Retail Remix

Margot Bloomstein has helped brands like Timberland and Lindt develop their marketing, content and user experience (UX) strategies. She has used her experience and research on brands across industries to tackle a known industry problem: winning and keeping customer trust. 

The result is the new book called: Trustworthy: How the Smartest Brands Beat Cynicism and Bridge the Trust Gap. During this episode of Retail Remix, Margot shares why she felt a book like this was needed, and real-life examples of brands that have successfully tackled audience cynicism and built powerful content engines. Listen to learn:  

• Why the “3 V’s” of trust (vulnerability, voice and volume) should guide every brand’s approach to content strategy and branding;  
• How Sephora and BuzzFeed are embracing community and transparency to breed trust; and  
• Tips for bridging cultural gaps and department silos to make trust a true “business problem.” 

RELATED LINKS 

• Learn more about Appropriate, Inc.  
• Buy a copy of Margot’s books  
• Connect with Margot on LinkedIn

Michelle Collins built her business, A Non-Agency, in the early days of the “experiential marketing” era. Now, as the digital divide closes and retailers rethink their real estate strategies, she believes there’s significant opportunity for innovation.  
 
During this episode of Retail Remix, Michelle shares her take on experiential marketing’s evolution and how brands and retailers can prepare for the future. You'll learn:  

• Why the principles of journalism, marketing and sales support customer experience design; 
• The key drivers for creativity and successful problem solving for customer activation; and 
• How new real estate trends and retail executive priorities, including fulfillment, are driving the future of experience. 

RELATED LINKS 

• Learn more about A Non-Agency 
• See Michelle’s lecture on customer experience design from Retail Collaborate Conference

Cause marketing. Purpose-driven marketing. Brands across industries are hearing these phrases more frequently as consumers seek to align with brands with similar beliefs. 

But brands that simply create one-off campaigns based on social holidays risk looking like performative allies. To help organizations navigate through this exciting (yet inundating) era of “woke marketing,” Katie Martell is studying the intersection of marketing and social issues. 

During this episode of Retail Remix, Katie shares her research from her documentary and book, both aptly called Woke-Washed, including the brands that are tackling this movement successfully. You’ll learn: 

• The social and economic issues impacting consumer behaviors today; 
• How to identify “woke-washing” in your campaigns and strategies; and  
• Best practices for aligning core values to social movements and issues.   

RELATED LINKS 

• Visit Katie Martell’s website 
• Learn more about Woke-Washed 

This week’s episode is brought to you by Podium.

The pandemic has accelerated retail’s latest reinvention. While the news cycle is churning out new ideas, predictions and perspectives about this reinvention, Andrew Smith, Co-Founder of ThinkUncommon, believes folks are getting a lot wrong. 

Andrew and his fellow co-founder Gareth Jude tackle these myths and misconceptions head on with their new book, Retail Innovation Reframed. During this episode, Andrew sits down with Alicia to dig into their final opus, touching on:  

• The top myths about post-COVID retail;  
• The trends and tech that will rise to the top amid recovery; and 
• How retail leaders can tackle the cultural issues that make innovation projects fall flat 

RELATED LINKS 

• Learn more about ThinkUncommon 
• Buy a copy of Retail Innovation Reframed  
• Follow Andrew on LinkedIn 

Thanks to our sponsor, Podium!

Retailers know that it doesn’t matter how great your website is if people can’t find it. Podium helps you get found and chosen by making it easy to get reviews from your happiest customers — just by sending a simple review request through text. Learn more at Podium.com. 

Each social network has a unique way of rating content based on the unique needs and behaviors of its users. Their goal is to ensure they’re creating highly curated, relevant feeds that feature only the best content.
 
These algorithms are what make the apps so engaging — even addictive. But how do different algorithms impact brands and retailers who are working diligently to create a diverse library of content that drives customer acquisition, conversion and retention? 
 
Matthew Maher, Founder of M7 Innovations, breaks down must-know information about the current social media climate and ways to monetize new capabilities. You’ll learn:  

• How social media is driving the future of contextual commerce;  
• Why brands need to closely assess and tailor their content strategies for different platforms and their inherent behaviors; and   
• What “dark patterns” exist within social networks and what organizations can do to combat them.  

RELATED LINKS 

• Learn more about M7 Innovations 

Brilliant Earth made a splash in the retail industry with its emphasis on ethical sourcing and it’s digital-first business model. Over the past 15 years, the company has maintained its dedication to both by prioritizing purpose-driven business strategy and experience innovation. 

