Stay in Touch
Amazon has long been touted as the "sleeping giant" of online advertising, and the retail giant showed further signs of fully awaking from its slumber in 2019. The company made significant improvements to its ad products over the course of the year -- particularly around data and analytics -- and ad-buyers say the company is getting more serious about making its tools more accessible and less confusing to understand and use.
The rise of retail media in recent years has unlocked new options for brands' digital ad dollars beyond just Google and Facebook ads.
When retailers seek to cut costs, salaried store employees can be the first ones to get the ax. Among those who do remain, many of them say that their job is becoming harder and the hours more unpredictable, according to five current or former salaried managers Modern Retail spoke with.
With the holidays fast approaching, Amazon's massive logistics network is being put to the test.In order to get those packages to customers on time, Amazon doesn't just rely on third-party carriers like the USPS, UPS and FedEx. Since building its first fulfillment centers in 1997, Amazon also now has its own fleet of trucks and cargo planes rushing to get customers their delivery time. It's also constantly adding new types of robotics to its warehouses, looking for ways to speed up the picking and package sortation process.
More grocery stores are realizing they need to build out standalone programs to fulfill digital orders. There are a few choices on the market currently, but one trend called micro-fulfillment is increasingly catching companies' eyes.
Retailers are increasingly trying to utilize the assets they have to facilitate more omnichannel growth. To do this, they are employing 'dark spaces.' While the concept is not new, dark stores and spaces are becoming a more important part of retail strategy. Here's why.
J.Crew just announced that it's received investor approval to part ways with Madewell. This is certainly a way for the retailer to pay down its massive debt load, but it won't solve the bigger problems facing the aging brand.
Direct mail has become an important part of many digital brand's marketing budgets. Now catalogs are having a moment too -- and companies are increasingly melding the digital data they have about customers with the larger pieces of mail they send to their homes.
Everyone loves to hate on Amazon. The e-commerce juggernaut ranks low on trustworthiness, DTC brands don't want to sell on it, and even Nike is no longer going to be working with Amazon Retail.
There's a rising supply of direct-to-consumer brands eager to hand over money to agencies to help them with their Facebook marketing. In the latest edition of our Confessions series, in which we offer anonymity in exchange for candor, we speak to a former marketer who cycled through several agencies -- ultimately landing at one that focused mostly on direct-to-consumer brands -- before going freelance.
More direct-to-consumer brands are experimenting with partnership marketing, in order to further diversify their marketing spend away from Facebook and Google. Although there are inexpensive ways to test out partnership marketing, it can take a lot of trial and error to figure out which brands are actually effective to partner with.
Retail media is growing in importance. The idea of retailers turning their websites into media platforms isn’t a new one, but over the past few years, has commanded more interest and more attention from brands. For brands specifically, advertising on retail media isn’t an ad problem anymore -- it’s a business problem.
Amazon has a few new features it's testing with brands that look a lot like some Facebook programs. They all seem like ways to promote more content posted to the e-commerce platform -- and it looks like Amazon is beginning to listen to some of the needs of its partners.
When handbag brand Dagne Dover launched in 2012, its products were only available for sale through its own website. But today, shoppers can find Dagne Dover bags for sale on Nordstrom's website, in Stitch Fix boxes, in select Apple stores, as well as some Equinox gyms. While Dagne Dover started as a direct-to-consumer brand, wholesale now accounts for just under 20% of its revenue. Founder and CEO Melissa Mash wants to keep it that way.
Modern Retail surveyed 206 brands and retailers to ask what is working, and what isn't working for them on Amazon.
Away's new line is yet another sign that retailers are catering to new travel habits, which involve an increasing amount of car trips, close-to-home getaways, and outdoor adventures.
Read MoreRecognizing the companies and campaigns modernizing retail in the digital age.
REMIND ME
