Retail Technology Guide 2017

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THE RETAIL TECHNOLOGY SUPERGUIDE

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CONTENTS
RETAILER
PROFILES
INTERNATIONAL
The global landscape has much
insight to offer the local market, so
here are a few standout retailers
leading the technological charge.
Amazon................... 22
Yoox Net-a-Porter........ 26
Hema Xiansheng.......... 28
Nike..................... 32
FEATURES
Crate + Barrel........... 34
AUSTRALIA /
012 THE EVOLUTION OF NEW ZEALAND
E-COMMERCE A selection of retailers closer to home
that has invested in technology and
Digital retail technology is advancing at
innovation.
a frightening pace, and these are some
of the key areas all retailers need to add
to their strategic watch list for 2017 Myer.................... 36
and beyond. Retail Zoo............... 40
Redbubble................ 42
018 RISE OF THE Flora & Fauna............ 44
PLANET OF THE APIS Domino’s................. 46
The need for speed in the deployment
of digital innovations and developments
is greater now than ever before.
The future is plug and play, and
application programming interfaces
(APIs) are opening a broad universe of
opportunities for retailers to leverage.
004 THE RETAIL TECHNOLOGY SUPERGUIDE | WWW.POWERRETAIL.COM.AU

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61 2 8272 3800 | [email protected] want and how they want.
THE RETAIL TECHNOLOGY SUPERGUIDE | WWW.POWERRETAIL.COM.AU 005
CONTENTS
BUYERS
PUBLISHER
Grant Arnott
GUIDES EDITOR
Prinitha Govender
SUB EDITOR
Kylie Griffiths
This section contains a collection
of e-commerce industry insight NATIONAL SALES MANAGER
and expert advice from recognised Adrian Wakeham
industry experts, aimed at informing
ART DIRECTOR
and guiding a retail leader’s decision Nick Georgitsaros
making. From e-commerce platforms
CONTRIBUTORS
and website performance to marketing,
Michel van Aalten Zane McIntyre
personalisation and analytics, we cover Matt Cerche Sasha Murrie
the major elements to be considered. Luke Condon Ryan Murtagh
Kiel Egging Lisa Powell
050......................................... E-Commerce Platforms Lee Hardham Tony Repaci
Ben Franzi Natasha Sholl
072.....Creating a Seamless Omnichannel Experience Using New Tech Available Graham Jackson Raghav Sibal
076......A Smarter Way: Using Technology to Compete with Big Retailers James Johnson Justine Thomas
Rebecca Jourdan Wayne Wang
080.................. Technologies in Customer Service Engagement Adam Kron
084....... Blended Retail and the Value for Customer Connections The Retail Technology SuperGuide is a product of
088........................................ New Fashioned Service
092....................Endless Aisles –The Next Retail Revolution
096..... It’s Not the Big that Eat the Small. It’s the Fast that Eat the Slow
100....... Delivering the Flexibility Today’s Omnichannel Shopper Demands Producers of exceptional business media, including:
104..................Tech Trends and Loyalty in Digital Marketing Content
108................Online Marketplaces, the New Age Shopping Mall

112............. The Future of E-Commerce – Why Innovation is Key Content
114...................... Choosing Your Same Day Delivery Partner Stimulating Thought. Inspiring Action.
118...............................Pay Attention to the First Mile The Media Pad Pty Ltd
122....................................Fulfilment Differentiation ABN 75 126 991 535
32 Ricketts Rd, Mt Waverley, VIC 3149
106...........................................Trends in Logistics Tel: +61 3 9585 9824
110........................................... Analytics Software Email: [email protected]
Web: www.mediapad.com.au
114........................................... Cross-border Trade Twitter: @powerretail
118................................... Fulfilment and Warehousing
PRINTING
122..................................... Technology in E-Commerce Toppan Printing Co
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FOREWORD
TIME TO
BRING IT ON
Power Retail’s second Retail Technology Superguide
is created to be a resource for those experienced
and uninitiated. We hope you use this book as a
tool and a valuable component in your vision of
building your online retail empire.
I
n the last twenty years, e-commerce As I write this, Amazon has just Thank you to all the hardworking
has gone from being non-existent to confirmed its plans for its first Australian
staff at Power Retail for helping put the
entirely revolutionising retail, and fulfillment centre in Melbourne’s second edition of The Retail Technology
for years has posed a substantial Dandenong South, which will no doubt Superguide together, in particular Adrian
threat to bricks and mortar retail. In have progressed by the time you read Wakeham and Nick Georgitsaros and our
1995, Jeff Bezos made his first ever this. While it’s hard to absolutely predictpublisher, Grant Arnott. In addition, a
online book sale, and since then, we what’s in store (pardon the pun) for big thanks goes out to our many industry
have never looked back, only forward – the e-commerce and retail landscape in contributors whose knowledge and
forward when it comes to digital devices, Australia with new entrants arriving on expertise was invaluable in ensuring the
technology, changing consumer behaviour our shores, one thing is certain – it is quality and integrity of this publication.
and e-commerce platforms. those retailers who embrace technological Finally, thank you also to all our
Over the past few years, we have seen innovation, and are prepared to take sponsors and advertisers, who represent
numerous retailers close their doors advantage of them, that will thrive and the upper tier of e-commerce and
and online retailers open their digital be successful. multichannel solution providers in
doors. The offline to online model is still Australia and New Zealand. With a vast
progressing, and we are now seeing a It’s a jungle out there when it comes range of expertise, technology and
backflip in the traditional sequence, with to retail tech - The Retail Technology solutions available locally, and the
more and more online to offline models Superguide is your machete. This year’s competition we are seeing arriving on our
emerging. meaty buyers guide is complimented shores, I say, “Bring it!” I look forward
Currently, we are facing a convergence with some inspirational online retail to seeing e-commerce in Australia soar
of the physical and digital retail stories from Australia and overseas, which to new heights. As always, we at Power
landscape, one that promises a truly not only draws on the excellence these Retail look forward to sharing that
unified shopping experience for the companies are achieving in e-commerce, journey with you.
consumer. Retailers are still in search of but also the technology and solutions
the “sweet spot”, that is, the ideal mix that are helping them to pioneer that Prinitha Govender
of the online and offline offering. Even growth. Editor
when they come close, rapidly changing Power Retail
consumer expectations means the need to
continually innovate.

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FOREWORD
RETAIL TECH
THE TIME IS NOW
Retail and Technology are two words that have been
the underpinning of retail for many decades, and
indeed, retail technology is one of the keystones
that will drive retail into the future.
I
t is indeed an honour to be asked peak bodies, again I sense we score low on support, I also sense an over focus on
to write the foreword for Power the collaboration card. Some would even competition with like businesses in the
Retail’s 2017 Retail Technology argue, and I tend to agree, that we have same verticals, and I fear that we might,
Superguide. Along with a borderless too many industry associations. And whilst in the robustness of the competition,
flat world, retail’s future is a truly and individually they all work tirelessly on key forget that growing the pie must surely be
deeply customer centric one. But as I themes and agenda’s I don’t sense or see the key ballgame. Fighting for a growing
write, I ask myself why ‘Retail Tech’ does a lot of collaboration amongst them. And slice of a shrinking pie is not going to
not enjoy the same prestige, or ubiquity whilst I can’t claim the moral high ground help us in the long run. I am a true
that say, ‘FinTech’ enjoys? Even ‘AgriTech’ with NORA, I would argue that much of believer, from hard learnings in mistakes
seems to be getting more profile. Where, our early success has derived from being in my own career, of the ‘frenemy model’.
for example, are the ‘Retail Tech’ hubs more like an ‘un-association’ – an open A focus on the intersection opportunities
and accelerators and funds specialising in source environment, where membership is between partners and players, and
Retail Technology? secondary to being a catalyst, a network, yes even competitors, that enrich the
Answering this question requires a for collaboration. ‘Connecting the dots’ customer journey.
bit of soul searching. Having spent well has been our earliest war cry. And in the Don’t get me wrong, retail will always
over twenty years in the Australian retail interests of advancing collaboration, we embrace a competitive spirit, that is
landscape, a truly blessed and enriching took the brave step of moving from an part of the appeal for many. But the big
journey, I have numerous positive advocacy group for online retailers only, prize are happy customers and connected
recollections and relationships. Both as a to support the more convergent retail technologies, Retail Tech, will continue to
retailer, as well as an industry head with landscape, including established retailers empower them.
NORA. There is no doubt that our ‘broad who are real beneficiaries of this consumer I wish you well with your alliances and
church of new retail’ is full of talented direct retail renaissance. growing your businesses in 2018, and I
and skilled practitioners, both on the NORA would not exist today if it wasn’t look forward to seeing more Retail Tech
retailer and enabler side. But, the true for the support of many stakeholders innovation in the years ahead. And of
ingredient for advancing retail technology in the ecosystem. They include media, course, to a growing and diverse retail
is collaboration. And the question we including the leadership of this very pie. Lastly, on behalf of the industry, a
must now ask is this – How does our publication, event organisations who warm shout out to Grant Arnott and the
industry, the new retail industry, embrace host outstanding conferences, events and team at Power Retail. They continue to
collaboration? exhibitions for Australian retail. We have lead the field in building collaboration and
My strong sense is that our report card also had significant support from business celebrating success.
on this is below par. Now, before you councils and chambers, and of course
accuse me of mudslinging, the first group leading technology led enablers from Paul Greenberg
that must stand up and be counted are marketplaces to payments, supply chain Founder
the retail industry bodies and its leaders. to ERP and everything in between. But National Online Retailer Association
Despite the good work being done by the despite these green shoots of collaborative

A successful business doesn’t appear overnight. #newretail
nora.org.au
It is also not a solo endeavour, but requires open and curious minds
willing to collaborate and learn together.
The influential NORA Network connects like-minded organisations to
ensure we all have our slice of the Australian retail pie. Sharing our
knowledge, expertise, and experience is the surest, fastest way to
fast-track performance and achieve success.
Whether you’re a retailer or a solution provider, join our community and
develop meaningful, strategic relationships with the people and
organisations who can take your business to new heights.
Contact [email protected] or visit our website.

THE
EVOLUTION OF
E-COMMERCE WORDS: Prinitha Govender
Digital retail technology is advancing at a

frightening pace, and these are some of the
key areas all retailers need to add to their
strategic watch list for 2017 and beyond.
T
echnological innovation A report by Ovum, The Future
is at the heart of the next of E-Commerce: The Road to 2026,
revolution of commerce. Not expects that over the next ten years,
exactly rocket science, but it instant gratification, powered by
is these innovations that will create technology, will be a driving force in
an enormous opportunity for those e-commerce, concluding that today,
retailers that embrace them and are however, online retail is “largely driven
prepared to take advantage of them. by price and convenience,” but by
We are now entering an age of 2026 consumer expectations of the
everywhere, anytime and now (on- e-commerce experience will change
demand delivery), with the cornucopia considerably.
of cloud connected devices that are
globalising the market, bringing the
internet to people’s palms, making
things in e-commerce move faster and
creating an on-demand mentality.

F
According to the Ovum report, “The Digital retail technology is advancing By the end of 2017, more than 60
desire for instant access and fast at a frightening pace, and these are percent of digital traffic will come
turnaround, 24/7, will be the norm some of the key areas all retailers need from smartphones and shoppers will
by 2026, driven in particular by to add to their strategic watch list for place more online orders via their
millennials (born approximately 2017 and beyond. mobile phones than any other device,
1980–1995) and also by Generation according to the Salesforce Empowered
Z consumers (born approximately MOBILE IS THE INTERNET Shopper Report 2017. With Australia
1996–2010).” Generation Z are digital having the highest mobile phone
Mobile commerce and social commerce
natives to the power of 10, with penetration in the world, mobile
are predicted to be the key drivers
technology use their second nature. commerce has been put front and
of e-commerce moving forward.
These generations are constantly centre of e-commerce companies,
Mobile phone penetration continues
connected and inhabit an online driving the focus on the mobile
to reach new heights around the
environment where events happen in shopping experience. To put it simply,
globe, and we’re at an age where
real time, without them having to wait, if you aren’t starting off with a “mobile
being an internet user means being
and where social media enables them first” approach to your shopping
a smartphone user. Last year, Google
to dictate terms. experience, you really are putting
announced that the mobile phone has
yourself at a competitive disadvantage
well surpassed the desktop in terms
from the onset.
of products searched and this year,
the smartphone has well and truly
overtaken the desktop when it comes
to online shopping.

“YOU CAN USE SOCIAL
MEDIA TO TURN
STRANGERS INTO
FRIENDS, FRIENDS
INTO CUSTOMERS
AND CUSTOMERS INTO
SALESPEOPLE.”
With consumers today armed
with smartphones and third party
apps – shoppers today are connected
and social, which gives way to the
uprising of social commerce.
THE AGE OF SOCIAL SHOPPING

Seth Godin once said, “You can use
social media to turn strangers into
friends, friends into customers and
customers into salespeople.”
It is estimated that around 40 Social commerce delivers a Not only that, shares and product
percent of the human population are convenience to consumers by allowing recommendations help to increase
social media users. And so, it’s not them to buy directly from their brand recognition, increase buyer
surprising that over the last couple preferred social media channel, rather trust and drive sales. Seventy one
of years, some of the bigger social than exit to a separate shopping percent of consumers are likely to
media platforms including, Facebook, cart. The simplicity in integration make a purchase based on a social
Instagram, Twitter and Pinterest, will continue to grow over the course media reference, according to
have begun rolling out integrated of this year, and lead retailers to Hubspot. As shoppers become more
commerce options. increase their customer base. And socially inclined and begin to base
Social commerce has blossomed, while social commerce has not seen their opinions less on advertisements
particularly over the last year. With its peak in e-commerce as yet, it is and more on user generated content,
the rise of social media and brands still playing a major role in shopping, the role of social media and social
being able to reach their customers both online and offline. commerce as a medium to buy on, will
via social networks, it makes sense As humans, we tend to let our continue to rise steadily.
to sell to them in the same step. For emotions fuel our purchasing
example, a consumer can now view decisions. Since social media gratifies SHOPPERS FAVOUR
a product on a company’s Facebook the right side of our brains, it makes CONVERSATIONAL COMMERCE
page, and then purchase on Facebook sense that it plays a role in our
Conversational commerce is a
itself, versus going to the retailer’s purchasing decisions. By facilitating
relatively new buying model that
online store to make the purchase. trust in a purchaser through fellow
combines the best aspects of some
product reviews and purchasing
of the fastest growing digital trends
experiences, buyers are without
in retail: e-commerce, mobile
a doubt influenced; social media
transactions and messaging apps.
networks are powerful when it comes
to shoppers’ buying decisions.

The term ‘conversational commerce’
first came about in 2015, and
has since taken on a life of its
own. Initially, the idea referred to
RETAILERS USING
real-time customer communication
and purchasing through various
messenger applications, like Whatsapp,
CHATBOTS WELL
Facebook Messenger and Slack, where
consumers engage with retailers and
make purchases without ever leaving UNIQLO
their preferred messaging app, where Japanese clothing brand, Uniqlo, launched
they are talking to friends and family. its new chatbot earlier this year, smartly
However, some Asian based messaging named IQ, which works best on a mobile
apps like WeChat and Line have forged device. The brand took a superfluous design
beyond simple chat apps to now on its new bot, to match its minimalistic
integrate a broad range of commerce style, but decided to include some cute
options. elements like emojis. IQ provides customers
It’s predicted that chat apps are with a number of quick responses to browse
the next frontier for e-commerce. and add items to their shopping cart. While
Retailers like Yoox Net-a-Porter some apps call for customers to switch
(YNAP) have been vocal about their between the chat and its online store, IQ
massive gains in sales and revenue handles and puts everything together for
that conversational commerce has the customer.
facilitated, with YNAP boasting that
it has been able to sell its $60,000 H&M
Valentino dresses via a smartphone
Sephora and H&M are also using chatbots
and its $170,000-plus-priced watches
effectively to drive sales, via messaging
via Whatsapp.
app Kik. When customers are using the
We’re still at the early stages of
Kik app, they can now select the H&M bot
the adoption curve of the chat app
and communicate with the retailer online
purchasing side of conversational
or via messaging. This means when the
commerce, with room for improvement
customer is ready to make a purchase, they
on the payments functionality side,
are able to do so quickly without having to
which will push it to new heights.
leave the app (and more importantly, other
More recently, conversational
conversations they might be engaged in on
commerce has also advanced to
the same app).
include chatbots and intelligent
virtual assistants that use natural
language interfaces. Although
chatbots aren’t new, with one of the The game changer for chatbots and want the online purchase experience
earliest bots, Eliza, developed in its quick adoption in e-commerce to be as smooth and frictionless as
1966, drastic movements in AI have is machine learning, that is, the possible. Furthermore, the spike of
made way for chatbots to converse capacity to learn and improve, mobile commerce has raised the bar,
independently with consumers, enabling them to mimic human as retailers need to accommodate
making human intervention more and thinking and decision-making. for even higher traffic volumes. It
more minimal, and giving consumers The proliferation of chatbots in is this that makes the chatbot an
more ways to interact with their e-commerce has been largely driven indispensible tool - one that enables
favourite brands. by shifts in consumer expectations retailers to attract customers one-on-
and preferences. Today, shoppers one, in a personalised manner.
expect speedy response times and

Data is the key to the evolution
of the chatbot, which is growing
its capabilities beyond our wildest
imaginations. By feeding the
algorithm with enough data, retailers
can empower bots to stay on top of
new customer requests, and more
importantly, offer the right answers.
We are now moving outside static
data sets, and are in the era of
constant refining and fine-tuning.
MAKING OUR VOICES HEARD

As buying via smartphones levels LET YOUR EYES
Now, it seems the world of
off, buying via these and similar voice DO THE TALKING
e-commerce is venturing into
activated devices, including Google As the internet is largely a visual
new territories when it comes to
Voice, Apple AirPods and Android mobile medium, it makes sense that visual
technology. We are well and truly in
apps is taking off. Consumers are slowly commerce in e-commerce is on the rise,
an era where we are evolving beyond
but surely becoming accustomed to with expectations for this to continue.
fingertip control, brought to life by
using voice command as a presence in In its most basic form, visual commerce
the iPhone and iPad, and making our
their everyday lives, in everything from is the concept of enriching customer
voices heard. Quite literally, this has
checking the weather, to ordering an experiences with powerful, engaging,
extended the capabilities and ways in
Uber or shopping for groceries. inspirational and enticing visual content
which consumers can buy.
In fact, it’s predicted that within that stimulates shoppers to engage,
Today, voice recognition
two years or less, consumers will convert and form a preference for a
technology, coupled with artificial
be able to tell a voice-activated brand or online retailer. The idea behind
intelligence (AI), is so effective that
connected device to order their entire visual commerce, in a nutshell, is that
it can replace touches, swipes and
week’s worth of groceries and it will retailers are taking the usual visuals
keystrokes that we have become so
know exactly what to order and how that people expect to see when they
accustomed to over the years.
to pay for it. visit an online store, to the next level.
Any action that would have
The same thing will happen in For example, instead of a retailer hav-
traditionally been done via a search
our cars and other places that can ing three or four product images, they
engine can now be spoken and the
accommodate “smart speakers,” are now layering this with further visual
intelligent voice activated systems
according to Ken Cassar, principal aids, which may include a super engag-
can search for products online
analyst at mobile and e-commerce ing video of that product, authentic
without any physical contact, to make
research firm, Slice Intelligence. “New consumer photos and perhaps even a
purchasing even easier and more
input devices will be the driver of this virtual try-on feature. The point of visual
convenient.
new commerce,” according to Cassar. commerce is to use visual tools to create
Voice commerce is the new wave
Because voice commerce makes it the best online shopping experience that
of e-commerce and a hot topic at
so easy for consumers to purchase, it you can, for your consumers.
present - eight million Amazon voice-
holds promise for serious gains for Why does visual commerce make
activated Echo devices were sold
retailers, both online and offline. sense? Think about it – the biggest
in 2016 in the US, and Microsoft’s
obstacle as an online retailer is that
voice assistant, Cortana, now has 133
your consumers are unable to touch
million monthly users. Amazon reports
and feel your products, and see them
that its Echo owners spend, on
up close. Visual commerce helps to
average, 10 percent more in the six
negate this, and while at one stage it
months after buying the gadget, than
wasn’t strictly necessary for retailers
they did before.
to go the extra mile in its online
visual offering, times have changed.

