landscape…

For several years now, retailers have been deploying creative digital marketing tactics and transforming how consumers engage with them online. But what if they’ve been doing it all backward? A recent digital experience benchmark report found 85 percent of consumers are unhappy with their online shopping experience, so there’s room for improvement. Companies looking to…

In episode 420 of Total Retail Talks, Editor-in-Chief Joe Keenan interviews Erin Malone, director of digital strategy at Free People, a bohemian women's apparel and lifestyle retailer, part of the Urban Outfitters portfolio of brands. Malone provides an overview of the brand and her role (0:50), how Free People is optimizing the online shopping experience (2:30),…

Mass reach advertising isn’t cutting it anymore. Radio voiceovers and commercial breaks in between TV segments might be the easiest way to reach large audiences, but it's no longer the most effective. Today, the way advertisers reach customers is constantly evolving with the emergence of new channels and innovations. In this fragmented digital landscape, it's…

Rather than make readers wait for the punchline, I want to lead with the fact that the 2023 back-to-school shopping experience will be omnichannel. According to data from Nielsen IQ, 41 percent of consumers are planning on an omnichannel shopping experience for back-to-school, while 35 percent will be buying in physical stores, and 25 percent…