But what’s driving Brilliant Earth today, while so many businesses are trying to find their footing and forge a path for the future? We sit down with Co-Founder and CEO Beth Gerstein to talk about what drives her as a leader—and what drives the business at large. She shares how the company has:  

• Accelerated experience innovation and improved culture despite work-from-home realities;   
• Prioritized product innovation through new partnerships, charitable giving initiatives and embracing blockchain; and  
• Balanced contributing to relevant social issues and giving back, while still staying true to the brand mission. 

RELATED LINKS 

• Learn more about Brilliant Earth 
• Follow Brilliant Earth on Instagram 
• Connect with Beth on LinkedIn  

Beers, wines and spirits is a $3 trillion industry worldwide and this industry is seeing a significant transformation as a result of COVID-19.  

As consumer mindsets and behaviors change, especially as they buy more alcohol online, 3x3 Insights is helping brands and independent retailers find new ways to reach and engage their audience. These methods stem from rich data, which includes demand data, as well as rich behavioral data.  

During this episode of Retail Remix, Mike Provance, CEO of 3x3 Insights, spotlights the data gap that exists between brands, distributors and retailers. Tune in to learn:  

• How consumers research, compare and consider different liquor brands and products;  
• Which data sources are needed to create more relevant product assortments, offers and marketing campaigns across all channels; and 
• How the liquor industry will evolve moving forward. 

RELATED LINKS

• Learn more about 3x3 Insights 
• Sign up for the 3x3 Insights newsletter 
• Get more insights from the team

The Outlook Guide has been an editorial mainstay for Retail TouchPoints for nearly a decade. Every year, the editorial team gets fascinating takes from experts and analysts on the trends they believe will dominate in the year ahead. But this year’s guide was especially interesting to curate, given the great acceleration of trends we witnessed in 2020.
 
During this special episode of the Retail Remix podcast, Alicia sits down with editor Adam Blair to discuss the latest iteration of the Outlook Guide and specifically, the trends we’ve seen evolve over time. We also catch up with Ken Fenyo of Coresight Research, who contributed to the Outlook Guide, to ask some follow-up questions about his column.  
 
Listen in to learn: 

• How COVID-19 will influence 2021 tech spending;  
• Tech trends that will influence the industry moving forward; and  
• Ways to find and engage with the right tech startups to support innovation. 

RELATED LINKS 

• Dig in to Retail TouchPoints’ 2021 Outlook Guide  
• Learn more about Coresight Research

Millennial and Gen Z consumers are extremely cognizant of their financial health. They’re more likely to use their debit accounts and are more wary of racking up credit card debt. It’s no surprise, then, that the “buy now, pay later” space is booming.  
 
Afterpay is one of the companies driving this new payment revolution, giving consumers the power to pay for purchases over four installments, interest-free. With more than 11 million active customers globally and 63,000 retail customers, the company is venturing into brick-and-mortar stores.  

We sit down with Alex Fisher, who is the VP of Retail at Afterpay, to discuss the company’s staggering growth in 2020 and how she is helping expand retail partnerships across all channels.  
 
Listen in to learn: 

• The emotional and psychological factors driving the “buy now, pay later” industry;  
• Why and how Afterpay is expanding into stores; and 
• The value drivers of extending “buy now, pay later” capabilities across all channels. 

RELATED LINKS 

• Learn more about Afterpay

The murder of George Floyd in May 2020 sparked a social reckoning around the U.S. It also sparked intense conversations among executive leaders — and those conversations are continuing to this day. 
 
But what separates the organizations with the best intentions and those who are taking significant action to create more opportunity and equality for black employees and other minorities?
 
During this episode of Retail Remix, get diversity and inclusion insights, challenges and best practices from Michael Bach, who is the Founder and CEO of the Canadian Centre for Diversity and Inclusion. He also shares some key takeaways from his book, Birds of All Feathers. You’ll learn:  

• Why understanding privilege is the foundation for any D&I strategy;  
• How to tackle the “pipeline fallacy” in organizations by taking a measured approach to hiring and career progression; and  
• What separates tangible D&I strategies and “PR stunts.”  

RELATED LINKS 

• Learn more about the Canadian Centre for Diversity and Inclusion 
• Learn more about Michael Bach 
• Purchase Birds of All Feathers: Doing Diversity and Inclusion Right