With e-commerce becoming increas-
ingly crowded, today it’s a necessity that
your customers can see your product as
much as possible, whether it’s via 3D
views, or photos of the product being
used by everyday people, an accompany-
ing video, or all of the above.
ASOS is one retailer that
demonstrates best practice in its
visual commerce offering. In 2006
ASOS was one of the first online
retailers to introduce catwalk videos
on its product pages, and while you
may think this is old, many online
retailers still haven’t caught on. Fast
forward to 2017, ASOS has moved
the needle in visual commerce – the
company just introduced its latest
visual search feature. if it can find a way to use VR to In the digital world, the lines are
Customers can now take a photo revolutionise the online and offline blurred between browsing and shopping,
of someone else’s bag or jacket and shopping experience. Consumers are as every visual cue is an opportunity
use it to find a replica on ASOS’s app. already curious about the potential for a retailer to reach another customer.
Think of all those fashion stalking of VR technology in retail, with many It’s important for online retailers to
moments (ladies, I’m talking to you hoping to avoid store visits and keep the visual momentum going when
here) when you’ve spotted a gorgeous modify the sales assistant experience. shoppers land from social media to their
dress or bag on a stranger and either While mainstream VR in e-commerce product pages.
awkwardly approached them to ask hasn’t yet taken off, it really
where they purchased it, or just didn’t does depend on the nature of the FINAL WORD
due to the unease of speaking to business and industry in which it
These are just some of the tech
someone on your train commute. trades. Australian online bathroom
developments we are seeing growing
Thanks to AI, ASOS’s new and kitchen supplies retailer, The
in e-commerce and those that are at
technology can identify shape, Blue Space, is one company that is
a tipping point, with the scope to go
print, colour and more, and dish out using VR in a practical sense. Its
so much further. An important part
relatively similar options to at least VR showrooms save the company
of staying on top of your company’s
inspire discovery, towards an online time and money, without having to
digital and technology offerings in
purchase. physically set up a showroom, and
retail is to pay close attention to
Other retailers like Walmart, for enabling customers to better design
the initiatives launched by the web
instance, are investing other areas their ideal bathroom or kitchen space.
and what the e-commerce giants
of visual commerce, namely virtual It helps with choice, saves time and
that have the resources to innovate
reality (VR). The company’s technology reduces the risk of consumers buying
are doing in the industry. Not only
incubator, known as Store No. 8, something they don’t actually like.
will they need to acquire the right
has just announced a competition The Blue Space says it’s currently
technology to implement and
seeking virtual reality solutions from working on purchasing via VR, which
integrate, they will need the right
developers across the US. isn’t quite ready for commercial
providers to partner with and execute
Walmart is positioning itself to launch.
these initiatives.
be at the forefront of VR shopping
applications. This may just help with
its ongoing battle with Amazon,
by providing a serious edge in a
yet-to-be mastered space, especially

RISE OF THE
PLANET
APIS
OF THE
WORDS: Grant Arnott
As the digital retail juggernaut gathers momentum, the need for

speed in the deployment of digital innovations and developments
is greater than ever. The future is plug and play, and application
programming interfaces (APIs) are opening a broad universe of
opportunities for retailers to leverage.
C
onsider this – smartphone Therefore, if you have a stand-alone YOU CAN’T BEAT THEM.
users spend 88 percent of their smartphone app or plans for one, JOIN THEM.
mobile usage time across just statistically speaking you are likely It’s no longer a case of “if” but
five downloaded applications. to be duking it out in the flyweight “when”. The Leviathans of the digital
Those apps are Facebook, YouTube, class with 19 other apps for maybe world (Amazon, Facebook, Google,
Instagram, Gmail and Facebook one to two percent of your customer’s Apple, Microsoft, IBM et al) will
Messenger. These were the findings smartphone time. Maybe that’s enough continue to grow and dominate as
from a survey conducted in 2016 by for some, but that app is unlikely platforms. Ownership of the five apps
global research firm Forrester. The to be making a material impression mentioned above holding 88 percent of
study concluded that smartphone on the daily life of your smartphone smartphone users’ attention is shared
owners use about 24 unique customers. between just two head companies,
applications on their phone each Facebook and Google.
month, but aside from those listed
above, the remaining 19 are duking it
out for just 12 percent of users’ time.

“WHEN LOOKING AT
YOUR DECISIONS
REGARDING E-COMMERCE
PLATFORMS, FUTURE
INTEGRATIONS
RESISTANCE IS BUILDING AN API-READY MUST BE A PRIMARY
FUTILE. BUSINESS
Ignoring the Most retailers, or at least their CONSIDERATION.
opportunities e-commerce service providers, would THE TOUCHPOINTS YOU
presented to already be familiar and comfortable
connect with with commonplace APIs. Email HAVEN’T EVEN THOUGHT
mega-platforms via marketing services, payment gateways, OF YET ARE JUST
APIs is going to inhibit any product information management
business’ ability to access baked-in systems, social logins, dynamic AROUND THE CORNER,
benefits of the world’s best technology shipping tools – these and other AND YOU DON’T WANT
platforms. Isolationism is an obsolete essential tools for digital commerce are
idea in commerce, and smart retailers comfortably embedded via APIs into TO GIVE COMPETITORS
are transforming minds, cultures and the typical retailer ecosystem. WITH API CAPABILITY
IT strategies to embrace the era of But the game is changing faster
plug-and-play technology. than ever, and the pace at which new A FREE KICK.”
Sharing is caring. With new channels technologies in retail are proliferating
and commerce touchpoints emerging is truly incredible. Yet many Australian When looking at your decisions
constantly, retailers wanting to stay retailers are still reliant on proprietary, regarding e-commerce platforms,
competitive must adopt API-ready outdated architecture that limits future integrations must be a primary
architecture to enable rapid integration their ability to adapt quickly to new consideration. The touchpoints you
of new touchpoints. integration opportunities. Many haven’t even thought of yet are just
Legend has it that soon after the are also wary of APIs as a potential around the corner, and you don’t want
dotcom bust of the early-2000s, Amazon security risk – a position with merit, to give competitors with API capability
founder and CEO Jeff Bezos leveled a undoubtedly, as the space still matures a free kick.
whole-of-business mandate to use APIs – but the genie is well and truly out of Ensuring platforms have existing
as the sole means of inter-company data the bottle. Businesses need to get with capability, or can be easily extended
transfer and communication exchange. the program or get left behind. to provide the capability to expose
At the same time, he mandated that all Customers are interacting with their data and functionality via an
service interfaces must be ‘externalisable’, retailers and brands via an ever- easy to consume API can offer a strong
meaning that developers outside of expanding array of touchpoints, from commercial advantage.
Amazon must be able to interact with all web, to mobile, to in-store, to social
service interfaces, even if they are not and third party marketplaces. Add the API SECURITY
allowed to… yet. surging “internet of things” wave, and
The valid question regarding
Bear in mind at that time, Amazon the number of emerging electronic
implementing a broad API approach is
was the biggest online bookseller in the touchpoints is infinite.
“how vulnerable are APIs?”
world, disrupting its category, but a far A retailer that has adopted an API-
Although APIs share many
cry from the all-powerful colossus of ready approach will find integrating
characteristics with websites, they
2017. Was this API mandate a turning the multitude of new channels a
are fundamentally different with a
point for the business? There were many much easier experience. Most current
unique risk profile. In fact, APIs are
inflection points that drove success e-commerce platforms offer an API at
by nature designed to be transparent,
for Amazon, but this particular shift, minimum for accepting payments, and
and the flipside of enabling easy
courageous for its time, most definitely therefore the door is already open for
access to back-end software systems
enabled the rapid growth and success additional APIs to be implemented. For
is the exposure to potential hackers
of Amazon Web Services. It also lit a example, if the retailer’s warehouse
of your internal systems. Therefore
fire under the Amazon marketplace management system or merchandising
a solid API security strategy and
and Amazon’s information architecture, system provides an API for managing
governance policies must be in place
driving the rapid onboarding of retailers’ stock levels, then it will not be any
and continuously improved in order to
inventory and the rapid expansion stretch using an API to offer live
maintain system security.
of Amazon’s enormous business and inventory levels on the e-commerce
customer intelligence engine. storefront.

The data inputs from users on
WHAT IS AN API? your e-commerce platform (eg.
An application programming
Making a purchase, subscribing
interface (API) is the means by
to your email marketing) will be
which disparate software systems
transferred via API to the relevant
performing different roles within
service provider. Different software
an organisation are able to “talk”
applications speaking different
to one another. In this case,
languages using the API as the Take all measures necessary to
“talking” really means being able
interpreter – that’s one way of protect your API key. Here are some
to transfer data between disparate
understanding how APIs work. ways to mitigate those risks:
applications and perform functions
Challenges occur where legacy n Never share API keys via email
as required by the business.
software systems do not have n Use HTTPS (a secure, encrypted
For example, an e-commerce
the ability to interact with other form of HTTP) across your entire
platform will invariable need to
systems via API – this can stall suite of web applications
interact with one or multiple
a retailer’s progress and limit its n Ensure API keys never appear in a
payment systems applications
capacity to integrate with modern URL or on the visible page source
hosted by a third party payment
systems providing benefits. code of your website
services provider. In another
Though Australian retailers have n If possible, use OAuth to provide
example, the interaction between
moved the needle significantly on the required access to APIs for the
your e-commerce platform and your
improving systems and architecture necessary service providers, rather
email marketing services provider
to engage modern digital integra- than API keys.
will be powered via an API.
tions, there is still a long way to go An API-ready approach is
and plenty of investment required fundamental to a sustainable future
to be API-ready. for any retailer, but with that
approach it is equally critical that
appropriate security protocols are in
place.
There are three key security THE RISKS OF API KEYS
categories for businesses offering Of all the security risks involving APIs,
API access to defend, being the use of API keys is one of the most IT’S NO LONGER IF, BUT WHEN.
Adopting an API strategy for your
API parameters; identity; and dangerous. API keys are unique codes
retail business is no longer an option
cryptography and public key attached to a query that identify the
– it’s a must. The company you’ll be
infrastructure (PKI). particular application making the API
keeping includes some of the world’s
With respect to API parameters, call. The danger with API keys comes
most prominent retail brands, such as
APIs are designed to offer far more from them not identifying the specific
Tesco, Walmart, Best Buy and Target.
explicit data parameters opening up app user or a unique instance of the
As the technology landscape
the broader HTTP protocol than a application.
continues to quickly evolve, there’s
typical website. Therefore, there is a Further compounding the risk, API
benefit in having the ability to easily
far larger “attack surface” to defend. keys are often shared via email to
integrate with and leverage currently
Typical API parameter attacks include web developers or other third party
unknown platforms. Fighting to
script insertions (where a snippet of service providers requiring access to
remain isolated from modern technol-
script can be inserted to redirect data your applications. Sometimes the API
ogy integrations by building propri-
elsewhere), SQL injections and buffer keys are visible in server logs, source
etary, “walled-garden” systems is an
overflow attacks (providing data code or even URLs, giving potential
antiquated strategy doomed to fail.
beyond the expected range to crash a wrongdoers the keys to your kingdom.
Many retailers have been actively pur-
system). Consider, for example, the
suing an API enabled strategy for some
Countermeasures to avoiding ubiquitous use of third party email
time, aware of the benefits it offers,
parameter attacks include: service providers to manage your
both in connecting systems within the
n Rigorous validation of all data customer database and deliver email
business, and in opening opportunities
traveling both ways via API marketing campaigns. As a retailer,
to connect to external systems.
n Creating whitelists of expected you may (necessarily) offer access
The commercial benefits, both in
inputs to ensure these cannot be to the API to your marketing agency,
operational efficiency and in opening
exploited web developers, analytics agency and
new commercial opportunities provide
potentially others via an API key. That
encouragement to explore
key offers unfettered access to your
this strategy.
most precious and private asset – the
customer database.

CASE PROFILES
EXEMPLARY LEADERS
???
IN RETAIL TECH
From designing highly personalised shopping experiences,
creating retail as an adventure and, “You Try We Wait” butler
type try-on services, the following 26 pages represent some of
the best local and international retailers who are forefront in
their thinking when it comes to retail innovation and using
technology to reinvigorate their customer offerings.
W
hile an exciting time to be an online retailer, it’s
an even more exciting time to be a consumer! We
unpick some pretty cool initiatives that some of
these retailers are doing that delights its customers.
Remember, the future of retail belongs to those who obsess
over the needs of the evolving consumer.
Contents:
22 Amazon
26 Yoox Net-a-Porter
28 Hema Xiansheng
32 Nike
34 Crate + Barrel
36 Myer
40 Retail Zoo
42 Redbubble
44 Flora & Fauna
46 Domino’s

AMAZON: USA
EATING RETAIL
BYTE BY BYTE
WORDS: Grant Arnott
No entity is more talked about in retail than

Amazon. As the US-based giant expands its
global footprint, we examine the technology
revolutions that have catalysed Amazon’s
stunning dominance. It’s scary stuff, and it’s
only Day 1.
N
o brand on earth is more From its earliest days, Amazon
synonymous with e-commerce recognised that leading innovation in
than Amazon. Launched in the new frontier of e-commerce would
1995 as an online bookstore, be vital for sustained success. Here are
the company, led continuously by some of the outstanding innovations
enigmatic founder Jeff Bezos, has that have helped build the Amazon
stormed the world of retail. Flattening legend:
start-ups and institutional brands
alike on a relentless quest for global
domination, the Amazon hurricane
expands unabated.
Barely a day goes by without a
headline proclaiming Amazon’s
latest bold (and often frightening)
innovation. In the vaunted company of
Apple, Google and Microsoft, Amazon
has transcended its retail heritage and 1-CLICK
become regarded as one of the world’s One of the smartest moves Amazon
greatest technology companies. ever made was patenting its 1-Click
Though there has been the occasional purchasing system, enabling customers
misfire in Amazon’s history (“misfire” with pre-loaded credit card details
being the operative word here, the and shipping information to complete
disastrous Fire smartphone launch a purchase with a single click. The
being its most notable failure), the patent was issued by the US Patent
Amazon juggernaut has inexorably and Trademark Office in September
rolled on. 1999, and expired in September 2017.

This action gave Amazon an Also in November 2007, Apple is expected to reach revenues of $13
extraordinary, protected run at one launched its first edition iPhone, and billion, and is more profitable than the
of the most popular applications in what Apple has done for music, Kindle North American Amazon retail business.
e-commerce ever. It enabled Amazon did for books. With so many books AWS is recognised as a gold standard
to not only revolutionise the online digitised for the Kindle, Amazon was of cloud computing, and is used by the
shopping experience for its customers, able to achieve a massive jump on likes of Netflix, NASA and even the CIA.
but to license the 1-Click system to competitors and deliver another nail
other retailers including Apple iTunes, in the coffin for print booksellers AMAZON PRIME
as well as preventing competitors from worldwide.
In 2005, Amazon launched its Amazon
hijacking the system. Amazon famously Ten years on, the original Kindle
Prime membership program, offering
took on bookstore chain Barnes & Noble has morphed from a simple e-reader
free two-day shipping on Amazon
for patent infringement in 1999, forcing featuring “e-ink electronic paper” to
purchases for an annual subscription
an injunction against Barnes & Noble the multimedia-enabled Fire tablet,
of $79. Twelve years on, the number
implementing a single click ordering offering a vastly improved user
of members is reportedly well north
system known as “Express Lane”. experience in line with the multiple
of 80 million, with an expanded
tablet brands available in market.
range of benefits including exclusive
KINDLE offers, data storage, video streaming,
Recognising that the digital revolution AMAZON WEB SERVICES unlimited books, audio, games along
that spawned his thriving business One of the most profitable parts of the with the continued free two-day
could equally disrupt it, Jeff Bezos Amazon empire is Amazon Web Services shipping.
saw the writing on the wall for (AWS). Born of the need for Amazon Amazon has used Prime as an
printed books early. (“Writing on the to continuously improve its own IT opportunity to build incredible
wall” – see what I did there?) With the infrastructure, AWS was made available customer loyalty, and justify a launch
inevitable digitisation of all content to the public as a service for the first into the entertainment business,
looming, Amazon developed the Kindle time in 2004, offering an integrated taking on Netflix and others in the
e-reader and released it in November suite of core online services including video streaming world.
2007. The first edition sold out in less hosting, cloud storage and content
than six hours at US$399 per unit. distribution networks. In 2017, AWS

The natural progression of Amazon Shout across the house “Hey Alexa, Since Amazon invested in Kiva,
Prime extends to Amazon Prime Now, we’re out of washing powder!” and not only is it able to resell Kiva
offering “ultra-fast”, two-hour free Amazon Prime Now members can soon automated warehouse systems to
delivery to selected cities. expect the brand you want to turn other retailers, it has also reduced its
up within the hour. That is the bet own warehouse operating expenses by
AMAZON ECHO AND ALEXA Amazon is making, and with so much approximately 20 percent. According
of the retail market already sewn up, to a report by Deutsche Bank
One of the biggest product
it’s a brave person who would wager published in 2016, that was equating
innovations making waves for Amazon
against it. to an average of $22 million annually
right now is the Amazon Echo home
Nonetheless, the race for space in in cost savings per Amazon fulfilment
speaker device, featuring the Alexa
the home speaker category is about centre.
AI-driven virtual assistant technology.
to get more interesting, with Walmart Amazon has also flagged its vision
Amazon is betting big on
partnering with Google in an effort for using aerial drones as the optimal
investment in artificial intelligence,
to deliver a comparable shopping delivery vehicle of the future, though
and in the US at least is streets ahead
experience to Amazon’s via the Google it remains some way from becoming a
in the race to get home speaker
Home device. commercial reality at scale. The first
devices into households. In mid-2017,
successful customer home delivery via
eMarketer reported that Amazon’s
ROBOTS AND DRONES drone, under the banner of Amazon
Echo device commanded 70 percent of
Prime Air, was trialed in the United
the market share, with more than 35 In 2012, Amazon bought a company
Kingdom in 2017.
million Americans using home speaker called Kiva for US$775 million.
Patents for all manner of scalable
devices at least once a month. Kiva manufactured a revolutionary
drone delivery systems have been
The Echo first appeared in 2015, automated warehousing system,
applied for by Amazon, including
and with penetration increasing at featuring wheeled robots navigating
plans for a moving train dispatching
over 100 percent per annum, this is the warehouse floor via a magnetic
drones along with a skyscraper
destined to be the shopping device of grid and driving under racks.
“droneport” with thousands of drones
the future.
coming and going from the multi-
storey edifice.

STORE WARS Considering that in just over two Inside AWS, we’re excited to lower
If retailers weren’t already sweating decades, Amazon has delivered all the the costs and barriers to machine
enough about Amazon’s online afore-mentioned initiatives, as well as learning and AI so organizations of
domination, the retailer is now developing the market-leading online all sizes can take advantage of these
making significant forays into the marketplace in the US and Europe, advanced techniques.
bricks and mortar world. plus a few other little activities like Using our pre-packaged versions
In 2017, Amazon launched its first launching a rocket into space, it’s of popular deep learning frameworks
Amazon Go physical bookstore in beta hard to keep up. running on P2 compute instances
mode in its home base of Seattle, Like many of its technology (optimized for this workload),
Washington. It is a new generation brethren, Amazon is notoriously customers are already developing
store experience – consumers who secretive about its projects, but Jeff powerful systems ranging everywhere
download the Amazon Go app on Bezos’ letter to shareholders in April, from early disease detection to
their smartphone can simply walk 2017 indicated that the company increasing crop yields. And we’ve
through the store, add whatever they is investing heavily in artificial also made Amazon’s higher level
need to the cart, and walk back out intelligence and machine learning. services available in a convenient
the front doors without interacting Below is an excerpt from Bezos’ form. Amazon Lex (what’s inside
with a checkout. Items examined and letter: Alexa), Amazon Polly, and Amazon
placed back on shelves will be tracked, “Over the past decades computers Rekognition remove the heavy lifting
and once you’ve selected everything have broadly automated tasks that from natural language understanding,
you need, head out the doors and programmers could describe with clear speech generation, and image analysis.
your account will be debited for the rules and algorithms. Modern machine They can be accessed with simple API
purchased items. learning techniques now allow us to calls – no machine learning expertise
Soon after the launch of Amazon do the same for tasks where describing required. Watch this space. Much more
Go, Amazon stunned the market by the precise rules is much harder. to come.”
announcing it was acquiring the At Amazon, we’ve been engaged in It’s an exciting time for retail,
American supermarket chain, Whole the practical application of machine unless you’re a retailer. The principle
Foods Market, in the strongest signal learning for many years now. Some that Amazon has always adhered to
ever that it was planning to invade of this work is highly visible: our as its guiding light for all decision-
the store space. autonomous Prime Air delivery drones; making is true customer obsession.
As this book goes to print, the the Amazon Go convenience store From 1-Click to Amazon Prime Now,
transition of Whole Foods to Amazon that uses machine vision to eliminate this retail supernova continues
is being completed, with Amazon checkout lines; and Alexa, our cloud- to take all before it in delivering
already slashing prices at Whole Foods based AI assistant. (We still struggle incredible customer experience
stores. to keep Echo in stock, despite our best through innovation. Yet it all boils
efforts. A high-quality problem, but a down to the simplest of philosophies.
WHERE TO NEXT? problem. We’re working on it.) “Everybody wants fast delivery,” says
But much of what we do with Bezos. “Low prices. I’m serious about
It’s only Day 1
machine learning happens beneath this. Our job is to provide a great
It is next to impossible to keep
the surface. Machine learning drives customer experience, and that is
up with Amazon founder Jeff Bezos’
our algorithms for demand forecasting, something that is universally desired
visions for the future. Even after
product search ranking, product and all over the world.”
22 years, the founder of the world’s
deals recommendations, merchandising
biggest retail brand is fanatical about
placements, fraud detection,
it being just “Day 1.”
translations, and much more. Though
“Day 2 is stasis,” Bezos says.
less visible, much of the impact of
“Followed by irrelevance. Followed by
machine learning will be of this type
excruciating, painful decline. Followed
– quietly but meaningfully improving
by death. And that is why it is always
core operations.
Day 1.”

