In Clear Focus

In Clear Focus: Chantal Schmelz is a facilitator, strategist, lecturer, and marketer based in Zurich, Switzerland. Chantal explains how she uses the LEGO® SERIOUS PLAY® Method to break down barriers between participants and generate breakthrough ideas. Chantal shares consumer insights based on her work in Europe and the Philippines, and contrasts e-commerce in developed countries with what she sees in the developing world - plus how WEConnect connects women-owned businesses with buyers globally.

In Clear Focus: Bigeye's guest this week is Ksenia Newton of Brandwatch. Ksenia explains how she triangulates different sources of data, including social listening, to derive fresh consumer insights about shopping behaviors in-store and online. Ksenia shares insights from recent Brandwatch reports and makes some predictions about this year's holiday shopping season, based on what she's seeing in her research. We also preview the results of Bigeye's upcoming study about US shopping behaviors.

In Clear Focus: This week's podcast guest offers fresh ideas and insights to generate "customers for life". Customer service expert and author John D. Hanson explains how to wow today's customers, based on extensive research into the practices of industry leaders including Amazon, American Express, Nordstrom, Ritz-Carlton, and others. In an age of increasingly digitized customer service automation, John suggests seven ways that firms can differentiate with service excellence online and offline.

In Clear Focus: Doug Stephens is an internationally recognized retail futurist. His new book, Resurrecting Retail, explores the challenges today's big-box retailers face from online giants like Amazon and niche, direct-to-consumer brands. We discuss how retailers are responding with innovative, immersive shopping experiences that bring customers back to physical stores. Doug identifies the emerging technologies that will shape the future of shopping for the remainder of this decade and beyond.

In Clear Focus: This week's guest is a content strategist who believes traditional Buyer Personas often fail to deliver the results marketers expect. Adrienne Barnes shares her process for creating the "Best Buyer Personas" and explains how her research pointed to improvements that eliminate many subconscious biases that traditional Persona development practices introduce. Adrienne also discusses some of the practical ways in which Personas can help align the work of sales and marketing teams.

In Clear Focus: With an eye on the future, we talk with Thomas Klaffke, an expert in identifying and interpreting consumer signals. As Head of Research at TrendWatching, Thomas explains the process of mapping out global, meaningful consumer trends and insights. We also discuss Business of Purpose, a new platform for business professionals which Thomas also leads - and what a societal shift from carefree consumerism to a more purpose-driven economy will mean for the future of brands and commerce.

In Clear Focus: Trends are the currency of our cultural lives in a global economy built on cycles of disruption and innovation. For the first episode of season 8, we're joined by Dr. Devon Powers, the author of On Trend: The Business of Forecasting The Future. Devon shares her insights about the global agencies and professionals whose job it is to identify, explain, predict, and manufacture consumer trends. We discuss how these patterns can influence how we all live, work, play, shop, and learn.

Gender: Beyond The Binary - Reflecting data from Bigeye's national study on gender, three members of the LGBTQIA+ community join us for a discussion about consumer products. We hear how brands are embracing nonbinary and unisex products, especially in fashion and beauty, and discuss Gillette's controversial 2019 "The Best a Man Can Be" campaign. We also learn which consumers are most and least likely to think gendered products are different enough to warrant different versions for men and women.

In Clear Focus: Coinciding with the launch of Bigeye's new website and #TheBigeyeLens campaign, this week's episode explores connections between human eyesight and trend forecasting. We're joined by two guests: Doctor of Optometry, Dr. Amanda Stebbins in Orlando, and Thomas Klaffke, the Head of Research at TrendWatching, based in Berlin, Germany. With an eye on the future, we hear about the latest advances in correcting vision, and how COVID has accelerated disruptive innovations in retailing.

In Clear Focus: Dubbed “the busiest man on the internet”, Tim Hwang joins us to discuss his book, Subprime Attention Crisis. Tim explains how and why he believes the programmatic display advertising ecosystem resembles financial markets prior to the subprime mortgage crash of 2008. We talk about security vulnerabilities when sharing ad data, geofencing, and Washington's increasing scrutiny of Big Tech. Tim also provides his unique insights into the uses and abuses of artificial intelligence in advertising.