YOOX NET-A-PORTER: UK
YNAP’S TEMPLE
OF INNOVATION WORDS: Prinitha Govender
Yoox Net-a-Porter says it aims to double the

size of its business by 2020, and as such plans
to invest over $750 million in technology,
warehouses and delivery systems in London.
Y
oox Net-a-Porter Group (YNAP) And all this success doesn’t happen
has established itself as one by accident. YNAP is a pioneer of
of the world’s premier online innovation, speaking to its customers
luxury fashion destinations. A via its global multichannel ecosystem,
global company with Anglo-Italian focusing its in-house technology
roots, YNAP is the result of a game- efforts toward the forefront of
changing merger, which in October industry innovation, in the areas of
2015 brought together Italian based personalized customer and tailored
Yoox and UK based Net-a-Porter. brand experiences, mobile and native
With an enviable position in the app developments, customer insights
high-growth online luxury retail and analytics, social media marketing
sector, together, both the Net-a-Porter and cognitive capabilities.
brand and Yoox have a client base of Earlier this year, YNAP launched
more than 2.9 million high-spending its AI-enabled virtual personal
customers, over 29 million monthly stylist tool, that can recommend
unique visitors worldwide and items to consumers based on image
combined 2016 net revenues of recognition, personalised preferences
$3.1 billion. YNAP has offices and and contextual data like location and
operations in the United States, Europe, weather forecast.
Japan, China and Hong Kong and Another AI tool the company is
delivers to more than 180 countries working on can suggest diverse options
around the world. for complete outfit looks - using
the professionally styled shots the
e-commerce sites currently features,
offering unlimited variations of mix
and match pieces for users alongside.
This level of machine learning and
neural networks learn as they go,
which makes them only better for users
over time.
Federico Marchetti, YNAP Founder and CEO

The company says that everything The Group’s new “temple of innovation” Marchetti says he’s also on a mission
they are doing is about making the will bring together both the Yoox and to hire more female IT staff at YNAP.
experience more personalised for Net-a-Porter tech teams. YNAP says Currently its staff are 61% female,
consumers. “We’re using our own data its new hub will focus on developing however females only represent 28% of
in a smarter and more detailed way in artificial intelligence that can assist Net- its tech team. He says that recruitment
order to tailor the customer experience a-Porter personal shoppers to provide difficulties in hiring more female IT
to the individual customer,” CIO of more appealing ideas for its “big-spender” professionals has led the company to
YNAP, Alex Alexander, told Forbes. clients, as well as develop the next wave team up with Imperial College London,
“What innovation means for us is of technology for consumers using their to lift the digital skills among local
not innovation for the sake of it, but smartphones to shop. The company children, particularly girls.
innovation for the customer,” added says they are also dabbling with a new Online luxury sales are expected to
Federico Marchetti, founder and chief augmented reality service, one that will double as a proportion of the fashion
executive of YNAP. On the mobile allow its shoppers to “virtually try on” market over the next five years, to 14%,
side of the shopping experience the accessories like handbags, sunglasses or and while YNAP faces competition from
company had an internal-first approach. jewellery. e-commerce luxury online stores like
Each YNAP employee is given an Marchetti says that his team would Farfetch and Mytheresa, the company
iPhone armed with new apps designed not, however, be prioritising ways for looks like it’s riding the waves of
in collaboration with Apple, and shoppers to try things on virtually, as changing consumer behaviour.
software partner IBM, in an effort to he believes that YNAP’s shoppers prefer Marchetti says the two companies,
enable them to not only think mobile- services that allow them to physically Yoox and Net-a-Porter, were successful
first, but eventually mobile-only. try on items and return them easily, in merging its individual cultures, which
This year, YNAP announced further such as its “You Try, We Wait” service he boasts has been able to sell $60,000
investment in technology and it recently trialled in China and London, Valentino dresses via a smartphone and
innovation, unveiling plans of its new which will be fully rolled out in the UK its $170,000 + watches via Whatsapp.
“technology hub” in London, that will in September this year. The premium Around half of YNAP’s orders are made
focus further on artificial intelligence, service is specifically available to Net-a- via mobile devices.
augmented reality “try on” services as Porter’s high-spending customers, where “This is the first example of the luxury
well as streamlining its logistics and uniformed “butlers” deliver a selection industry making such a big investment
delivery systems. The company says of items to the client, and wait while in tech. We have 1,000 engineers in
it expects to hire at least 100 new IT the customer tries the items on, before London and Bologna. That’s something
staff over the next two years. returning any unwanted goods. that no luxury brand in the world can
Net-a-Porter will also roll out its have. We are the perfect merger of
personal shopper service it refers to as luxury and tech, that’s why we are
EIP – “extremely important persons” – serving the brands so well.”
in London later this year. While these
big-spender shoppers make up only
2% of its total consumer base, they
tally 40% of Net-a-Porter’s sales; the
company can generate hefty returns by
serving these customers well.

HEMA XIANSHENG: CHINA
HAVE YOU MET

HEMA XIANSHENG? WORDS: Prinitha Govender
When Hema Xiansheng is able to provide the

freshest salmon to its Shanghai customers
at a tap of a finger, within 30 minutes of
ordering, it not only delights its customers,
it sets a new precedent and expectation for
consumers.
W
hen you walk into Hema, a The company’s official name is Hema
Chinese grocery store in Xiansheng, which in Chinese impresses
Shanghai, you may think it’s an the idea of “freshness in a box.” Hema
ordinary scene at an ordinary is without a doubt one of the world’s
supermarket of shoppers browsing most advanced manifestation of “new
through an orderly row of fruits, retail” to date, transforming the grocery
24HRS veggies and seafood.

However, if you look closer, there’s a
big difference – there are red-uniformed
staff laced around the store who are
shopping experience as we know it.
Since its inception more than two years
ago, Hema grew from an experimental
concept to now with 13 stores across
busy making their way through the China (and growing) including major
crowd of shoppers, picking out fresh cities like Beijing, Shanghai, and Ningbo.
seafood, food items and ready-to-cook Today, e-commerce in China accounts
meals for online shoppers, packing them for almost 15% of total retail. Thanks
in insulated bags and hooking them to the proliferation of mobile, China
into an overhead conveyor belt, which has become the world’s biggest test
transports them to the backend logistics lab of merging the online and offline
and distribution area. This is where they worlds, racing ahead of the US and other
are whisked away by drivers who blast markets.
off on electric scooters to take them
to customers. Shoppers can order from
Hema by app at home; the company
offers free 30-minute home delivery of
its fresh produce and meal solutions for
addresses within 5km of a store.

While many retail experts in the past In 2015, Alibaba Group, bought into
had their doubts about whether or not Hema, investing US $150 million in its
an O2O (online-to-offline) business subsidiary Taobao Software to develop
KEY FEATURES OF
model would take off, Hema Xiansheng the O2O fresh food e-commerce brand.
HEMA XIANSHENG
has turned naysayers around with its Alibaba founder Jack Ma has been strong
INCLUDE:
n I n-store consumption: Fresh
bricks-and-mortar stores, by leveraging about O2O businesses to be combined
food, including live seafood,
data and technology to seamlessly with logistics in the next 20 years to
from more than 50 countries
integrate online and offline commerce. nurture a “new retail” model.
can be cooked to order and
The company doubles up its “We believe the future of New Retail
enjoyed on the spot.
supermarkets as warehouses and will be a harmonious integration of
n Data-driven fulfillment of
logistics hubs, which also serves as a online and offline, and Hema is a prime
online delivery orders at
shop window to reassure customers of example of this evolution that’s taking
scale: The stores serve as
its products that are available online, place. Hema is a showcase of the new
fulfillment hubs for local
but also to lure nearby consumers in the business opportunities that emerge from
communities with deliveries
neighbourhood who’ve “heard of” Hema online-offline integration,” according to
in 30 minutes.
online. Daniel Zhang, CEO of Alibaba Group.
n Seamless in-store purchase:
At the heart of Hema Xiansheng’s The Hema online and offline
Shoppers can scan barcodes
business model is e-commerce and experience is fully integrated and
to learn more information
technology. The company was founded complementary of each other, in turn
about individual products.
by the director of one of China’s largest encompassing all modes and desires of
Cashless checkout is easy and
e-commerce platforms, JD.com, and as consumers, who can shop, eat in, and
efficient with Alipay.
an expert in supply chain, he sees a order groceries for delivery – all through
n Zero-waste delivery process:
major opportunity to supply a fresh meal their mobile phones.
All delivery boxes are
solution to Chinese consumers.
recyclable and reusable.

SUPERIOR ANALYTICS Hema has linked up with Gfresh, a
With Alibaba’s robust consumer seafood export platform, that can
database, analytics capabilities, and
IN JUST OVER TWO provide fresh seafood to shoppers from
smart logistics technology, Hema
YEARS SINCE ITS around the world within a 24-hour
Xiansheng provides a seamless
FOUNDING, THE window. For Hema, its business
shopping experience for its consumers.
HEMA MODEL HAS model would not be feasible without
For instance, customers can easily
BEEN PROVEN SUC- partnerships like this, which it needs in
become a Hema member by signing up
CESSFUL WITH RE- order to sustain a reliable supply chain.
with their Taobao or Alipay accounts.
MARKABLE RESULTS: When fresh, not frozen seafood, is
n F requent repeat customers:
Members can view and purchase in high demand from the other side of
On average, users purchase
available items from their nearest the world, it takes a company that can
4.5 times per month and 50
store through the mobile app. By clear customs fast, owns its own fleet
times per year.
digitising every step of the consumer of refrigerated trucks and uses video
n E fficient operation: Sales per
journey, Hema remembers purchase inspection to ensure that produce is
unit area are 3-5 times higher
preferences and makes personalised quality.
than that of a traditional
recommendations. Hema also curates
supermarket.
a data-driven selection of fresh food
nH igh online conversion:
and products that are tailored for urban
Among users who open the
Chinese consumers based on their
Hema app, the conversion
locations.
rate for making a purchase is
as high as 35%. On average,
online orders account for more
than 50% of total orders.

DELIGHTS CUSTOMERS CUSTOMER LOYALTY
Fresh salmon is exactly the kind of And that’s the key for Hema’s
juncture that makes the partnership long term success, that is, using
between the two e-commerce technology to bolster customer
companies successful. Gfresh supplies loyalty. It’s well known that Chinese
some of the freshest salmon in all of consumers are amongst the most
Shangai, specifically because its just- curious in the world, so it’s easy to
in-time business model is paired with entice them into a trial. Freshness,
its ability to provide efficiency and convenience (including timeliness)
accountability at every step along the and taste are some of the key factors
way. And, when Hema Xiansheng is CASHLESS RETAIL when it comes to customer loyalty
able to provide the freshest salmon to in food, while in China price isn’t
Hema Xiansheng does not accept
its Shanghai customers at a tap of a the top issue. So, in an age where
cash or credit card – all payments at
finger, within 30 minutes of ordering, consumers have grown to embrace the
the store are made through Alibaba’s
it not only delights its customers, it idea of buying meal solutions online
Alipay app. Using a cashless payment
sets a new precedent and expectation and offline, and if Hema Xiansheng
system not only means saving time;
for consumers. can continue to satisfy its customers,
the food retailer can also gather
Hema says that up to 80% of its that’s where its growth and real
valuable consumption data from both
customers are born in the 1980s and profits will kick in.
physical and online supermarkets to
1990s and are “internet natives.” The
track and analyse consumer behaviour.
company says millennials have grown
As a result, it is continually ironing
up in an increasingly affluent China,
out kinks to refine and better its
therefore caring more about quality and
business model and practices – and as
are less sensitive to prices.
it does so, it builds customer loyalty.

NIKE: UNITED STATES
IN IT FOR
THE KICKS WORDS: Natasha Sholl
Nike may be the most recognisable sports

brand in the world, but with the competition
hot on its heels and no finish line in sight,
the company has no choice but to utilise
e-commerce developments to its advantage.
T
he name Nike is synonymous So much technology in such a large
with innovation. Products that space could be overwhelming and
push boundaries. Fashion that alienating, but as always Nike hits the
doesn’t follow the rules. Part of mark, creating an environment that’s
the brand’s appeal from the beginning nurturing and personal. It’s a tricky
was the way it gave added meaning to balance, but one where Nike excels.
the products it sold. A pair of shoes On-site tablets allow customers to call
were not just a pair of shoes, they a sales assistant for help or even make
were (and still are) an experience. The a quick purchase. What if a product
same principles apply to Nike’s uptake isn’t available in the customer’s size
of technology. It’s not ustilised just to or the colour they want? Shoppers can
serve a purpose, it’s experiential. purchase on an in-store touch screen
Nike’s Soho store in New York is the and have it delivered to their home.
perfect example of this. The store It’s an example of the emphasis Nike
opened to massive fanfare in late is placing on providing a seamless
2016. The five-story 5,500 square shopping experience across all its
foot premises allows shoppers to test platforms.
products in real sports environments, In 2015, Nike boldly announced
all powered by futuristic-like its plans to cross US $50 billion in
technology. The Nike+ Basketball Trial sales by 2020. It was (and still is) an
Zone allows customers to try their incredibly ambitious target considering
skills in the virtual hoops of iconic NYC the 2017 retail landscape. In order
courts while Kinect sensors capture to grow, Nike is focusing its efforts
data. You can go for a run in Central on e-commerce. In fact, the company
Park thanks to high-tech treadmills hopes to achieve about US $7 billion
and screens. in sales from its online channels by
2020.

Like most successful companies, Nike It also limited page crashes by Nike’s uptake of technology and the
knows not to just use technology for implementing a queuing structure way it attempts to remain relevant in an
the sake of it (although the way it during product launches and otherwise cluttered marketplace reveals
embraces technology is surely enough streamlined pre-ordering processes the way it stays nimble despite its scale.
to send a message to the competition). for a more fluid workflow for site “The future of sport will be decided by the
What is at the heart of its strategy is admins. Additionally, eWave developed company that obsesses the needs of the
the customer experience. integrations with fulfilment providers evolving consumer,” Mark Parker, Nike’s
For its online offering, Nike worked for automated returns. And, of course chairman, president and chief executive,
with eWave to restructure back-end it should go without saying that the said in a statement. “Through the
integrations and redesign the user mobile experience is 100% optimised Consumer Direct Offense, we’re getting
journey. It’s an example of the way with a fully responsive theme to even more aggressive in the digital
a Magento platform can be scaled. complete the seamless omnichannel marketplace, targeting key markets
The changes also show how listening experience that Nike provides its and delivering product faster than
to customers, researching consumer consumers. ever.” Nike’s Consumer Direct Offense,
behaviour and truly analysing data can With a changing retail landscape, aims to boost innovation and product
take its efforts to new heights. After Nike must work hard to sell direct to development to be able to connect with
identifying where customers were consumers, nurture these relationships consumers in the world’s major cities.
getting lost on the user journey, eWave and forge loyalty with its customers. While Nike still dominates in its
streamlined category structures to Much of this strategy relies on category, it’s facing threats from all
ensure optimisation for navigation and mobile apps. It relaunched its Nike+ sides, including Adidas, Reebok and
conversion. mobile app in August 2016, with new Under Armour. However, with its solid
and improved features, including e-commerce strategy and swift uptake
personalised product recommendations, of innovation and technology, one
30-day product trials, access to Nike thing is certain: it’s an exciting time
events like Nike Group workouts and to be Nike, but an even more exciting
chatting to Nike employees. time to be a Nike consumer.

CRATE + BARREL: UNITED STATES
STARING DOWN
THE BARREL WORDS: Natasha Sholl
In a time where many retail giants are facing

their biggest challenges yet, Crate and Barrel
is defying the odds and daring to experiment,
test and turn hurdles into opportunities to
connect with its consumer.
C
rate and Barrel opened its doors Crate and Barrel succeeds by truly
in 1962 in Chicago, Illinois and observing the shopping habits of
now boasts over 170 stores in its in-store consumer and applying
the US alone. Yet we’ve seen these findings to its online offering.
time and time again how a company In 2016 it teamed up with customer
with such a solid foundation can be identification and remarketing services
handicapped in the age of e-commerce. provider CloudTags to engage in a pilot
Companies of this size and age are of the Mobile Tote. This is a store-
known for being held back due to lack provided tablet allowing customers
of agility or fragmented technology to scan product barcodes for more
systems, but not Crate + Barrel. information as well as search for items.
This homewares giant is embracing “Anything that makes shopping with
technology and its solid history of the brand easier, we want to do,”
giving the people what they want. said Crate + Barrel’s vice president
What is at the core of Crate + Barrel’s of e-commerce, Joan King. While
uptake of technology is to create a customers don’t have to sign-in to use
seamless experience for the consumer. the Mobile Tote, those who enter their
Back in 2012 Crate + Barrel launched email addresses are able to add items
a 3D room designer app so that its to a wish list as well as add products
customers could redesign any room in to an exclusive checkout line where
a 3D model with hundreds of fabric and sales assistants collect their items
furniture options. It’s just one example for them. It’s all part of delivering
of how the company merges the a smarter, more seamless in-store
online and offline experiences, using experience.
technology to fill gaps and create a
smoother purchasing journey for the
customer.

It also works like retargeting on a Just as Crate + Barrel implemented The homewares retailer also
website. If the customer doesn’t make technology in-store to to create an recently announced that it is
a purchase, everything they interacted online experience, the reverse is also utilising enterprise software firm
with can be curated and sent to them. true. The company utilised the Edgecase MicroStrategy for a new platform to
It’s a valuable tool because it reaches Adaptive Experience Platform to translate support its analytics and mobility
a different kind of consumer - those the benefits of their bricks-and-mortar applications. The aim is to improve
who shop in-store are often not the stores to their website. The product was business processes and eventually the
same customers that shop online. So complemented by Edgecase’s Content customer shopping experience. “We’re
the physical store not only drives Curation to allow shoppers to browse getting MicroStrategy 10 in the hands
transactions but also provides new data and refine products more effectively. By of our store and field managers via
about a previously unknown customer creating a more intuitive and engaging tablet apps, so store associates have
base. experience, Edgecase reported a 44 inventory and sales data precisely
CloudTags reported that encouraging percent higher conversion rate and a 128 when customers need it,” said Crate
customers to scan barcodes for more percent higher revenue per visitor rate + Barrel’s chief operating officer
than one product increased in-store as well as a 37 percent higher average Mike Relich. “At an enterprise level,
checkout rates by nearly five times. It order value compared to those who don’t MicroStrategy 10 also moves our
also increased email sign up rate from engage with the adaptive navigation. organisation away from static reporting,
25 percent to 41 percent. Another common thread when with real-time, self-service tools to
The Mobile Tote pilot reflects it comes to successful integration unlock strategic insights.”
a common theme amongst the in e-commerce is the way in which Making the online shopping
technology success stories in technology advances by going back experience a more human and personal
e-commerce, whether it’s a large to basics. It simplifies what works. one for the customer is what is driving
international player or a local In the case of Crate + Barrel, it’s all Crate + Barrel’s uptake of software
start-up – testing, testing, testing. about product merchandising. The and technology. It goes to show that
It’s not about using technology for Edgecase Curation Team created new companies of any age and size can
technology’s sake, but rather to truly merchandising data and tagged it to remain nimble, relevant, fluid and
focus on what the customer needs. Crate + Barrel’s products. This allows responsive in the ever-changing and
each shopper to easily build their own challenging retail landscape.
navigation, by adding and removing
product preferences to create the most
relevant product selection set for them.

MYER: AUSTRALIA
FINDING
WONDERFUL WORDS: Prinitha Govender
The pace of change in retail is accelerating. While

some trends are clear, others are less so. Therefore,
Myer has adopted a “test and learn” methodology to
understand which trends are applicable. This mindset
will allow Myer to continue to evolve its strategy so
that it maintains its relevance during the current era of
digital disruption.
G
enerating total sales of over “The New Myer strategy is about securing This is all underpinned by an agile
$3.2 billion in FY2016, Myer a future for one of Australia’s best-loved way of working and a cloud first
have a valuable footprint of retailers. The strategy represents a plan strategy, allowing Myer to meet its
stores that is complemented by to invest more than $600 million in customers’ needs easier and faster.
its strong online, digital and mobile capital and implementation costs over
platforms and its well-recognised five years, to deliver a sharper and more OMNICHANNEL
brand. This combination sets the Myer focused offer to our best and most loyal
Omnichannel has been a major
platform up for a leading omnichannel customers,” says Umbers.
buzzword in e-commerce over the
experience for its customers, however Technology plays a major role in
last few years, however, as 2017 has
they choose to shop with the retailer, Myer’s turnaround strategy. “Digitally
progressed, more and more we are
according to the company’s CEO, native customers are busy, they are on
seeing the convergence of online
Richard Umbers. the go, and they expect information
and offline retail, with many retail
In September 2015, Umbers launched on demand. Consumers of today want
models finding the light in creating a
the company’s “New Myer” five-year retail to be flexible to their lifestyle and
seamless omnichannel experience for
turnaround plan - its vision for a predominantly, they want it on their
the consumer.
positive future following a year when mobile device,” explains Mark Cripsey,
Myer is one such retailer, focusing
net profit dropped 21.3% to $77.5 Myer’s chief digital and data officer.
on “adopting a truly omnichannel
million. Since then, the company has “Therefore, a focus on technology
experience,” according to its CEO.
been focused steadily on the plan, that can and will deliver outstanding
“Ultimately, this will make Myer a more
which includes significant investment omnichannel experiences with mobile
desirable shopping destination, more
in its omnichannel experience, at the centre of this landscape is our
relevant to our customer’s lifestyles.”
focus on customer service as well focus. From social interactions at home,
as delivering “wonderful” through through research and browse on your
improved customer experiences. And, mobile, to in-store interaction and
the company seems to be making good mobile POS. Myer is working through
on these promises. significant improvements to the
end-to-end customer journey.”

IMAGE CREDIT: Timeout
Over the last 12 months, Myer has “Engaging customers early was critical IN-STORE CONSUMER
moved to an agile delivery model to to the success of the app re-launch. CENTRIC TECHNOLOGY
ensure it can deliver improvements and As one of their first steps, the team “Probably one of our most important
value across its omnichannel business identified a consumer base of over advances has been in the way we use
at a high pace and lower technical 1000 ‘beta’ customers and gave them technology to enhance customer service.
delivery cost, according to Cripsey. “This a new version of the app. Connecting Customer service is fundamentally about
has proven to be very successful, with these customers directly to the people, but good people can achieve
this approach being adopted widely developers meant that their feedback so much more when supported by
across the IT and development functions could be captured and addressed technology – technology in the service
as a new way of working. The Myer quickly. The team constantly iterated of service so to speak,” says Umbers.
business is also focused on initiatives and improved the experience over a “We have, for example, rolled out iPads
that improve the customer experience, period of weeks and re-launched the to front line team members as well as
enhance our operational efficiency or Myer One app to the Apple store in managers, giving them access to store
leverage data to drive personalisation. October 2016.” inventory and other data, and giving
As Richard says, “We are employing Since the re-launch, Myer’s App Store them the capability to order online,
technology in the service of service.” rating has dramatically improved and on behalf of customers, products not
it has maintained a rating of around normally available in-store.” Simple, yet
CUSTOMER LOYALTY 4.6 stars. The download rate has power initiatives - these capabilities
increase by nearly 30% and the daily have been massively well received by
In October 2016, Myer re-launched
engagement rate has also increased by Myer customers.
its Myer One loyalty membership app,
52%.
which has proven to be successful for
“Technology, particularly if it utilises BEHIND THE SCENES
the retailer, particularly when it comes
data from our Myer One program, TECHNOLOGY
to enhancing the consumer experience.
has unlimited possibilities, but we
“The Myer One app has been one of A significant number of Myer’s
are always mindful of the trust our
the most visible signs of our focus on technology initiatives have also
customers place in us, as to how we
enhancing the customer experience,” occurred behind the scenes, but with
use that data,” adds Umbers.
says Cripsey. “We formed a small the same customer centric, technology
development team and charged them in the service of service approach.
with reimagining the app, keeping the “In order to grow a profitable online
customers’ experience top of mind. One business we have also invested in
of our first steps was to migrate the technology to drive operational
app off legacy infrastructure and on to efficiencies into online fulfilment,
an AWS (Amazon Web Services) based and ultimately deliver products to
cloud structure with an API (application customers more quickly,” says Cripsey.
programing interface) driven foundation.”

“An Apple iPod based picking and
packing app has now been implemented
in all Myer stores. This app facilitates
faster and more accurate picking and
has streamlined Myer’s operations
to create greater efficiencies within
the department. Team members now
have more flexibility via a one handed
operation, scanning products through
an iPod encased in a durable scanner.
The app, which was co-designed
with in-store team members has
helped to improve the efficiency of
online fulfilment,” according to the
company.
PERSONALISATION
Myer is using digital transformation in
other ways, to ensure a more seamless
and engaging customer journey,
namely, personalisation and data
driven initiatives.
“New Myer is about experiential ADVENTURES
“Myer is investing significantly in
retail and disrupting the retail norm Prior to its Perry partnership, Myer
leveraging its data to drive greater
by partnering with unique and launched its Winter Wonderland Ice
personalisation. Some of the results
innovative brands that create lasting Skating Rink located on level six of
of this investment are now public,
memories for our customers.” its Sydney store, providing a childlike
with triggered personalised campaigns
Partnerships with Katy Perry and experience for its customers, with
in market helping customers unlock
Ice Rinks Australia are just two of doughnuts and ice creams included
greater savings from Myer and
many collaborations that have been as part of the adventure – here Myer
recommending products that they
built since the New Myer strategy is creating another magical touch
may wish to buy, based on their past
launched, and help to bring the love point to emotionally connect with its
shopping history. We are finding
of shopping to life. Other recent consumers.
that engagement with personalised
partnerships are with Tesla, Uber, “New Myer is about disrupting the
campaigns such as these deliver results
Uber Eats, eBay, Virgin Australia, retail norm and creating wonderful
that are higher than a traditional
Twitter, Periscope and Facebook, some experiences that surprise and
untargeted campaign,” says Cripsey.
which will be discussed in this feature. delight and show our passion for
“As a premium department store, retail innovation. We want to create
EXPERIENTIAL RETAIL Myer is not only about selling memories for our customers and give
In the last couple of years, Myer products our customers want to them experiences that they will be
has undertaken several headline buy, we also have to do so in an able to talk about long after they’ve
high-profile partnerships, towards interesting and engaging way. finished shopping with us,” says the
the concept of “experiential retail”, Innovation has a major role to play in company.
leveraging off the change in our future,” explains Umbers. It’s evident the department
Australian consumer behaviour, where chain is adapting to Australians’
shoppers are new spending less on CELEBRITIES growing desire for experiences
‘things’ and more on experiences.This and entertainment, and using that
Myer’s latest partnership with Katy
poses a challenge for many retailers, knowledge in changes of consumer
Perry, as the principal and naming
but, it looks like Myer is up for it. behaviour to convert experiences into
rights partner of the Australian leg
sales.
of the singer’s tour, saw its Myer One
members receive exclusive benefits as
a result. It is this and its many other
campaigns that are geared towards
Myer’s strategy of creating lasting
memories for its shoppers, bringing
“the love of shopping to life”, and
ultimately boosting customer loyalty.

TINDER SHOPPING
At this year’s Melbourne Fashion
Festival event, Myer unveiled its
tinder shopping “Catwalk to Cart”
campaign, where fashion show
attendees could shop the catwalk live
from their seat. By logging on to a
purpose-built mobile app, attendees at
the show were able to see contextual
information about outfits featured in
the show on their mobile phones. As
each model approached, their outfit
automatically appeared on their phone,
allowing attendees at the show to save
items of interest in a personalised
wish list using a ‘tinder-style’ swipe
left-or-right interface. At the end of
the show, attendees could review their
wish list and transfer products they
wanted to buy directly to the shopping
cart on myer.com.au for purchase.
After the show, Myer rolled out the
same ‘Catwalk to Cart’ mechanic across 360 VIDEO “SEE NOW BUY NOW’ THE VISION
digital screens around Melbourne and In May this year, Myer teamed up with All in all, Myer says its vision is to
in Myer Melbourne’s store windows. Twitter to be the first department develop a customer experience that
A looped video of the show was store globally to leverage live 360 is personal, and authentic - one
displayed on these screens with a video on Twitter, to broadcast its that has respect for its heritage, but
specific call to action, explaining how Autumn Winter Fashion Launch, where also one that will service future
passers-by could interact using their customers could ‘see now-buy now’ generations, with technology and
mobile phones, in the same way as via its online store. innovation being a keystone of
attendees at the show. Twitter’s live 360 video feature this. “In today’s world, authenticity
allowed Myer to broadcast its entire and emotion are important drivers
‘6 SECOND SALE’ ON YOUTUBE Autumn Winter Fashion Launch event of customer engagement, and we
live, including its surroundings to would like to continue the tradition
In order to strengthen its omnichannel
Twitter and Periscope users. Users of creating positive memories for
operations and further its innovation
could view the catwalk via their customers young and old,” says
agenda, Myer recently teamed up with
mobile phone with a 360 degree view, Umbers.
Google to launch its FOMO (fear of
enabling them to change their point “We will continue to focus on
missing out) driven Six Second YouTube
of view by moving their phone, or listening to customer feedback
exclusive stocktake sale campaign.
scrolling around the screen for an and analysing data to understand
This was produced using Google’s pro-
immersive and interactive experience. our customers better and respond
prietary tool, Vogon, to create a suite
accordingly. We are very conscious
of dynamic ad units. Each ad featured
WORLD’S FIRST VR of the role that data can play in
a different product with an offer and a
DEPARTMENT STORE personalising shopping at Myer and
link to click through to a pre-populated
believe that, with MYER One, we
shopping cart. Targeting ensured that Probably the biggest headline Myer has
have a strong role to play in making
no YouTube user saw the same ad twice, made in its e-commerce efforts since
the shopping trip at Myer, whether
meaning, if people wanted to grab the launching its New Myer plan was its
in-store or online, easier and more
deal, they needed to act fast. partnership with eBay, launching the
enjoyable,” adds Cripsey.
“The ‘6 Second Sale’ is a new way for world’s first fully functional virtual reality
us to connect with our omnichannel (VR) department store in May 2016.
customers during a Stocktake Sale. The VR experience allowed
The partnership enabled us to harness customers to shop Myer’s eBay
existing digital media to drive interest store using eBay Sight Search™.
in the sale and give customers the The technology enabled shoppers
best possible offers – so everyone to browse, select and add to cart
wins. This is a great example of the more than 12,500 Myer products,
innovation agenda we are currently all through a fully immersive VR
driving at Myer,” says Cripsey. experience.

RETAIL ZOO: AUSTRALIA
LET THE
ADVENTURES BEGIN! WORDS: Prinitha Govender and Kiel Egging
Retail Zoo has been thinking outside the box

when it comes to technology and creating
retail as an experience for its consumers
– which is not only boosting its customer
loyalty, it’s boosting its bottom line as well.
E
xperiences have emerged as the Think bots… chatbots to be more
next step in the progression precise, along with gamification and
of our economic value. a whole lot of other adventures that
According to the latest data Retail Zoo has been busy creating for
from Roy Morgan research, Australian its customers, by utilising technology
consumers are spending more on to not only drive consumers in-store,
leisure and entertainment, and less it’s driving Retail Zoo’s sales and
on ‘things’. While this has presented bottom line!
a conundrum for many Australian “The only way for retailers to survive
retailers, one company has embraced in this current era is to experiment and
the change by thinking outside the
FREEING FRUIT AND TURBO-
innovate, and at Retail Zoo, innovation
box. is our number one priority - because
CHARGING SALES
In March this year, Retail Zoo took
Primarily, through the Group’s what worked in the past won’t
its first stab at creating experiential
now iconic Boost Juice brand, its necessarily work in the future,” says
retail for its Boost Juice customers, by
innovative thinking and approach Retail Zoo’s chief technology and
launching a mobile game app, “Free
to utilising technology is a shining innovation officer, Christian McGilloway.
the Fruit”, where users had to help a
example of developing different ways
character named “Mango Man” rescue
to create “experiential retail”, that is, WHO’S WHO AT RETAIL ZOO his fruity friends. Users then traded in
creating retail as an experience. This
Founder, Janine Allis and husband their fruit collection for blending, and
year alone has seen the company’s
Jeff, began what would become the received Boost Juice vouchers.
tech initiatives pay off with huge sales
Retail Zoo empire by opening their
peaks and increased brand promotion
first Boost Juice bar outlet in Adelaide
and awareness with customers.
in 2000. The brand has since spread
across Australia and overseas and now
operates over 270 locations globally.
Retail Zoo also owns Mexican fast
food brand Salsa’s Fresh Mex Grill and
Italian-themed coffee chain, Cibo
Espresso.

This was a game changer (pardon the The results were “ridiculous”, McGilloway says the app technology
pun) for the company from a marketing according to Boost Juice, with 120,000 and scanning in-store provides Retail
perspective; with little branding, the people engaging in a chat. Through Zoo with specific information to get to
game dispensed free drinks for customers this initiative, Boost achieved 99 the heart of the issue. “If we see that
and didn’t require a loyalty sign up. It percent of consumers coming back on ten people complained in the last hour
exceeded all expectations with nearly the second day since the launch of ‘The from that store, maybe it’s a new drink
half a million downloads and more Matcha Bot’, with 82% coming back on and the staff weren’t making the drink
than $1 million in extra sales over two day five, and 68 percent engaged on correctly. We can contact the store and
months, according to McGilloway. “It all 14 days. “People were talking to a say, hey guys, this is what you need to
was a runway success for the Boost Juice robotic banana for 10 minutes a day, do. That information as a business has
brand. In-store sales increased by 11 every day for 14 days,” says McGilloway. helped us phenomenally.” The rating
percent and users spent an average of “We’re really fortunate we have such a system will be rolled out to the Salsa’s
178 minutes playing the game.” massively engaged customer base and and Cibo apps in the near future.
“People pay a fortune for above-the- Boost has always had that fun, cheeky
line advertising on TV, and you aren’t tone. We’ve been known for doing fun FUTURE FRUITFUL FLINGS
guaranteed that people are even going stuff and new things and our audience
Buoyed by a year of successful dabbles
to be watching it. Users of the game has really resonated with it.”
in technology innovation, Retail
were playing with us and thinking
Zoo will look to roll out some of
about Boost for three hours over and REACHING FOR THE STARS its ‘fruitful’ Boost Juice experiential
over for an eight week period, so that
Retail Zoo says it is always on the retail initiatives into its international
brand recognition was worth its weight
lookout to make things easier for markets, and different variations are
in gold for us.”
customers and emulate its founder’s being explored for its Salsa’s and Cibo
mantra of “find out what the customer brands. Retail Zoo tells us it is also
A MATCHA MADE IN HEAVEN wants and give it to them.” It’s led to planning some unique social media
ChatBots are the way of the future for the in-house development of powerful, initiatives within the next 12 months
brands, which has also proven its worth easy-to use apps across all of its as well as enhancing its customer
in gold for Boost Juice. The Australian three brands, containing beacon and service experience via its apps.
smoothie and juice bar launched a new geo-tagging technology and features Above all, Retail Zoo says they want
online campaign in May this year, ‘The such as loyalty card integration, click- to be champions at customer service
Matcha Bot’, which was reached via and-collect purchasing, order history and experiential retail. “We try and do
Boost’s Facebook page and engaged via and store locators. gimmicks and like to test the market as
Facebook Messenger, to promote its new Retail Zoo has also introduced a much as possible,” McGilloway explains.
matcha smoothie flavour. new Uber-like rating system in the “If something new comes out, we want
The chatbot encouraged users to play Boost Juice app. Customers rate their to be the first in there taking it apart
a Tinder-esque dating game, matching experience out of five stars, and if it and playing with it.”
them with a fruit, based on a series was low, receive follow-up questions
of short personality questions, and to find out what went wrong. The
offering them a Boost Juice voucher as feedback goes directly to Retail Zoo’s
well as a chance to win a trip to Japan. customer service team to act on the
The fruits would then interact with the issue and contact the customer within
user daily for a period of two weeks, an hour, using information provided
giving Boost ongoing brand awareness. through their loyalty account.

REDBUBBLE: AUSTRALIA
A STYLISH WORLD OF
SELF EXPRESSION WORDS: Prinitha Govender
Redbubble is a frontrunner when it comes

to utilising technology to power its core
strategies and consumer experience. Think
artificial intelligence, personalisation,
machine learning and algorithms, all of which
are helping to grow the business and its
bottom line!
I
n 2006, three Melbourne friends FUTURE GROWTH PERSONALISATION, MACHINE
- Martin Hosking, Paul Vanzella Redbubble says it’s currently focused LEARNING AND DATA
and Peter Styles - teamed up to on four core themes when it comes to The basic building blocks for discovery
launch Redbubble. The dream its future growth, including customer at Redbubble are its search and browse
was simple – “Give independent artists loyalty, discovery, global acquisition and functions, with the company currently
a meaningful new way to sell their scalability, and it will utilise technology, working to optimise both. Layered on
creations.” Today, Redbubble connects primarily, to power these themes. top of that is personalisation. “We are
over 600,000 artists and designers building out our data science work
across the world with over two THE DISCOVERY EXPERIENCE to match our content and our ‘users’
million passionate fans, from over 196 interests to provide truly personalised
“Discovery” is a key term when it comes
different countries. content at the right time and place,”
to the company’s growth in terms of
ASX listed Redbubble as a global explains Kenn.
increasing sales. “Discovery is the
online marketplace powered by artists. “As we build this out, we will improve
fundamental connection of a customer’s
Redbubble’s community of passionate our content advantage by surfacing
interests with the content available on
creatives sell their artwork and designs more of the content more quickly
Redbubble - content being a combination
on high-quality, everyday products - to users and create a virtuous cycle
of product and artwork and there are
stylish, yet quirky and characteristic where great content and content
hundreds of millions of combinations
apparel, stationery, homewares, bags recommendations drives higher
available,” says Nick Kenn, Redbubble’s
and wall art, to name a few categories. customer loyalty, which gives us the
general manager for marketplace growth.
The team at Redbubble has grown data insights to inspire more content
“Our vision for discovery is an entertain-
to over 200 staff, the majority of creation and provide even better
ing, often surprising, and frictionless
which are housed in its Collins Street, content recommendations.”
experience that enables users to find
Melbourne headquarters. Redbubble
their thing. The easier it is and the
works with 24 independent fulfillers
more enjoyable it is, the more likely they
globally to facilitate supply of 60+
are to become loyal customers. That’s
print-on-demand products to customers
our goal with the work we are doing on
around the world.
improving our discovery experience.”

THE FUTURE LIES IN PERSONLI-
SATION, AI AND AR
REDBUBBLE HAS PERSONALISATION
FOUR MAJOR Personalisation is a large component
THEMES IT IS of Redbubble’s future focus, according
FOCUSED ON: to Kenn. “There are certainly tools and
services out there or that we can build
n L oyalty - building a loyal
to make personalisation simpler, even at
artist and customer base
Redbubble’s scale of hundreds of millions
n Discovery – helping
of SKUs. Personalisation through email,
customers find their product
push notifications retargeting advertising,
through new content and
on site through data feeds are some of
surfacing existing content
the areas we’re working on.”
more readily
n Global acquisition – acquir-
ing new customers by VISION: USING AI TO OPTIMISE
expanding into new markets THE SUPPLY CHAIN
and through new marketing An often under optimised area is the
channels supply chain and applying some of the
n Scalability – improving the techniques and best practice of building
efficiency of its customer MOBILE EXPERIENCE a website’s product features to the
experience and supply chain Another huge development that supply chain should yield significant
Redbubble has focused on in recent rewards for e-commerce, according to
times is its extensive work on its Kenn. An example might be in queuing
The more data Redbubble collects, mobile experience. “Optimising the customer orders to be fulfilled.
the more personalised and relevant page layout for mobile devices through “Applying machine learning or other AI
the customer experience on Redbubble responsive design, utilises new user techniques to generate the most value
becomes. flows for the checkout experience, for both customer and supplier is one
“We’re utilising machine learning in as well as incorporating features obvious area, A:B testing those tech-
our search algorithms to surface that like Apple Pay. Building an iOS app niques is another. Pricing, using AI is a
data, to ensure we show our consumers focused on engaging our users through controversial but widely discussed future
the most relevant content based on browsing and favouring artwork is development that seems likely to yield
where they are, what device they are another area that has had a positive significant changes in how e-commerce
using, what they’ve searched for in the impact on consumer loyalty.” retailers move from a standardised
past, what’s trending or what’s new, experience to a truly customised one.”
and, many other factors,” says Kenn. A:B TESTING PLATFORM
Many of Redbubble’s technological
TECHNOLOGY BREAKTHROUGHS breakthroughs have been as a result
ALGORITHMS of utilising its proprietary A:B
One of the biggest breakthroughs testing platform. The company runs
Redbubble has had in the past year is most of its new product features as
through work on its search algorithms experiments to a subset of its audience
and underlying technology, in order to to gauge the impact prior to release.
process and surface the search results “Segmenting our audience so that we
to the user. “Continually improving can have multiple experiments running AUGMENTED REALITY
the relevancy through adding new concurrently to achieve statistical Redbubble is excited about the
signals to the Redbubble search engine, significance is a technology challenge prospects that augmented reality (AR)
such as sales, browsed content, artist Redbubble has excelled at. The impact will bring to the world of e-commerce,
popularity, etc., are just some signals of doing this is large,” explains Kenn. which will help it enhance its customer
we have experimented with in the past. “Post experiment, we release all the experience is a major way. “AR is likely
Overall, our conversion has increased positive results and have avoided to be another disruptive technology
by a significant percentage in the last releasing many features which under that retailers, both physical and digital
year through this work,” says Kenn. experiment have proven negative, alike, can harness to unlock more value
thereby saving us time in terms of for consumers. Imagine being able to
fully integrating the new feature, see how the item looks on you before
and money, in the form of prolonged you buy, before you even leave your
negative customer impact.” house. That’s powerful,” says Kenn.

FLORA & FAUNA: AUSTRALIA
NO ANIMAL TESTING.
TECH TESTING ONLY WORDS: Natasha Sholl
Flora & Fauna teaches us how living

responsibly is good for business. And
conversely, how a good business can
positively impact the planet.
W
hen you think about Flora & Flora & Fauna use the Neto platform, Ensuring the site is intuitive and
Fauna’s mission of ‘ethical living’, which it finds to be flexible and customer focused also means that the
many words spring to mind. consumer focused. It also helps that product images have to be clear and
Organic. Vegan. Natural. While they get on well with the Neto team, the descriptions have to be detailed,
they all fit in with the company’s core which shows that in business it’s also accurate and answer everything the
offering, when you actually dig deeper, about the people behind the product. customer would want to know. “Many
‘high tech’ and ‘cutting edge’ also While Neto has technology inbuilt, retailers do not spend enough time
describe Flora & Fauna to the tee. While Flora & Fauna has customised a lot on product descriptions (and we are
cruelty free products may have been the for their needs. “The areas we have certainly not perfect) but all the
inspiration for the company, passion and really focused on is merchandising technology in the world isn’t going to
values alone don’t create 500% year on and navigation,” Mathers says. “With help you if your description is poor,”
year growth. It’s technology, innovation over 3,000 products, customers have she tells us.
and testing (testing technologies to be to be able to find the product they The pop-up highlighting what other
precise) that is setting it apart form want, or be inspired…quickly!” They customers have bought is also a
other online retailers. have achieved this through filters such simple but effective way to encourage
So, how does Flora & Fauna build as ‘Planet Friendly’, ‘Palm Oil Free’, purchasing behavior. “Being customer
its brand? “We listen,” says company ‘Certified Organic’ amongst others, or focused, we also have Afterpay, clear
founder Julie Mathers. “Customers with an easy to use navigation on integrations with a solid social
drive our strategy.” Mathers says desktop and mobile. media community and continually
the company is constantly staying updated content. We also have a lot of
close to industry experts, talking to technology behind the scenes when it
others in the online and technology comes to social and fulfilment, which
space, trying new technologies and helps us to be very responsive with
seeing what works. “I am a huge fan customers and orders. Technology gets
of testing and seeing how sticky and you so far, but it really depends what
effective something is.” you do with it.”

“TECHNOLOGY IS
NOW… A LOT
EASIER TO TEST
WITHOUT HAVING
A THREE-YEAR
PROJECT PLAN
AND SPENDING
MILLIONS. YOU
CAN TEST, LEARN
AND MOVE ON.”
So how does Mathers balance the Mathers believes business growth “For example,” she explains, “many
seemingly contrasting worlds of and adoption of technology is a large retailers in the US and UK have
Flora & Fauna? The company utilises journey. “We’ve used technologies we innovation labs. Lowes in the US has an
the latest technology to connect to aren’t using now but that’s because innovation lab with a sizeable budget and
their customer but they also include we are growing and developing and they develop some amazing technology.
personalised handwritten notes in each that technology was right at the time. It may not drive a return, but they are
order. The company’s unique selling We’ve absolutely tested technology developing. I’ve not seen that done in
proposition is about living ethically which wasn’t for us, but technology Australia. ASOS in the UK employs data
but they also operate in a fast paced, now is a lot easier to move to-and- scientists but in the true sense where
consumer driven and competitive from and a lot easier to test without they take data and come up with great
landscape. Do these aspects having a three-year project plan and recommendations. Here, we confuse data
complement each other or create spending millions. You can test, learn scientists with reporting analysts. So
friction? “For us it just works and I and move on.” we need to be more innovative within
strongly believe you can, and should, As someone who has worked in businesses and also take a few more risks.
be ethical and innovative. We are very retail and business throughout the UK, In the US it’s ok to fail multiple times. In
in tune with our customers and truly Europe and Asia, how does Mathers Australia it really isn’t.”
back what we do and our ethics, so it’s think Australia fares when it comes When you think about it, responsible
relatively easy to be innovative. We to innovation and technological living isn’t just about the environment
just make sure we do so ethically and advancement? “In Australia, consumers and educating people about recycling
we mix up online and digital initiatives are way ahead of businesses and I and natural alternatives. Because for a
with offline touches.” believe Australian consumers are some company like this to really succeed it has
“The important takeaway here is of the most explorative and adoptive to make an impact. And the only way
knowing who you are, who your brand in the world. There is great technology it can make an impact is to grow and
is, your ethics and values,” explains coming out of Australia but not enough utilise technology and global industry
Mathers. “We don’t pay a great deal of and businesses, particularly the large advancements to its advantage. While
attention to our competitors and make ones, are slow to embrace it and don’t Flora & Fauna may be looking to reduce
sure we tread our own path.” innovate enough.” its footprint on the environment, it’s
certainly looking to increase its mark in
Australian e-commerce.

DOMINO’S: AUSTRALIA
JOINING THE DOTS WORDS: Grant Arnott
Without a significant point of difference in

the crowded pizza delivery space, Domino’s
dropped some serious dough on digital.
The bet paid off, positioning the brand as a
technology leader that happens to sell pizza.
P
epperoni, cheese and ENTER DIGITAL.
autonomous delivery vehicles Domino’s identified customer service
– which of these feels out of as its opportunity to rise above
place? competitors, taking advantage of
Established in 1960, the iconic digital technology to enable a super
Domino’s pizza chain is not the supreme customer experience.
type of brand you would ordinarily In 2008, with the global financial
associate with cutting edge technology. crisis engulfing the planet, Domino’s
Indeed, pizza production has changed was a potential basket case, its
relatively little in the last half century. customer base and share price in
Traditional cooking methods have freefall. It was dough or die.
been modernised, certainly, but the The company reevaluated its strategy
fundamentals of the pizza production and sought to create a category killer
chain remain the same – wheat makes pizza delivery experience, whilst
flour, flour makes dough, dough simultaneously reinventing its pizza
in a hot oven makes pizza, and a menu. Leveraging the rapid penetration
combination of toppings make pizzas of smartphones following the release
taste how the customer wants it of the Apple iPhone and Android
to taste. There’s minimal room for smartphones, Domino’s set about
disruption in this process, and though developing the market-leading mobile
Domino’s continues to improve its app for pizza delivery.
pizza recipes, that alone cannot deliver
an order of magnitude change to the
business.

The native app, which took five years Voice and artificial intelligence
to develop, enabled users to browse, aren’t merely the next frontiers for
customise and order from Domino’s, Domino’s – the company is already in
and track their order fully from the zone. Using the Apple iPhone’s Siri
transaction to delivery. The app was functionality, Domino’s customers with
an incredible boost to the business, the Zero Click Ordering app downloaded
and has continued to improve over can call out to Siri for any of their
the ensuing years with more features favourite orders and it shall soon
including GPS driver tracking to better appear.
the customer experience. With the Zero Click Ordering concept
Today, the Domino’s GPS Driver getting traction, Domino’s is planning Now, Domino’s is experimenting with
Tracker links the online ordering to further roll out its AI-driven, voice- autonomous drones for aerial deliveries,
experience with the store delivery activated ordering to the increasingly and autonomous vehicles rolling the
driver so customers know exactly when popular home speaker devices. The streets to deliver pizzas to homes. The DRU
their pizza order is leaving the store company is planning tie-ups with (Domino’s Robotic Unit) is being trialled
and how long it will take to get to the market leaders, Amazon Echo as a delivery vehicle, navigating footpaths
their house. In fact, it provides the and Google Home, to further simplify and crossing roads to deliver pizzas around
customer access to watch the route ordering pizzas at home. the neighbourhood on demand.
the driver takes to get to their place in “What you’re going to see is that Today, over 60 percent of Domino’s
real-time. voice is going to show up in more and US$2.5 billion annual revenue comes
The flipside of the positive customer more platforms,” said Patrick Doyle, via digital channels, and two thirds of
experience is that the app also Domino’s global CEO. “You think about that is via the mobile app.
improves safety for Domino’s drivers vehicles and cars and what’s happening As a franchise model, Domino’s has
and minimises incidents, with Domino’s there. You look at your home and how encountered significant challenges in
claiming that this feature alone has you’re interacting with Amazon Alexa the Australian market over questions
reduced driver and delivery incidents and Google Home. You’re more and involving underpayment of staff –
by 50 percent since launch. more going to be able to be away from making headlines for the wrong reasons
Domino’s ever-expanding suite of the physical device and ordering.” with investors wary.
customer touchpoints includes social Voice-ordering is still in its Nonetheless, the technology
media, messenger apps, SMS ordering embryonic stages at Domino’s, but the innovation at Domino’s and its profound
and an Apple Watch ordering app. tide is rising and the pizza chain is impact on the business holds great
supremely placed to take advantage of lessons for Australian online retailers.
the coming boom. When it comes to a supreme customer
experience, Domino’s delivers.

BUYERS
GUIDE
Getting a
Grasp on Retail
Technology
I
n today’s market, it’s understandable that so many retailers are
treading water when it comes to development in the technology space.
With an abundance of technologies to choose from that are changing
at rapid rate, sometimes standing still can feel like the best option.
But, it’s imperative Australian retailers move forward and lead the charge
when it comes to innovation. So we’ve scoured our networks to uncover the
advice and expertise of the industry’s true e-commerce technology leaders.
Whether it’s e-commerce platforms, analytics, personalisation, supply chain
or customer service, use the following pages as a guide for what steps to take
to implement the right technologies. The aim is to save your business time
and money, and to remove the headache of navigating the plethora of options
available.
Provided by industry leaders, practitioners and the people behind the
technologies, these buyers’ guides will act as a valuable resource for any retail
decision maker in the industry.
CONTENTS:
050 E-COMMERCE PLATFORMS 092 ENDLESS AISLES –THE NEXT 114 CHOOSING YOUR SAME DAY
072 CREATING A SEAMLESS RETAIL REVOLUTION DELIVERY PARTNER
OMNICHANNEL EXPERIENCE 096 IT’S NOT THE BIG THAT EAT 118 PAY ATTENTION TO THE FIRST
USING NEW TECH AVAILABLE THE SMALL. IT’S THE FAST MILE
076 A SMARTER WAY: USING THAT EAT THE SLOW 122 FULFILMENT
TECHNOLOGY TO COMPETE 100 DELIVERING THE FLEXIBILITY DIFFERENTIATION
WITH BIG RETAILERS TODAY’S OMNICHANNEL 106 TRENDS IN LOGISTICS
080 TECHNOLOGIES IN CUSTOMER SHOPPER DEMANDS
110 ANALYTICS SOFTWARE
SERVICE ENGAGEMENT 104 TECH TRENDS AND LOYALTY
IN DIGITAL MARKETING 114 CROSS-BORDER TRADE
084 BLENDED RETAIL AND THE
VALUE FOR CUSTOMER 108 ONLINE MARKETPLACES, THE 118 FULFILMENT AND
CONNECTIONS NEW AGE SHOPPING MALL WAREHOUSING
088 NEW FASHIONED SERVICE 112 THE FUTURE OF E-COMMERCE 122 TECHNOLOGY IN E-COMMERCE
– WHY INNOVATION IS KEY

BUYERS
GUIDE
Choosing an
E-commerce
Platform
WORDS: PRINITHA GOVENDER
SELECTING THE RIGHT E-COMMERCE

PLATFORM IS A FUNDAMENTAL
INGREDIENT TO THE SUCCESS OF
ANY ONLINE RETAIL BUSINESS.
OVER THE NEXT FEW PAGES WE
AIM TO DEMYSTIFY THIS PIVOTAL
AREA AND HELP BUSINESS OWNERS
MAKE MORE INFORMED DECISIONS
ABOUT E-COMMERCE TECHNOLOGIES
AVAILABLE.
W
hether you’re expanding your “As e-commerce has moved from
e-commerce store, or starting an adjunct to the business, run
your online retail store separately off to the side, to an
from scratch, your choice essential part of a true omnichannel
of e-commerce platform will have a business, the mergers of e-commerce
huge impact on the profitability and platform providers with providers of
sustainability of your business. During other platforms (ERP, PoS, OMS, CRM,
the past five years, the e-commerce etc) provide an easier avenue for
platform market has undergone an retailers to start to produce a seamless
extraordinary level of consolidation. customer experience across all their
The flurry of mergers, acquisitions and channels,” says Mark Lewis, Chief
new entrants to the market, has meant Technology Officer of Practicology.
that there are now less e-commerce
solutions to choose from.

Over the past two years e-commerce As a general point, retailers are “There is thus a strategic systems
companies have continued to innovate demanding far more agile, lightweight architecture decision to be made, as
and deliver increasingly powerful e-commerce platforms and this to whether you go for the end-to-end
platforms, driven largely by growing trend will accelerate, according to single system approach, or a modular,
competition and the demand from Graham Jackson, Chief Executive of micro-services based one,” explains
consumers for convenience. The Fluent Retail. “We are already into Lewis. “There isn’t (or isn’t yet) a
leading commerce technology a new software paradigm in relation ‘right’ answer to this question. As
solutions in the market all offer to e-commerce where the single always, it comes down to: What are
robust tools that meet the needs of technology stack large enterprise you trying to achieve? Where do you
even the largest of online retailers. monolith is not the favoured approach see your retail business going? And,
Differentiating at the feature level – instead Application Programming what culture and capabilities do you
is increasingly difficult. Firms must Interface (API) based commerce have in house?”
instead focus on tool set usability, platforms are very much on the rise
extensibility, suite integration, and as retailers look at the increased THE RISING CLOUD
innovation when evaluating these flexibility this brings,” says Jackson. While on-premise solutions continue
solutions, and the big one is change to account for the majority of
– your e-commerce platform should be E-COMMERCE LANDSCAPE SHIFTS e-commerce platforms, there has been
able to comfortably handle change. GROWTH OF API ARCHITECTURES a notable shift towards cloud-based
According to merchant services reviews The growth of micro-services based API solutions in the last few years. This is
firm, Merchant Maverick, “the best architectures is enabling retailers to a trend that will continue and while
way you can prepare for changes free themselves from single, behemoth no single deployment or licensing
in e-commerce is by investing in systems, to become much more agile model will dominate the digital
a platform that can, well, handle in selecting the right tool(s) for the commerce market, we are now seeing
change. Your platform shouldn’t just job, and integrating these much more a gradual evolution to the cloud via
be customisable and easy to use – it fluidly, according to Lewis and to hosting or SaaS (software-as-a-service)
should also be current and adaptable.” Jackson’s point. deployment models.

Another significant shift in the ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE
e-commerce platform market is Artificial intelligence (AI) or machine
the rise of omnichannel solutions, “Firms must focus learning has by far been one of the
particularly spurred by the dominance
in mobile commerce which last
on tool set us- biggest shifts in e-commerce platform
technology advancements in the last
year overtook desktop purchasing. ability, exten- couple of years. Gartner research
According to Forrester’s Online Retail
Forecast, 79% of all online retail sales
sibility, suite estimates that AI bots will power 85%
of customer service interactions by
in Asia Pacific are projected to be integration, and 2020. This fast-growing technology
completed via smartphones by 2021.
innovation when trend is already spelling huge
implications for the retail industry,
UNIFIED COMMERCE evaluating e-com- in boosting customer service levels,
The coming together of physical and
digital worlds continues to drive
merce solutions, customer loyalty, automated back
end systems and ultimately works
demand and expectations in relation and the big one is to increase the bottom line for the
to commerce customer experiences,
according to Jackson. “The
it should be able retailer.
proliferation of multiple device usage to comfortably PERSONALISATION

when engaging with a brand, and handle change.” There have been seismic shifts in
the increased ability to collect and consumer behaviour and expectations
interpret data across all touchpoints in the last couple of years. According
has increased both the expectation of to the 2017 Salesforce Empowered
a seamless experience and the benefit Shopper Report, half of customers
from providing such experiences,” he will soon expect customer service to
says. “It remains the primary goal While some may think that know exactly who they are as soon
of any given retailer to ensure they unified commerce sounds a lot like as they make contact. “Consumer
are faster and easier to do business omnichannel, think again. Ken expectations are sky-high,” says
with than their competitors – and Morris, partner and co-founder of James Johnson, Regional Director,
‘out-convenience-ing’ the competition BRP, explains the difference between customer success at Salesforce
should be the “prime directive.” the two. “In omnichannel, you have Commerce Cloud. “Today’s shoppers
Seventy-three percent of retailers multiple channels, but you don’t have expect personalised experiences
plan to have a unified commerce one piece of software, one version of whether they are shopping on their
platform implemented by the end of the truth,” he says. “In the unified couch, on the go or in a store. The
2019, according to a Boston Retail commerce world, it’s all connected in cloud, mobile and social revolutions
Partners (BRP) report – this has been real time. I don’t just mean the web have empowered today’s shopper,
a chief shift in e-commerce platforms side, but the mobile side, the web side transforming the relationship and
since 2015. Omnichannel has been and the store side - all in real time.” challenging retailers to develop
a big buzzword of the last few years, Unified commerce places the compelling and frictionless mobile
with unified commerce now taking customer experience as a priority experiences.”
the lead. by leveraging a single commerce
platform, which rids internal
channels that operate in their own
silos. Instead, merchants leverage a
“single, centralised, real-time platform
for all customer engagement points,”
according to eMarketer. In this way,
unified commerce is achieved.

Brands that take the opportunity The big players are going to look
to use the right technology in their to extend their reach into wider
e-commerce platforms to connect areas, including marketing, CRM/
“Retailers today
their teams and processes across  the Single Customer View/Campaign are demanding
board can differentiate themselves Management, Order Management,
through  the customer experience PoS, in-store tech, etc., according
more than
they provide. The result is greater to Practicology’s Lewis. “The smaller shopping carts
customer loyalty, more powerful
reputation management systems, and
players are going to focus on
specialised tools for specialised jobs,
from their
more efficient staff and processes, and being more nimble, agile, faster paced, e-commerce
that’s just the beginning. with collaboration becoming easier
and easier,” he says. “Again, your
platform.”
Forrester, Q1 2017 B2C
CLICK-AND-COLLECT own philosophies and capabilities will
Commerce Suites Report
In what may be the ultimate iteration likely drive (or should drive) which
of merging online and brick-and- path you go down.”
mortar retail operations, in the last
couple of years,’ successful merchants GO BEYOND THE SHOPPING CART Traditionally, retailers have looked
have been scrambling to establish As Forrester notes in its Q1 2017 B2C
to e-commerce platform vendors to
dedicated click-and-collect services Commerce Suites Report, e-commerce
support basic, and now commoditised,
in e-commerce offerings, otherwise professionals today are looking for
capabilities like running an online
known as BOPIS (buy online, pick up agile solutions that go beyond the
catalogue, shopping cart and
in-store), and e-commerce platform shopping cart. “The B2C commerce
promotions. However, with today’s
vendors have tailored their products for suites market is growing because
consumer demanding deeper search
retailers to meet this growing demand. more e-business and channel strategy
capabilities and a richer shopping
When done right, click-and-collect professionals see B2C commerce
journey, e-commerce platform
technology means benefits for shoppers suites as a way to address their
providers must deliver a plethora of
and retailers alike. top challenges around driving
new capabilities on both the back end
digital commerce initiatives across
(around fulfilment and integration)
THE FUTURE OF E-COMMERCE touchpoints.”
and the front end (around a seamless
PLATFORMS The key differentiators, when it
customer journey online and in-store).
According to Jackson, there will be a rise comes to e-commerce platforms today,
Plus, it’s not just retailers who have
in “best of breed technologies” enabled are agility, omnichannel capability
expectations for today’s e-commerce
by API architectures. “This (increase and experience management,
platforms to provide a deep and rich
in APIs) allows for more agile, modular according to Forrester. “Legacy
customer journey. This extends to
solutions that comprise multiple best of commerce technology is becoming
branded manufacturers and high
breed services, which when combined, outdated and less effective, so
tech firms who are beginning to
skillfully provides the ability to innovate the features that dictate which
sell direct to consumers. Companies
at the speed of the customer and providers will lead the pack are
across verticals are investing in
consistently deliver winning experi- improved capabilities to speed up
more sophisticated B2C commerce
ences despite the rapid pace of change time-to-market (TTM) and support
technology today, and are looking for
required,” he says. “I would note that analytics, experience management,
support in the following, according to
we are currently at the early stages of and omnichannel. Vendors that
Forrester:
this trend shift, and are therefore likely can provide these capabilities
to see a combination of base e-commerce position themselves to successfully
platforms with many features rolling out deliver seamless digital commerce
with it, but augmented by some more experiences.”
modular best of breed technologies.”

COMMON PITFALLS business. Not only does this prevent experience is poor and your website
Ryan Murtagh, founder and CEO you from taking full advantage of is difficult to navigate, you can’t
of e-commerce solutions provider what is a great opportunity, but it expect current and potential
NETO says that when choosing an can also end up costing you more customers to use it.
e-commerce platform, there are a time and more money in the long
few pitfalls that retailers tend to run. Document your business needs THERE’S MORE TO THE PLATFORM
slip into. These are common issues and ensure to include things like THAN THE FRONT END EXPERIENCE
that when addressed during the pricing, integrations with already You should also ensure that your
planning phase can save a lot of existing platforms, features, platform integrates seamlessly with
time and money. flexibility and support. your Point of Sale (POS) software
and marketplace channels (like eBay
OT INVESTING THE TIME
N NEGLECTING THE IMPORTANCE OF and Amazon) so that customers
TO DEFINE YOUR BUSINESS THE CUSTOMER EXPERIENCE are able to have a consistent,
REQUIREMENTS You’ve established an e-commerce omnichannel experience.
Without establishing what your key storefront and now the customers
business requirements are, you are will come rolling in, right? Wrong.
more than likely going to select the Even if you’ve established an
wrong e-commerce platform for your e-commerce system, if the user
PERSONALISED RETAIL AGILITY

EXPERIENCES Gone are the days of years-long
Smart retailers are seeking “With the implementations and heavy-T-
personalisation that occurs across footprint solutions, as firms instead
all channels of retail including via convergence of demand more agility and faster time
website, mobile app or in-store. online and offline to market from their platforms to
E-commerce platforms today can drive keep up with customer demand,
personalisation by controlling the retail, companies according to Forrester. “Cloud-based,
front-end experience (for customers) are increasingly service-oriented architectures that
and the back end experience (for implement commerce solutions
store associates) by managing the seeking e-commerce in a more modern and modular
customer data. platforms that fashion are now must-haves within
e-commerce suites. Firms typically
SEAMLESS OMNICHANNEL will support not look to either platform-as-a-service
ENGAGEMENT just the .com (Paas) deployments where the
With the convergence of online vendor manages the solution in
and offline retail, companies are
shopfront, but a single-tenant cloud instance
increasingly seeking e-commerce also support a or SaaS deployments where the
platforms that will support not just vendor manages the solution in a
the .com shopfront, but also support
seamless customer multitenant environment.”
a seamless customer journey across all journey across all
WHY BUILD WHEN YOU CAN BUY?
touchpoints of the shopping journey,
including website, mobile, app, social
touchpoints.” The e-commerce platforms that are
and in-store. available today are so powerful and
feature-rich that there is not a
DATA DRIVEN TOOLS whole lot of incentive to go beyond
Driven by increasing consumer commercially available solutions.
expectations, e-commerce platforms Going back just a few years ago
today are innovating in the area of there weren’t many solid e-commerce
better decision making with machine platforms to build on, and the ones
learning, in particular around that were around were still in their
personalisation and Fulfilment, in infancy. Now there are multitude of
order to support automation, a great platforms available.
richer customer experience and
boost customer loyalty. Retailers are
investing more in data analytics and
data driven decision-making tools.

In response to the rising demand One of the biggest legs up that The other big tip is to implement
for e-commerce, vendors have come you can get when choosing your your new solution in stages. Your
to market with more fully functional e-commerce platform is getting minimum requirements should be
upgrades to their existing solutions recommendations. Speaking to built into stage one, and once you
as well as new offerings, according to existing users of the platform can roll this out and gain more data
Forrester. help uncover potential shortcomings. about how users are actually using
As e-commerce technology It’s been heard of time and again – your new site, this will help to
continues to mature, vendors will retailers choosing an e-commerce prioritise requirements for stage two,
offer more choices for enterprises to platform just because another retailer three, four, five, etc. Prioritising the
consider either natively or through they like is using it, only to uncover stages is important for the evolution
partners in the digital commerce that they are actually seeing only of your e-commerce platform. Once
ecosystem, as advised by Gartner what is on the surface and not any the basics are stable, you should be in
in its Magic Quadrant for Digital issues that occur behind the scenes. good form to roll out the next stage,
Commerce 2017 report. It’s advisable to speak to the business and continue in this way.
Although it’s becoming harder to using the platform you’re interested
distinguish between e-commerce in, to see how well it’s really working CREATING YOUR EVALUATION
platforms purely on the basis of for them and what issues they may CHECKLIST
features, improvement in integration have had. Just as there is no one-size-fits all
has been one of the most notable You should definitely be prepared solution, there is no set-in-stone
advancements in the industry over to undertake a lengthy due diligence evaluation checklist. However, below
the last couple of years. Only a process before you make your choice are some of the considerations you
few years ago most systems weren’t of platform and provider, and that may want to include in your own
integrating with each other very includes doing your homework and evaluation checklist. How you weight
well. However, with the avalanche seeking recommendations – it’s each one will obviously depend on
of cloud-based systems that now the key to any successful project. your particular business requirements
integrate seamlessly with each other, While it may take a bit of time and priorities.
it has become a lot easier to build to ascertain your business needs,
the optimum e-commerce solution for including operational, functional and “My advice to retailers here is
almost any business. integration requirements, it’s well to talk to the industry guys with
worth it and will be a crucial step global experience about real trends
FINDING A SOLUTION THAT FITS towards success. to separate the hype from the
The search for an e-commerce Luke Goldsworthy, Managing reality, and to make sure you always
solution should start with an Director of The Playhouse Group, get references before making any
audit of your business needs, says recommends rolling out your movements in your e-commerce
Chris Vincent, CEO of e-commerce e-commerce technology gradually. platform – and make sure that
consultancy Practicology. “Decide “Don’t cripple yourself by over- reference is recent. This is a critical
what your requirements are before investing on your technology or safety check that should not be
you start looking, in terms of features resources at day one,” he warns. “And rushed,” says Fluent Retail’s Jackson.
and functions,” he says. “Don’t ever don’t be trapped into saying ‘yes’
decide on the platform first! And when you need to ask ‘why’. Invest
remember, it’s not just about the the time and money into being an
technology, you need to ensure the expert in your platform. Ensure you
platform provider is aligned with your understand your technology fully so
business goals.” you can squeeze out every drop of
sales and profit potential. Only then,
look at extending.”

STEPS TO TAKE STEP 2 From this flows the
“It’s important
WHEN CHOOSING detailed requirements, and a
YOUR E-COMMERCE ‘conceptual solutions architecture’ for you to be
PLATFORM with which to sense-check the
clear on what
When it comes to choosing an available solutions against.
e-commerce platform for your STEP 3 You are then ready to you must have
go to market with a clear set of
retail business, Practicology’s Mark
Lewis says that the first step is to requirements, which mitigates the and what is
start with your strategy, and build risk of being ‘sold to’ by the latest ‘nice to have’.”
from there. Below is his advice on buzz words and ideas, by focusing Ryan Murtagh, Founder
the steps you should take in the on what you really need, and where and CEO of NETO
process. you are wanting to go.
STEP 1 Start with your strategy Always, always put the customer
– what are you trying to achieve? at the heart of your requirements,
This itself should be driven by the but don’t forget the importance of
customer experience you want to usability and simplicity in the tools
offer. you are going to ask your teams to
use, to deliver the desired customer
experience.
CUSTOMISABILITY EASE OF USE INTEGRATION CAPABILITY

Consider whether the platform allows Is the user interface efficient and A typical e-commerce site averages more
for the level of customisation you user-friendly? Or will the platform than 15 integration points, with ERP,
require. More importantly, consider require IT resources for daily OMSs, web content management (WCM),
whether you have the resources (either maintenance? You don’t want to find digital marketing, payment processing,
in-house or through an agency) to out post-implementation that the logistics and warehousing, analytics sys-
upgrade and maintain customised resources required to input data are tems, and other systems. It’s important
elements of the platform. If you’ve ex- more complex and time-consuming to understand how each element of the
tensively customised your e-commerce than anticipated. platform interacts with these systems,
platform, you could face the problem of as well as any third party applications
version lock or the inability to upgrade you may have in place, such as email,
the system to the latest version. social networks, SEO, SEM, loyalty
programs and affiliate programs. Look
for a system that integrates front-end
with back-end operations as seam-
lessly as possible. Also, ask whether
the vendor has proven capability in
integrating the preferred e-commerce
platform with your existing systems.

IMPORTANT Of course, with larger businesses, If it’s time for you to submit an RFP
QUESTIONS you should be doing a RFP as your or to select an e-commerce platform
RETAILERS SHOULD needs and priorities are constantly vendor, there are a number of
BE ASKING AN evolving and changing at a much questions that you need to be able
E-COMMERCE faster rate. You need to ensure to answer confidently, a few of these
PLATFORM VENDOR: that your potential e-commerce include:
Depending on the size of your provider is able to keep up with
business, you may or you may not your company’s growth and n What is the purpose/focus of the
need to run a Request for Proposal transformation. RFP?
(RFP), according to NETO’s Ryan n What business problem are you
Murtagh. “If we were to look at The great thing about a RFP is that it trying to solve?
small to medium sized businesses, forces you to spend time within your n What are the operational and
it is essential that you invest the business to determine exactly what strategic objectives this RFP will
time to determine whether or not your needs are and the learnings solve?
an e-commerce platform is the right and insights that you will get from n Create a clear time line to roll out
platform for your business needs. this is what’s really important. the new technology or platform.
Although you might not need to However, it’s important to remember n Determine what the requirements
submit a formal RFP it’s important that these insights will vary greatly are in different areas of the
for you to be clear on what you must from business to business, as every business (marketing, customer
have and what is ‘nice to have.’” business has different needs. service, business systems, etc.).
PRICING / TOTAL COST OF SCALABILITY FEATURES AND ADD-ONS

OWNERSHIP Does the platform provide the Are leading edge personalisation,
One of the most common traps elasticity to cope as your traffic merchandising, site search and
that new players fall into when volumes and transaction volumes grow? product information management
selecting an e-commerce solution Are the e-commerce platform and (PIM) capabilities built into the
is underestimating the total cost vendor able to support like businesses system? And how do the platform’s
of ownership (TCO). “Retailers at the scale and volume for your ‘out-of-the-box’ functions compare
can sometimes be surprised by desired growth? A common mistake with third party solutions?
the resourcing and maintenance that merchants often make is choosing
requirements that they previously a platform based on their immediate OMNICHANNEL CAPABILITY
did not consider during their needs, which can be quickly outgrown. Consider whether the platform easily
evaluation process,” says eWave’s The platform should ideally be selected adapts to multiple transactional
Karl Norman. While a platform may in reference to a three-year growth channels (e.g. mobile, tablets, social
appear affordable to buy, if it requires plan to ensure it can support this. commerce, marketplaces). Are you
a large degree of customisation in Merchants that are hungry for growth able to maintain centralised data
order to get it to do what you want, should always opt for a platform that and accurate inventory visibility so
it may end up costing you more in offers both flexibility and scalability customers can easily buy online and
the long run, especially if you don’t to be customised to meet any unique pick up in-store? Does the platform
have in-house technical resources. business requirements. enable customer service representatives
Find out how much service and to view all customer information
maintenance fees are going to be POST-DEPLOYMENT SUPPORT regardless of channel of origin?
both from the platform vendor and The level of post-deployment support
the implementation partner and make you require will depend on your CAPACITY TO HANDLE CROSS-
sure you find out how much the latest in-house technical resources and BORDER COMMERCE
version upgrades have cost. Also, the type of platform you ultimately If expanding globally is part of your
when comparing pricing arrangements select. As a starting point, you business plan, look for a solution that
of each offering, note any minimum should look at what service levels can support multi-site deployments,
subscription periods and always check and support are offered as part of the multiple languages and multiple
for cancellation fees. contract. You should also consider currencies. Experts advise in favour of
the strength of the implementation looking for a platform that is flexible
partner network, particularly on the enough to support multiple taxation
basis of location. Also, what are the and statutory/regulatory compliance
modes of support offered, for example, rules in different countries and
do they offer phone or live chat, jurisdictions.
email only, support forums?

BUYERS
GUIDE
Types of E-commerce
Platforms
Explained
BEFORE YOU EVEN BEGIN TO EVALUATE

THE OFFERINGS OF SPECIFIC
E-COMMERCE PLATFORM VENDORS, YOU
WILL NEED TO DECIDE ON THE BASIC
TYPE OF PLATFORM YOU REQUIRE.
T
he first question to be If you are looking for a solution that Or you could take the bus. This
answered in selecting an will provide you with greater control option will generally take you where
e-commerce platform is: over the design and functionality of you need to go (give or take a few
to host or not to host? A your site then you should probably use blocks), there is no big upfront
hosted e-commerce solution refers to a self-hosted e-commerce service. On cost and you won’t have to pay for
software that runs on a third party’s the other hand, if ease of use is more maintenance (at least not directly).
server. In most cases, users of hosted of a priority for you, a hosted solution However, you will have to pay as you
e-commerce solutions don’t have might be the way to go. go and you can’t customise anything
access to the code that runs the site. As programmer Patrick Rauland on the bus. And if you ever move cities,
However, upgrades and maintenance explains, it’s like choosing between a you’ll have to learn a new bus system
are generally taken care of by the car and a bus. because you can’t take it with you.
solution provider. A self-hosted Having a car is like a self-hosted If you decide to jump on the bus,
solution, by contrast, is one that is solution. You can customise your car you’re in the market for a hosted
hosted on a server that the retailer any way you like; you can choose a solution (also commonly referred to
controls. The retailer (or their agency) fast car, or one with more storage, as a cloud-based or SaaS (software
is responsible for sourcing, setting you can choose how fast you drive as a service) solution). If the car is
up and managing the hardware and what station you listen to. But more your style, you’ve got a few
infrastructure and operating system you’ll also have to buy the car, pay more options to consider, including
that the e-commerce site runs on. to park it, keep it fueled, pay for licensed on-premise, open source and
Another way to look at this question is maintenance and repairs and if you proprietary solutions. These options
“do you want a cloud-based solution or want to customise it, you’ll have to are explored in more detail below.
one that is installed locally?” do it yourself or find someone to do it
for you.

EASE OF USE <-----------------------------------------------> CUSTOMISABILITY
HOSTED SELF-HOSTED
Cloud-based/SaaS Licensed on-premise Open source Proprietary
HOSTED ■■ Predictability: there is generally a SELF-HOSTED

CLOUD-BASED/SAAS more predictable upgrade roadmap LICENSED ON-PREMISE
Software as a Service (SaaS) is a than with self-hosted solutions. Licensed on-premises software is
cloud-based delivery model in which ■ ■ Global access: the cloud is ‘always a type of software delivery model
applications are hosted and managed on’, making it easy for businesses that is installed on a client’s owned/
in a service provider’s data centre, to support remote workers and leased server. A one-time licence
paid for on a subscription basis and locations. is generally paid upfront to an
accessed via a browser over an internet ■■ Security: for many companies, the independent software vendor and the
connection. Examples include: Shopify, level of security and availability, client is responsible for the security,
Bigcommerce, Demandware and disaster recovery and back-up availability and overall management of
NetSuite Commerce. provided by a cloud-based provider the software. Examples include Oracle
exceeds what they can provide Commerce, IBM Websphere and SAP
Pros themselves. This is particularly hybris.
■■ Ease of use: these solutions important for handling credit card
typically only have a web interface, data. Pros
which means that there is no need ■■ Flexibility: licensed on-premise
to write any code. Cons solutions offer greater capacity
■■ Fast deployment: cloud-based ■■ Limited flexibility: the main issue to customise than cloud-based
solutions offer good speed to with cloud-based solutions is that solutions, but less than open source.
market, so they are a good way they are not as easy to customise as ■■ Security: on-premise solutions are
to get a business off and running self-hosted solutions. considered more secure than hosted
quickly. ■ ■ Limited integration capacity. solutions, as the software and data
■■ No in-house IT resources required: ■■ Scalability can be problematic as sit inside the organisation and have
upgrades, maintenance and system your business grows (or downsizes). a lower risk of being compromised.
administration are all taken care of ■■ Total cost of ownership (TCO) can ■■ Predictability: like cloud-based
by the vendor. be high: ongoing subscription fees solutions, licensed on-premise
■■ Vendor is responsible for disaster can potentially result in a higher platforms generally allow for a more
recovery: if anything goes wrong, TCO. This is particularly the case predictable product roadmap than
like a security breach or system where fees are tied to revenue and open source.
crash, it will generally be taken the business experiences a higher ■■ Post deployment support: the
care of quickly, with minimal user than anticipated rate of growth. vendor will usually provide after
disruption. Fees may also increase as you sales integration and support
■■ Minimal set-up costs: as cloud- integrate with other applications. services (open source or proprietary
based solutions typically operate ■■ Security: data and security issues platforms).
under a subscription model, there are a greater concern with cloud
is no large upfront cost associated solutions. Cons
with establishing the platform. ■■ Limitations: while licensed
Development costs are also Conclusion: Cloud-based solutions on-premise solutions offer more
amortised across numerous clients are generally suited to businesses flexibility to customise the platform
and funded by the vendor. that prioritise ease of use over than cloud-based solutions, they
■■ Frequent upgrades: there are customisation. They do not require still have far more limitations than
generally regular rollouts of new a dedicated in-house technical team open source platforms.
functionality and features. but there is a trade-off in terms of ■■ High initial outlay: unlike cloud-
■■ Full functionality: typically, cloud- flexibility. based or open source solutions,
based solutions provide access to licensed on-premise solutions
fully regression-tested ‘add-ons’, usually entail a large initial
which increases the agility with outlay for the license, as well as
which new functionality can be investments in server hardware and
implemented. IT support staff.

■■ Technical knowledge required: ■■
unlike cloud-based solutions,
licensed on-premised solutions
TO HOST OR NOT TO HOST?
Below is a quick snapshot of the pros and cons of a self-hosted
require a high degree of self-
e-commerce platform.
maintenance and technical

knowledge.
■■ Self-management: businesses
FOR AGAINST
n Greater ability to customise the n Higher initial outlay
need to manage software
platform n Requires technical knowledge to
customisations and upgrades
nD ata has a lower risk of being implement and maintain
themselves. This can lead to out-
compromised as it sits on a local n Requires agility to keep up with
of-date technology.
server upgrades
■■ Maintenance: as with any self-
n Generally no ongoing
hosted solution, keeping up with
subscription fees
performance and accessibility
requirements can be time-
consuming and expensive.
■■ Ownership of IP: clients have a
Conclusion: Licensed on-premise higher likelihood of maintaining ■■ Difficulty in upgrading:
solutions are best suited to the intellectual property of custom customisation can make it hard
organisations that require some developments and control over to upgrade to new versions cost
level of flexibility and have in-house the code than with closed source effectively.
technical teams to ensure the platforms. ■■ Variable quality of developers:
platform is adequately maintained. ■■ Add-ons: open source offers the flipside to open source’s low
easy access to a wide network of barrier to entry is that clients
OPEN SOURCE extensions and plug-ins. can be exposed to relatively
Open source refers to software for ■■ Community support: open source inexperienced developers, which
which the original source code platforms have a large community can have adverse consequences
is readily accessible. Software of users, vendors, partners and de- if they are using poor coding
products that are distributed as velopers that contribute to ongoing practices. Upgrade paths may
open source are generally free, and improvements and innovations. This be hazardous depending on the
users can access and modify the community approach to R&D often quality of the code developed by
source code. In order to set up an leads to faster speed to market for the system integration partner.
open source e-commerce platform, new technology. ■■ Integration: there is no standard
at least a basic level of design and ■■ Low barrier to entry: while it integration with back-end systems.
development expertise is required. takes time to learn any platform, ■■ Agility required: businesses need
Open source users are responsible for open source has a relatively flat to have a certain level of agility
installing, maintaining, securing and learning curve, which means to deal with the constant releases,
configuring the software on their own lower development costs and security updates and options
(or leased) servers. Examples of open more readily available talent and coming out of the open source
source e-commerce platforms include: resources. development community.
Magento, WooCommerce. ■■ Provider flexibility: as open ■■ Lack of predictability: there is
source software coding can be typically no predictability in the
Pros easily accessed, the client has platform roadmap as it is driven by
■■ Flexibility: the ability to access the the flexibility to change between the open source user community.
source code provides much greater different providers or bring the
flexibility to modify and adapt application in-house at any stage. Conclusion: Open source platforms
software to specific business require- offer a good level of flexibility in
ments than closed source systems. Cons terms of customisation, but they
■■ Low initial set-up cost: open ■■ Technical requirements: technical are best suited to retailers with a
source platforms will typically knowledge is required, either in- basic level of in-house development
attract a no- or low-cost licensing house or through an agency. proficiency.
model, so they may be cheaper ■■ Potentially high TCO: low initial
to get up and running, especially costs can be deceiving – total
if the client has in-house cost of ownership, including the
development expertise. development costs of ongoing
maintenance and upgrades are
often underestimated.

PROPRIETARY Pros ■■ Inflexibility: client may be locked
A proprietary e-commerce platform ■■ Customisation: the platform can into the technology. Roadblocks
is a custom-built solution which be developed in accordance with may be faced when migration to a
may be built using a standard coding business requirements. different platform is required.
language (such as .Net or Java), or ■■ Control: allows the business to ■■ Lack of resources/talent
may be based on bespoke coding. A maintain a high level of control available: it may be difficult
proprietary e-commerce platform may over the development. to find resources outside of the
be developed in-house or by a third ■■ Ownership of code: where the implementation partner.
party developer. While proprietary platform is developed by an ■■ IP ownership not guaranteed:
platforms allow for a high level of in-house development team, the where the platform has been
customisation and innovation, the business has ownership of and full developed by a third party,
downside is that they are generally access to the code. the client may not own the
complex and costly to maintain. intellectual property of any
This model is best suited to retailers Cons specific functionality or changes
with deep capital resources and ■■ Upgrades can be costly: all delivered.
the e-commerce volume to support software, applications and ■■ Delayed time to market:
ongoing investment. Examples of upgrades must be built from turnaround times for new software
retailers that have found success on scratch, which can be expensive developments are generally slow,
customised proprietary platforms and time-consuming. This can lead which may result in outdated
include Macy’s and Nordstrom, both to a higher than anticipated total technology that hinders client
of which have been able to draw cost of ownership. outcomes.
on extensive cash reserves to fund ■■ Integration issues: proprietary
investment into creating unique, platforms tend to have less Conclusion: Industry analysts
industry-leading digital experiences. flexibility in terms of integration such as Gartner strongly advise
While there is potential for with other systems. businesses to adopt a ‘buy’ rather than
competitive advantage with a ■■ Maintenance can be costly: tech a ‘build’ approach when looking for
custom-built solution, the popularity resources to support a proprietary an e-commerce solution. This option
of this model is in decline due to the platform can be costly and difficult may be viable if there is no existing
expense associated with upgrades to find or train, particularly where e-commerce platform that meets the
and general maintenance. This is the platform is based on bespoke requirements of your business, and
especially the case with those based code and/or built by a third party you have the resources to support it.
on bespoke coding. with no internal involvement.
■■ Scalability: this can be an issue as
the business grows (or downsizes).

BUYERS
GUIDE
The Solutions
Compared
THE FOLLOWING IS A BREAKDOWN

OF SOME OF THE KEY FEATURES AND
THE PROS AND CONS OF THE MORE
WELL-KNOWN E-COMMERCE PLATFORMS
AT BOTH THE ENTERPRISE AND
SME LEVEL.
MARKET OVERVIEW A STARTING POINT
The digital commerce platform market Distinguishing between platforms has
continues to grow steadily. Gartner become increasingly challenging in
forecasts annual growth of 15% from recent years, as the technology has
2015 through to 2020, with all regions matured. While there will never be a
expected to reach a double-digit ‘one-size-fits-all’ solution, this analysis
compounded annual growth rate for should at least provide a good starting
the next five years. “This annual point for evaluating the options and
growth includes revenue from SaaS, finding an e-commerce solution that
licenses and maintenance. Worldwide meets the particular requirements of
spending on digital commerce platform your business.
software is expected to reach $9.4
billion by 2020, in constant currency.
The on-premises deployment model
will account for 53% of software
revenue.”

ENTERPRISE LEVEL This analysis has been summarised
from The Forrester Wave: B2C
Suitable for: B2C companies
generating digital commerce GMV
Research from Forrester points out, Commerce Suites, Q1 2017 report, and revenue between $50 million and
there is very little in the way of Gartner’s 2017 Magic Quadrant for $100 million, although customer size
features to distinguish e-commerce Digital Commerce report. is gradually increasing. Salesforce is
platforms at the enterprise level. a best fit for retailers looking for a
Rather, the decision often comes down strong, highly scalable, cloud-based
to price, vision and alliances. Core commerce platform.
capabilities such as pricing, offers, site
search, promotion, carts and checkout ANALYSIS
are all well catered for by the market Gartner:
leaders. Gartner ranked Magento SALESFORCE COMMERCE CLOUD n Market and vertical presence:
Enterprise marginally behind the ‘big Delivery model: Cloud-based Strong reputation with B2C retailers
four’ – SAP Hybris, IBM, Oracle and Background: According to Gartner, and brands for its vertical market
Salesforce Commerce Cloud – due to Salesforce is a leader, based on its expertise, including supporting
slightly higher reliance on technology growing customer base of B2C retailers retail POS integration and AI
partnership to build out functionality. and brands, its ability to quickly functionality unique to Commerce
NetSuite’s SuiteCommerce has also deploy commerce sites and subsites, Cloud (Einstein) for email marketing
been included here but has been and its ease of use for internal users. and product recommendations.
pegged as more of a mid-market Salesforce acquired Demandware in Clients report quick and reliable
product by Forrester. 2016 and renamed it as Salesforce setup of multiple commerce sites
Commerce Cloud. and subsites, with relatively low
overhead for internal users.

n Ecosystem: Gartner believes the n Cost: Customers expressed concern n Oracle CX: Provides adjacent
Demandware acquisition was about the uncertainty surrounding functionality for marketing,
positive for both companies, giving Salesforce’s long-term plans for customer service, CPQ and sales
Salesforce a respected commerce Commerce Cloud, specifically that functionality. A majority of
platform and Demandware they were anxious about possible reference customers scored
additional market presence pricing model changes and shifting Oracle high to outstanding on its
and sales/support resources. product development priorities. customer experience capability.
Salesforce’s strong CRM market n Global and scalable: OC can
presence and adjacent CRM and support a global and scalable
platform technologies increase commerce environment, in complex
the appeal of Demandware for the B2C and B2B environments.
current user base. Oracle’s global presence and
n Implementation: Appealing to partner ecosystem provide
B2C organizations with limited additional support resources for
ORACLE COMMERCE
technical resources, or that require large implementations. Oustanding
Delivery model: On-premise
the ability to deploy and enhance ability to scale and handle
Suitable for: Large global retailers
a commerce platform quickly. The complexity.
with digital commerce GMV revenue
majority of reference customers n Interoperability: CX products not
of more than $250 million, as well as
reported that the platform was completely interoperable, although
companies with lower levels of online
easy to implement. Oracle continues to make progress
revenue. Global enterprises benefit
n Cost: Companies evaluating it in this area with initiatives such as
from multi-language and multi-site
should model their projected Unified CX.
implementations. The platform is also
revenue and commerce-related n Commerce Cloud B2B
supported in seven major markets and
costs over three to five years and functionality: OCC has not
has the capacity to support B2C, B2B
compare those costs, as well as the caught up to OC’s more-complex
and B2B2C business models.
anticipated benefits of the SaaS/ B2B functionality, which can
Its two commerce products are Oracle
revenue share model, against other be required for selling to large
Commerce, a software solution that
license models available on the enterprises. Customers evaluating
Oracle can also host, and Oracle
market. OCC for B2B selling should
Commerce Cloud, a newer, hybrid SaaS
carefully match their B2B customer
solution based on Oracle Commerce.
Forrester: usability requirements against the
n Personalisation: Market-leading functionality offered.
ANALYSIS
personalisation and promotions
Gartner:
commerce capabilities. Salesforce Forrester:
n Product depth: Oracle Commerce
also shows compelling over-the- NB. Forrester has focused its
(OC) and Oracle Commerce
horizon potential in the realm evaluation on Oracle Commerce Cloud
Cloud (OCC) have different
of artificial intelligence (AI) and (OCC)
implementation requirements,
data-driven decision making with
functionality and pricing models.
its Salesforce Einstein capabilities. n Strengths: OCC has solid commerce
OCC has a quicker time to
n Integrations: Customers expressed capabilities, such as customer
market, while OC provides broader
a measure of optimism about the account management and digital
functionality.
potential of tight integrations of store, and has the vision to
Commerce Cloud with Salesforce’s seamlessly integrate OCC with
service and Marketing clouds. other Oracle Clouds.

n Differentiation: Oracle’s goal — n Machine-learning integration: n Pricing: IBM customers lament the
one that Forrester believes is ahead IBM has been ahead of other high price tag, though the vendor
of the market — is to offer its vendors in its focus on machine has attempted to bring the price
clients truly frictionless movement learning and AI, and is now down in the past year.
between the on-premises world incorporating these into its n Areas for Improvement: IBM’s
and the cloud. commerce portfolio by leveraging traditional feature bloat, lack
n Shortfalls: Oracle falls short on the efforts of other areas of of agility, and difficult product
fully delivering the reality of IBM, as exemplified by Watson user interface. Features in
feature equivalency between the Commerce Insights for predictive experience management areas need
on-premises solution and the merchandising and predictive improvement, particularly web
cloud. Customers report that OCC is search. Reference customers are CMs and the integration between
“impressively stable” and “easy to highly satisfied with its ability its proprietary commerce and
get up and running with,” but they to stay in tune with the market marketing tools. Cloud is another
also cite “functionality limitations” and bring new, relevant product gap.
and some feature deficiencies enhancements to market.
relative to the on-premises. n Ecosystem: IBM maintains an
extensive set of partners in the
digital commerce ecosystem, which
was highly thought of by its SAP HYBRIS COMMERCE
reference customers — all scored it Delivery model: On-premise (also
IBM WATSON COMMERCE “very high” or “outstanding.” available as hosted, and managed
Delivery model: On-premise or n Cost: in cases where IBM is service)
cloud-based evaluated, but not selected as Suitable for: Companies looking for
Suitable for: IBM is a good fit the commerce vendor of choice, an industrial-strength, reliable, and
for large enterprises looking for a price is the most frequently cited fully functional commerce platform
feature-rich commerce offering as reason. However, IBM does provide that is in wide use across several
well as for companies that have licensing options, including industry verticals, that caters to a
a strong internal support team to perpetual, annual or monthly term global presence, as well as having
develop and maintain the solution. options, and usage or revenue the ability to support B2B and B2C
share. business models.
n Elasticity of cloud solutions:
ANALYSIS
IBM’s cloud-based solution does ANALYSIS
Gartner:
not automatically scale as traffic Gartner:
n Global support: IBM Watson
and orders increase — this is a n Platform functionality: SAP
Commerce supports complex, global
feature provided by multitenant Hybris Commerce has a rich set
and highly trafficked commerce
SaaS and some hosting and/or of core commerce functionality
sites, including some of the largest
managed service vendors. (digital and physical goods,
in the world. Reference customers
scored IBM highly in scale and subscription billing, services, and
Forrester: data-rich products/services).
complexity.
n Innovation: IBM is bolstered by
best-of-breed products in areas like
OMS and PIM with plans to embed
more data-driven decisioning and
AI into the platform.

n Integration: The platform n YaaS positioning: Gartner has n Pricing: High total cost of
integrates with other SAP expressed confusion about the ownership, especially for acquiring
applications such as SAP ERP, purpose, capabilities and use case development resources (some of
via the SAP Data Hub, and of YaaS, often mistaking it for which is due to limited supply
SAP continues to build out an alternative, multitenant SAP and some of which is due to high
functionality in CX, marketing, Hybris Commerce solution. demand).
WCM, merchandising and customer n CX, marketing and content
service. management: Based on their
n Ecosystem and vertical industry respective requirements, Gartner
support: SAP continues to invest clients are mixed as to whether
in increasing its ecosystem of these SAP Hybris solutions meet all
service providers and technology of their needs.
partners. MAGENTO ENTERPRISE
n Cloud confusion: SAP Hybris Forrester: Delivery model: Open source
Commerce can be implemented n Strengths: SAP Hybris continues Background: In 2015, Magento
on-premises or as a private cloud to be a favorite because of Enterprise V2 was released, on-
solution (single-tenant SaaS, not its stability, large global premises and in the cloud, to address
multitenant). Prospective clients implementation partner network, scalability issues with Magento V1
should be aware that Gartner and vertical industry solution and to compete more aggressively
believes that this hosting model focus. in both the enterprise B2B and B2C
can provide many, but not all, of n Upgrade process: Customers have space.
the benefits of a multitenant SaaS said the upgrade process was
solution. difficult and time-consuming, with
one customer referring to it as “a
constant upgrade process.”

Suitable for: Cost-conscious n Product transition: Client extensions, and Magento 2 needs
enterprises that are prepared to add transition from Enterprise V1 to further refinement in areas like
functionality through additional V2 was delayed due to the lack personalisation and site search
modules and extensions from of partner-sourced extensions capabilities.
Magento’s partner and developer and some solution integrators
network, or to build out some areas not being prepared for v.2.0.
of product functionality on their own. Improvements were made in 2016,
Typically used by organisations with but clients have still expressed
digital commerce digital sales GMV concern.
revenue of under $100 million. n Core B2B functionality: B2B
implementations of Magento have
ANALYSIS relied heavily on third-party
Gartner: extensions to power certain NETSUITE
n Flexibility: Can be heavily functionality (e.g., buying Delivery model: Cloud-based
customised and appropriate for a workflows, contract pricing, Background: In 2016 Oracle acquired
wide range of transaction types custom price lists). Netsuite and its e-commerce solution,
outside traditional retail or digital n Global Support: The majority of SuiteCommerce.
sales of physical products. Magento’s offices are in North Suitable for: Retailers with revenues
n Cost: Offers a flexible pricing America, with a few in Europe, ranging between $10 million and $50
model based on tiers of digital with a substantial and growing million. As Forrester notes, NetSuite
commerce GMV revenue generated customer base in Asia/Pacific. ‘fills a gap in the market’ between
through each customer B2C, B2B or SMB solutions like Bigcommerce and
B2B2C site(s). This model, coupled Forrester: Shopify and the larger enterprise
with license costs below those of n Product transition: Despite some vendors. In the last few years,
many competitors, makes Magento challenges with Magento 2’s code NetSuite has made a big push into
a cost-effective option. A majority base and launch, V1 users are the Australian market.
of its reference customers reported beginning to upgrade.
high satisfaction with the overall n Cost: V2 is a step forward in ANALYSIS
value proposition. performance capability and comes Gartner:
n Speed and architectural with a new fixed-fee pricing model. n Broad geographical coverage:
improvements: Since Enterprise n Differentiation: Offers a variety NetSuite’s global reach is a
V2 Magento has made performance of “extensions” to V2 via its differentiator. Its ERP platform
and architectural improvements Marketplace including hundreds of is deployed in over 160 countries
in subsequent versions, including commercial partner and Magento- and transacting in more than 200
separating databases for customer community-built integrations countries, with 190 currencies and
and product data, and check-out that extend Magento 2’s ability 19 admin UI languages supported.
improvements to allow for to provide functionality such as n ERP integration: SuiteCommerce
increasing transaction volumes. advanced shopping carts, content Advanced is integrated with
management tools, and Apple Pay NetSuite ERP, including the use
features. of a single product, order and
n Concerns: The magnitude of the customer data management file
upgrade process from V1 to V2. that supports both products, which
Magento 2 Marketplace still has eliminates integration challenges.
some gaps for popular Magento 1

n DOM: Released in 2016 as part n Vision: We expect that Oracle will n Technology and innovation:
of SuiteCommerce Advanced, focus Netsuite’s SuiteCommerce Strengths in the following: (1)
Advanced Order Management solution on midmarket customers, product innovation and ability to
provides DOM (Document Object and it will focus its commerce stay in tune with the market; (2)
Model) and multiwarehouse cousin, oracle Commerce Cloud, on ability to bring new and relevant
logistics management for enterprise customers. product enhancements to market;
fulfillment optimisation. NetSuite (3) ability to support a future
also has SuiteCommerce in-store platform based on APIs and web
to provide POS and clienteling services.
capabilities. n Pricing: sound value proposition
n Core and API tier release cycle: n Vertical and global presence: Has
The core application tier and API clients in a wide range of verticals.
is updated twice a year. This is Its core market segments include
a slow release rate compared to B2C retail and brands selling
those of competitors — especially direct to consumers, wholesale
those providing multitenant SaaS EPISERVER and distribution in both B2C and
platforms that lend themselves Delivery model: Cloud based or B2B business models, as well as
to regular updates or continuous on-premises B2B manufacturers. Approximately
delivery. Suitable for: midmarket retailers half of its customers are located in
n Core and API tier release cycle: with e-commerce revenue above $100 Europe, with 40% in North America
The core application tier and API million. May not be appropriate for and the remainder in Asia/Pacific.
is updated twice a year. This is companies that require high levels of n Ecosystem and partners:
a slow release rate compared to scalability, according to Gartner. Episerver’s partner ecosystem
those of competitors — especially list has about half the number of
those providing multitenant SaaS ANALYSIS partners when compared to those
platforms that lend themselves Gartner of the other included vendors.
to regular updates or continuous Pros:
delivery. n Integrated content and
commerce: Episerver Digital
Forrester: Experience Cloud provides SME LEVEL
n ERP Offering: Strong capabilities integrated WCM, commerce, In this analysis, the five main
in areas like order and inventory marketing and personalization e-commerce providers in the
management and customer account capabilities. It can leverage content Australian SME landscape have
management for commerce and marketing been grouped into fully-hosted
n Functionality Gaps: While Oracle functions and personalisation/ (BigCommerce, Shopify and Neto)
Netsuite’s commerce capabilities product recommendations as a core and self-hosted options (Magento
are powerful and flexible, some of its functionality. and WooCommerce). As there are
customers say they are “missing no reports compiled by independent
the bells and whistles” such as research firms at this level of the
market-leading personalization market, this analysis has been
tools, experience management, compiled with the assistance of
analytics features, and site search various industry experts and online
capabilities. reviews published within the last 12
months.

HOSTED PLATFORMS Cons: ANALYSIS
n Product functionality: Lacks Pros:
native functionality for companies n Usability: Very easy and intuitive
with more-complex digital to administer, even for novice
requirements, such as multistore e-commerce platform users.
support for centralized product n Pricing: Low entry-level pricing -
catalogue management and competitively priced, with multiple
BIGCOMMERCE merchandising scheduling flat-rate options.
Delivery model: Cloud-based n Pricing plan thresholds: With n Vision: Shopify is expanding its
Overview: There is not much to digital growth come additional offerings from its core commerce
separate BigCommerce and Shopify costs. BigCommerce has pricing platform to include payments, POS,
except that BigCommerce offers a bit plans tied to digital sales social commerce, shipping and
more functionality but with a slightly thresholds for its nonenterprise merchant financing, to address
higher learning curve. BigCommerce customers. These thresholds, based more needs of SMBs.
is probably more suited to retailers on digital commerce GMV revenue, n Templates: Good selection of
looking for a few more features occur at $50,000, $150,000 and $1 modern and professional-looking
out-of-the-box, who are prepared to million. Merchants must move to out-of-the-box templates.
pay a marginally higher price for the higher pricing plans as their GMV n Add-ons: Offers one of the biggest
entry-level package. exceeds these thresholds. app stores of all e-commerce
solutions.
ANALYSIS n Multi-lingual capability: Offers
Pros: multi-lingual capability on
n Ease of use: Easy-to-use, checkout page as an in-built
out-of-the-box functionality feature (but not elsewhere).
(e.g., one-page check-out, social
integrations, abandoned cart SHOPIFY
Cons:
recovery, ratings and reviews) and Delivery model: Cloud-based
n Advanced features: Shopify’s
advanced discount/promotional Overview: A good option for any
platform lacks the sophisticated
functionality, including support for SME retailer looking for a hassle-free
features required by many large
flash sales. entry into the e-commerce market, or
businesses. Features such as
n Multichannel retail functionality: more established retailer looking for a
DOM, support for complex and
Has native integrations for POS, platform that’s easy to implement and
digital products, multibrand
marketplaces and social networks. maintain without too much technical
and multisites, predictive and
n Costing: Competitively and expertise. Typically sells to retail
advanced analytics, logistics
transparently priced, with multiple clients with digital commerce GMV
and fulfillment, integration APIs,
flat-rate pricing options. Offers revenue of less than $50 million.
and customization are weak or
24/7 live support. nonexistent.
nG lobal selling: Although Shopify
has customers in over 175
countries, 82% of its customers
are in the US, UK, Canada and
Australia (as of December 2016).
Support for local languages,
currencies, search engines, social
media, payments and shipping
options is weak or nonexistent.

n Product roadmap: Shopify doesn’t n Support: While Neto have a free n Customisation: WooCommerce is
share its roadmap with customers support system for customers that open source, allowing for ease of
or Gartner. Large businesses provides answers with a quick customisation.
interested in the platform should turnaround, you will still need to n Capacity to extend features:
ask for a roadmap to ensure it commit to some self-learning. Features are easy to expand via
can meet their future business n Enterprise level features: plug-ins. Being based on WordPress,
requirements. Instrumental in allowing a business plug-ins are also not hard to find.
build towards scalability. One of n Ease of access to development
Neto’s aims is to increase sales community: There is no shortage
volumes while upscaling the of quality developers for the
business. platform if you decide to customise
anything.
NETO SELF-HOSTED PLATFORMS Cons:

Delivery model: Cloud-based n Relies on WordPress: Not
Suitable for: If you are serious about available for non-WordPress sites.
an e-commerce solution with room n Features: Limited functionality
to grow, or if you require advanced without additional plug-ins.
functionality (e.g. multiple couriers,
warehouses, integrations with eBay/ The best way to decide which platform
Facebook, etc), Neto is the way to go. is going to work for your business
is to actually put them to the test.
ANALYSIS WOOCOMMERCE Most e-commerce platforms offer free
n All in one: Neto is an Australian Delivery model: Open source trials, allowing you to try before you
retail and wholesale management Overview: WooCommerce is a free buy. Arm yourself with a checklist
platform that provides a complete plug-in that adds e-commerce of critical requirements and ‘nice to
solution for e-commerce, POS, functionality to WordPress sites. It haves’, and give each trialled platform
inventory and fulfilment. is a good option for tech-savvy an overall score based on how it
n Integration: Integrated back-end retailers looking to implement performed against your key criteria
technology enables consistent some customisation. Best suited to before making your decision.
customer experiences via multiple businesses with a reasonably small
channel be it in-store, online number of products.
or through a marketplace. Neto
has a vast range of the range ANALYSIS
of integrated add on options – Pros:
customers can build as they need. n Content and commerce
n Local solution: Created by Integration: being built on
Australians, Neto’s target market WordPress, WooCommerce offers
is Australian SME’s. They have tight integration and one back-end
developed a solution specifically to manage both web content and
for this market. e-commerce requirements.

BUYERS
GUIDE
Creating a Seamless
Omnichannel
Experience Using
New Technology
Available
WORDS: REBECCA JOURDAN, HEAD OF E-COMMERCE AT R.M. WILLIAMS
SASHA MURRIE, INTERNATIONAL ONLINE SALES MANAGER AT RODD & GUNN
JUSTINE THOMAS, ONLINE MANAGER, SPORTSCRAFT AT APG & CO
LISA POWELL, HEAD OF RETAIL PRACTICE AT AMBLIQUE
THERE HAS BEEN A SHIFT TO PROVIDING

TECHNOLOGY DRIVEN EXPERIENCES THAT
TIE TOGETHER DIGITAL AND PHYSICAL
CHANNELS TO OFFER A SEAMLESS,
FRICTIONLESS CUSTOMER JOURNEY.
DISCOVER WHAT OMNICHANNEL MEANS
TO SOME SUCCESSFUL RETAILERS AND
WHAT THEY ARE DOING TO ACHIEVE A
SEAMLESS OMNICHANNEL EXPERIENCE FOR
THEIR CUSTOMERS.

O
mnichannel supporting
technology has a come a long
way in the past few years.
True omnichannel execution
is now more and more in the hands of
operational staff and success lies in
the business’ ability to truly focus on
its customers; in particular how they
tie product, customer service, logistics
and digital together for a single
unified experience for customers across
the entire lifecycle of their interaction.
It has become increasingly important
for brands to differentiate themselves
through the best of breed experiences
that flow across all channels. There
has recently been a shift to providing
technology driven experiences that tie
together digital and physical channels
to offer a seamless, frictionless
customer journey.
This omnichannel consistency, or
one retail view, is a focus of many of
Amblique’s clients. We spoke to some
of them, asking what omnichannel R.M.WILLIAMS
means to their business and what they “We all have different ideas of In fact, our Bespoke offering has
are doing to try to achieve a seamless what innovation means, and for been so successful that we are
omnichannel experience for their R.M.Williams, it has truly been already in the process of rolling
customers. about the creation of a service out phase two of this project. The
that will create value for both our new offering will provide customers
R.M.WILLIAMS customer and its business. with the ability to build other
The past 80 years have seen much R.M. Williams Bespoke was custom products such as belts
change for the iconic R.M. Williams designed to replace an in-store and bags. Customers will be able
brand, including embracing digital; custom ordering system that to create their own personalised
to support customers, stream offline was manual and cumbersome, boot and belt combinations. We
process and bring the brand to relying on paper forms and fax are also testing a monogramming
admirers around the world. Today we machines. This application not only service for our handcrafted leather
are faced with opportunities which streamlined and improved our in- goods. Technology is enabling us to
force us to not just remain relevant, store processes, but also enabled offer iconic R.M. Williams products
but to seek out new ways to compete customers anywhere in the world to to a wider range of customers
on a global stage. design and order their own bespoke in a streamlined, modern and
creations from the comfort of their personalised way.”
own home.
Rebecca Jourdan, Head of
E-commerce at R.M. Williams

RODD & GUNN
“Since launching our digital The online experience shapes the The end goal of our efforts is
operations in 2007, our goal at Rodd offline business and vice versa, so we to provide the customer with an
& Gunn has been to provide our are refining our customer offerings, unrivalled experience that will keep
customers with the most outstanding with best of breed technology at its them returning time after time, not
products and service available base, to create a more streamlined just for the product, but for the
wherever, whenever and however they and user friendly experience, no service and memories that come
choose to shop with us. matter what channel our customers with that purchase. Our mantra
In the modern retail landscape, choose when engaging with us. In is to provide a rich and seamless
omnichannel optimisation has line with this, we have implemented experience; whether it be relaxing
been at the forefront of our overall personalisation allowing customers by the fire at The Lodge Bar in
business direction and strategically to put their own stamp on their Queenstown, being styled in our
aligned with our global expansion favourite signature polos. ‘Things Just Brooklyn Lodge or personalising a
plans. From an e-commerce Got Personal’, was launched in June signature polo online.”
perspective, it was necessary to 2017 and offers our customers the
implement a single, global platform chance to design, preview and order Sasha Murrie, International Online
to offer us one customer view; professional monograming on our Sales Manager
allowing us to tailor and personalise iconic polos.
the Rodd & Gunn online experience. In a more experiential move, we
As a lifestyle brand, this was have also opened a landmark bar,
imperative to ensure unimpeded called The Lodge Bar in Queenstown,
growth well into the future and also New Zealand, tucked away on the
provide localised marketing and shores of Lake Wakatipu. The menu
curated content quickly and easily. designed by Michelin starred chef
Matt Lambert and Cameron Douglas,
New Zealand’s only Master Sommelier
allows you to eat, drink and shop
in one location, producing a “halo
effect” for Rodd & Gunn by elevating
the brand experience and taking the
shopping experience to a new level.

APG&CO RODD & GUNN
“While Sportscraft has always had Since identifying that our The Rodd & Gunn heritage dates
a strong physical store presence, customers generally shop across back to 1946, when the brand’s first
we recognised very early on, the both online and in-store, click-and- trademark logo, the English Pointer,
customer support and growth collect has allowed us to capitalise was used on a boutique line of New
potential that a seamless digital on this behaviour, enabling our Zealand made shirts. In its current
experience offered both the brand customers to decide how and when form, the brand was established in
and our customers. they would like to receive their 1987 when the first standalone store
As our customers switch from order. Our omnichannel, loyalty opened in Auckland’s Queen Street.
one channel to another and adopt programme rewards members with
new ways of shopping, we have VIP pricing on login, seasonal APG&CO
endeavoured to do the same. After discounts and other exclusive Sportscraft is an Australian heritage
launching our initial website in in-store and online benefits. brand with a rich 103 year history.
2009 we re-platformed in 2012 Additionally, our newly enhanced The brand’s continued growth and
to a cloud based technology customer portal displays a full cross- success can be attributed to its focus
that would allow the business to channel purchase history, online and dedication to delivering on the
focus on innovation and agility. wishlist and customer care history. needs of its large community of
This strategic move enabled us Our customer feedback initiatives loyal customers, paired with its agile
to focus on creating a superior also work across, and influence attitude towards retail and technology.
online offering by utilising the direction of, our omnichannel Utilising best of breed technology,
streamlined integrations and operations. Sportscraft welcomes harnessing innovation and using
develop a responsive experience and encourages feedback from analytics and benchmarking to drive
across multiple devices, enabling customers at all points of the growth and optimisation are just part
us to connect seamlessly with our customer journey; through post- of offering a standout omnichannel
customers, cross-channel. purchase surveys, on-site feedback, experience and maintaining a
With shared inventory, our product reviews and anecdotally competitive edge. Amblique is
through our customer care team fortunate to work with clients, who
online customers have quick and
and store staff. These customer like us, have the customer at the core
easy access to our entire range
insights feed into our development of their strategies, initiatives and
of stock no matter where it is
strategies, helping us to prioritise improvements. Listening to customers,
physically located and best of
and understand where we can
breed integrations allow automatic, store staff and customer service teams
improve our customer experience.
multichannel shipments where not only helps businesses to improve
We use on site A/B testing and
multiple dispatches occur between but also to prioritise effort and spend
live focus groups to ensure our
our warehouse and physical stores. ensuring that what is delivered not
initiatives are user friendly, and
This real-time integration also that we have done our best by only meets, but exceeds customer
allows us to list our products on our customers. Guessing what our expectations. As our clients have
marketplaces such as The Iconic customers want is unnecessary when reminded us, omnichannel can only
and eBay, or anywhere else our they are forthcoming with their work with business wide involvement
customers choose to shop. opinions, well informed, insightfully and investment, with a singular focus
engaged and have an open channel on getting it right for the customer.
of communication with us.
Justine Thomas, Online Manager -

Sportscraft

BUYERS
GUIDE
A Smarter Way:
Using Technology
to Compete With
Big Retailers
[And Stay Relevant]
A
WORDS: RYAN MURTAGH – CEO OF NETO s Amazon marches forth into
Australia, using economies of
THE BIG PLAYERS HAVE A scale to offer lower prices to
consumers, many small and
SIGNIFICANT ADVANTAGE WHEN IT medium retail operators are worried
COMES TO SUPPLIER NEGOTIATIONS, about being priced out of the market.
But a recent survey of online shoppers
BUT TECHNOLOGY IS HELPING SMALL by Neto and Telstra showed that price
AND MEDIUM ONLINE RETAILERS TAKE isn’t shoppers number-one concern:
82% said they’re buying online for
THE LEAD WHERE IT MATTERS MOST: ease and convenience, compared to a
CUSTOMER EXPERIENCE AND BACK- much lower 46% who were influenced
OFFICE EFFICIENCY. by price factors such as sales and
promotions.

“Utilising new
technologies in
retail, namely a
reliable retail
management
system, can
help streamline
numerous
functions in your
retail business.”
This means that instead of competing However, the potential benefits But it’s equally important to keep
directly on price, smaller retailers have of such an approach can only be enough inventory to meet fluctuating
an opportunity to compete by offering realised if the channels are integrated;customer demand, because it’s too
a superior customer experience, by I’m talking about an omnichannel easy for online shoppers to simply
leveraging modern technology and strategy. This gives customers a buy elsewhere if you don’t have what
software platforms that optimise consistent experience with a single they need ready to go. And, 75% of
business operations. In doing so, small view of all products offered, whether surveyed shoppers consider the ability
and medium retailers can deliver what they’re visiting an online store or to check stock across all locations and
customers truly want at a price point buying on eBay. Technology enables channels as a superior service.
that’s competitive while maintaining retailers to deliver this customer There are many inventory
a sustainable profit margin. Utilising experience without significant manual management platforms available for
new technologies in retail, namely a intervention by listing products on purchase that help small and medium
reliable retail management system, can marketplaces and social media using retailers understand their stock
help streamline numerous functions the descriptions and images from their movement trends and act quickly to
in your retail business. Think efficient retail management platform. replenish or clear stock as required. And
inventory management, fulfilment when inventory management is built
options, optimised back-office EFFICIENT INVENTORY into your e-commerce (or point-of-sale)
operations, and more, all which will MANAGEMENT platform, it ensures both customers
help your business fight smarter, not Keeping the right amount of inventory and staff always see a real-time view of
harder, against the competition. on hand is one of the most effective stock availability, so retailers can deliver
ways for small retailers to boost on customer expectations.
OMNICHANNEL SALES STRATEGY both profit margins and customer
Small and medium retailers who only satisfaction. It’s an ongoing challenge: FLEXIBLE PAYMENT
sell through their own online stores are large supplier orders may qualify for Shopping cart abandonment remains
missing out on connecting with at least bulk discounts, but the savings may a key concern for online retailers, and
46% of active online shoppers—the ones be eaten away by costs associated with offering a variety of simple checkout
who buy exclusively in online market- holding stock, such as warehouse or options is one of the best ways to
places, such as eBay, or on social media. retail leases, insurance, and write-offs. encourage shoppers to complete the
With a further one in three customers transaction. The majority of e-commerce
saying they intend to switch to Amazon platforms today offer a variety of pre-
when it launches, a significant portion built integrations to payment gateways
of the market will only be accessible to and third-party payment processors,
retailers with a strategy that spans all giving customers more ways to pay.
available channels.

Several platforms also now offer SCALABILITY Time spent on these activities is a
integrated “buy now, pay later” Small and medium retailers are necessary investment in the business,
services, such as ZipPay and Afterpay. well-equipped to take advantage but it’s not directly generating
These third-party finance providers of new opportunities in the retail any revenue. So automating or
let customers pay for their orders space, provided they’ve chosen streamlining such tasks through
over a period of time while enjoying an appropriate retail management dedicated software integrations can
their purchases straight away, and platform. New product lines can be effectively reduce overheads and
ensure that retailers see the funds added simply, and a built-in customer improve profits for the same sales
immediately. review functionality encourages figures. And with more free time,
shoppers to do some of the work for staff can focus on delivering a great
FULFILMENT OPTIONS the retailer while improving trust and customer experience.
Retailers can choose to fulfil orders credibility.
from a warehouse or store with But opportunities aren’t restricted FIGHT SMARTER, NOT HARDER
delivery through integrated freight to cyberspace, and some modern retail There’s no need to go head-to-head
partners, third-party logistics management platforms offer point- in a price war with the biggest
providers, or even drop-shipping of-sale solutions that enable retailers online retailers. By using technology
partners, to optimise their fulfilment to open a pop-up shop during their to efficiently manage inventory,
strategy. Technology available today peak season or promotional period, optimise back-office operations,
also gives customers a choice in how offering a simple way to reach more provide flexible payment and
they receive their orders. By using customers. fulfilment options, and connect with
a retail management platform, your customers across all channels, small
customers have options like paying OPTIMISED BACK-OFFICE and medium retail operators can
online, then click-and-collect from OPERATIONS deliver the ease and convenience
a physical shopfront or warehouse, For small and medium retailers, that customers are looking for while
or select from a variety of delivery selling more stock at a higher price minimising operating costs for higher
options with clear shipping charges. will boost profits, but so will reducing profits.
With transactional emails to keep operating costs. Modern technology
your customers informed every step can also take the hard work out
of the way from order confirmation of many supporting functions
through to delivery, they won’t be in operating a small or medium
left wondering what’s happening with retail business, such as end-of-
their orders. financial-year stocktakes, daily bank
reconciliations, customer relationship
management, and digital marketing.

ALL-IN-ONE
ECOMMERCE,
POINT OF SALE,
& INVENTORY
NETO IS THE COMPLETE
DIGITAL COMMERCE
PLATFORM
“As soon as we moved to Neto, our

average cart increases by 10% and our
site conversion rate increased significantly.
I never thought Neto would have given
me the flexibility that it has.”
- KELLY JAMIESON
SELL EVERYWHERE, MANAGE EVERYTHING.

1300 730 300 | www.neto.com.au
BUYERS
GUIDE
Technologies in
Customer Service
Engagement
WORDS: MATT CERCHE, SALES & MARKETING MANAGER AT POWERFRONT
THE ADVANCEMENT IN CUSTOMER ENGAGEMENT

TECHNOLOGIES HAVE MADE PROVIDING A UNIFIED
OMNICHANNEL CUSTOMER SERVICE EXPERIENCE
AN AFFORDABLE REALITY AND SMART RETAILERS,
LIKE OFFICEWORKS, ARE EXPLOITING THE RISE
OF WEB CHAT AND SOCIAL CHANNELS TO INCREASE
PRODUCTIVITY AND REDUCE CUSTOMER SERVICE COSTS.
It’s no secret that the face of The proliferation of these channels
customer service has changed - it’s represents an opportunity for
no longer a 1800 number and a retailers to decrease customer service
non-personalised email address. Web costs, while also increasing customer
chat, Facebook, Twitter, SMS and a satisfaction.
number of other digital platforms are Advanced cloud based engagement
now the choice of many consumers platforms enable customer service
when dealing with brands they agents to handle multiple engagements
choose to do business with. The in multiple channels simultaneously,
reasons are many and varied, and which when compared to traditional
have been well publicised. But to channels, significantly increases their
summarise, smartphones have made it productivity, while also reducing
faster and easier for customers to use response and resolution time for the
these channels. Customers today are customer.
impatient and they don’t want to wait
6 days for an email response, or over
10 minutes waiting to speak to a voice
operator.

For example, an agent can chat to an CASE STUDY: OFFICEWORKS So, based on this, one of the
online visitor via web chat and while IMPLEMENTS WEB CHAT ONLINE key pieces of work that took place
they are waiting for the customer’s before we launched web chat was
response, they respond to an email WHAT WAS THE KEY DRIVER FOR an assessment of how our customers
enquiry and a Facebook message in OFFICEWORKS IMPLEMENTING A contacted us online. Essentially, our
quick succession, all through the same WEB CHAT SOLUTION? Officeworks’ Customer Experience Team
platform. ■■ Web chat was identified as a tool redesigned the ‘Contact Us’ page of our
Further to this, with the that could help Officeworks achieve website, where the contact information
introduction of AI and chatbots, a broader goal of improving our is not immediately displayed and
responses to customer questions online experience. A better web visitors were required to scroll through
and requests can be automatically experience can result in higher content that addresses common queries
suggested, meaning the agent only levels of self-service, which reduces before being provided with the option
needs to approve the content of the the number of customer contacts to engage a team member. If a visitor is
message, rather than create it. Early required and ultimately delivers a unable to find the answer themselves,
indications would suggest that AI cost saving for the business. they are then presented with contact
assisted agents are four times more ■■ We also wanted to leverage the prov- options - with the most prominent one
productive than unsupported agents. en capability of web chat to deliver being web chat. Typically, around 45%
The problem with increasing the more productive interactions with to 55% of online visitors chose to chat
number of contact channels through our customers and provide immedi- with us instead of calling or emailing,
multiple platforms is the risk of ate resolutions to queries while they depending on the enquiry type
channel failure (multiple customer are online, which results in improved
contacts about the same issue). customer satisfaction levels. DEFINING OFFICEWORKS’ WEB
Similarly, they can increase the CHAT STRATEGY - PROACTIVE ONLY,
number of unnecessary engagements, WHAT WAS INVOLVED IN PERSONALISATION IS IMPORTANT
which burdens under resourced THE IMPLEMENTATION OF You won’t see a webchat tab floating
customer service teams. around the Officeworks website. Our
OFFICEWORKS’ WEB CHAT
Advanced customer engagement strategy is purely proactive. This
SOLUTION?
solutions negate these risks by
■■ Technically, implementing web chat means that we actually reach out
managing all the communication to customers on our website when
was very easy. We selected a cloud
channels, and therefore all of web chat,
based platform that simply required they illicit behaviour that indicates
which proactively targets customers
a javascript tag on each page of the they might need some help. This
based on predictive analytics. ensures we prioritise customers who
website, and the vendor managed
Recently, Officeworks deployed a need assistance, and not encourage
the rest of the setup.
customer engagement solution which interactions with customers who don’t.
aimed to increase team member Our chat platform enables us to
REVIEWING THE ONLINE
productivity and enhance the customer target visitors based on their browsing
CUSTOMER EXPERIENCE
service level it provided to its online behaviour and interaction data, and
The first step was to define the
consumers. Adrian Newport, Business automatically reaches out with a
overarching strategy, which of course
Support Operations Manager at system generated message. Together
was to increase productivity of the
Officeworks, talked to us about how with the expertise and experience
call centre by making it easier for
Officeworks implemented the solution, of our Customer Service Team and
customers to self-serve and find the
the results they achieved, and he shared Customer Experience Team, we defined
information they need online.
some insights for retailers who are the rules and triggers we would use to
considering web chat for their business. target visitors based on their needs.

OFFICEWORKS KEY
INSIGHTS FROM
IMPLEMENTING WEB
CHAT
■■ Reactive web chat can increase
the number of customer
interactions the Customer
Service Centre needs to deal
with. Therefore, the platform
needs to have targeted
proactive chat capability. It’s
also important to understand
customer’s website behaviour
to offer chat at appropriate
For example, if a visitor navigates Our vendor managed the training of
points in their journey. In
to the ‘Contact Us’ page of the website, all team members, including system
our case specifically, only
they’ll be asked to select a topic. If training as well as web chat etiquette.
targeting customers that were
they select “delivery”, for example, Our team members now are able
going to initiate a contact.
they will be presented with a number to rotate in and out of the various
■■ Having a platform that
of FAQs that may enable them to channels we service including voice,
leverages customer data to
self-serve. If they scroll down to social media, emails and web chat.
help team members service
the bottom of the FAQs and haven’t
the customer faster is crucial,
for example enabling the team
clicked on a topic, we offer them a WHAT WERE THE RESULTS?
proactive chat. The animation of the ■■ The key benefit for Officeworks
member to see the tracking ID
chat pane appearing on the screen is that web chat helps us divert
of an order as the customer
is designed to draw the attention of customer interactions away from
enters it into the website. This
the viewer, encouraging them to chat voice and email, into lower cost
means our team can bring up
rather than send an email or call. self-serve or web chat channels. As
the order and delivery details
with one click, without having each of our web chat team members
To align with our broader strategy engage up to five customers
to ask the customer for details
of personalisation, we customise the simultaneously - web chat has
they have already entered into
automatic message we send to each resulted in huge productivity
the website.
visitor based on what they are trying improvements across the business.
■■ Having a local hands-on
to achieve. If they are logged in, we’ll ■■ By having web chat, we encourage our
vendor is helpful - they
have information of who they are and customers to remain in their preferred
provided Officeworks with
can tailor the message even further. channel when shopping with us. We
reporting and analysis while
For example, if a logged in customer can service them while they are shop-
continuously helping us to
needs help with a print enquiry, they ping online, just like we would in our
refine and improve our chat
would see the following message in retail stores. Our customers appreciate
strategy. They also helped us
the chat pane: this and we can see that in the posi-
to integrate with our other
“Hi Matt, welcome to Officeworks. tive feedback from them.
systems including our CRM and
How can I help you with your print ■■ Based on the success of web chat on
business intelligence tools.
and copy enquiry today?” the Officeworks website, the IT Store
■■ It’s important not to
preference productivity over Support team now delivers support
■■ The response rate on a proactive to 165 stores Australia wide via
customer satisfaction. The
message like this is around 55%, web chat. Store team members can
temptation is to increase the
meaning 55% of visitors choose to chat via their handheld devices and
number of concurrent chats
chat. intranet, enabling the store support
per team member while still
meeting their response and team to leverage the same productiv-
handling time KPI’s. However, WAS RESOURCING WEB CHAT A ity improvements as the Customer
it’s important to monitor the CHALLENGE FOR OFFICEWORKS? Service Centre. Web Chat has allowed
post chat survey responses to Our strategy involved upskilling Officeworks store team members to
ensure consistently high levels existing team members to be able remain focussed on serving custom-
of customer satisfaction. to service web chat. We redeployed ers, as they can drop in and out of
voice team members into the web chat chats, which has removed the need
channel. for them to be tied to the phone for
the duration of the interaction.

Creating Smart Conversations
C la s s We b C hat
Best in er
INSIDE vs Oth
48 % 40 %
300
% 78 %
Chat Sales
Increase in Ag
Productivity
ent
Decrease in Conversion
ponse
Proactive Res Chat Length
Rate Increase
vendor
outcome w ith incumbent
parison of trial
Based on com
powerfront.com [email protected] 1300 795 520

BUYERS
GUIDE
Blended Retail
and the Value
for Customer
Connections
WORDS: LEE HARDHAM, CEO AND FOUNDER OF BRAUZ
HUMANISING THE RETAIL EXPERIENCE,

W
ith today’s convoluted world
of gadgets and technology, it’s
IRONICALLY THROUGH THE ADOPTION important to remember that
OF TECHNOLOGY IN-STORE, DELIVERS consumers still seek a human
element in their everyday lives, that
AN EXPERIENCE TO CUSTOMERS is, a desire to feel connected, and
THEY’LL BE HARD PRESSED TO this most definitely applies to the
retail world. If Amazon’s acquisition
FIND ONLINE. IT’S IMPERATIVE of Whole Foods Market, and David
FOR AUSTRALIAN RETAILERS TO Jones’ $100 million investment into
gourmet food experiences are anything
UNDERSTAND THE IMPORTANCE OF A to go by, physical retail is not dead. In
SEAMLESS OMNICHANNEL EXPERIENCE, my opinion, our retail future doesn’t
lie solely in brick-and-mortar or just
ONE THAT MARRIES THE PERKS online; it’s a blend of the physical,
OF ONLINE WITH THE PERSONAL digital, and even virtual, where
retailers have the chance to create
CONNECTIONS OF IN-STORE. personalised experiences between
customers and the brands they love.

“As we move
deeper into the
omnichannel
world, the retail
sector cannot
stand alone on
either physical
Humanising the retail experience, When a shopper’s experience with a or digital.”
ironically through the adoption retailer is personalised, brand loyalty
of technology in-store, delivers an is improved because shoppers feel that
experience to customers they’ll be the retailer understands their needs.
hard pressed to find online. It’s A study by Accenture found that 73
imperative for Australian retailers percent of consumers prefer to do
to understand the importance of a business with brands that use personal
seamless omnichannel experience, one information to make their shopping
that marries the perks of online with experiences more relevant.
the personal connections of in-store. Using these technologies to drive
This expands a brand’s reach and foot traffic in brick-and-mortar stores
increases customer loyalty, which in and create this blended environment,
turn increases conversion rates and which has numerous advantages
leave a positive and lasting impression
ultimately boosts the bottom line. for retailers. Some of these benefits
on customers in order to create brand
include greater visibility of potential
loyalty when competing with the likes
A BLENDED RETAIL EXPERIENCE customers who walk through the
of online giants like Amazon or ASOS.
A new report from SapientRazorfish door (i.e. how many shoppers enter
No longer bound by the four walls of
and Salesforce found that although 60 the store, how long it takes them to a retail store, shopping behaviours are
percent of shoppers start their hunt for buy, and how much money they’re heavily defined by brand loyalty. Brand
products online, 58 percent still prefer spending), increased conversion rates loyalty and its resultant benefits for
the in-store experience, demonstrating (because of the more personalised and retailers, such as repeat purchases and
that the future of retail is a truly targeted content sent to shoppers),
word-of-mouth advertising, is what
‘blended’ one. and decreased customer frustration
will give brick-and-mortar stores a
“Phygital Retail” is the future of from disparate experiences across
competitive edge.
retail; it’s a blend of the physical different touchpoints during their
The next evolution of brand
store, digital assets as well as virtual. journey.
loyalty that should be top of mind
All of which creates convenience In a truly blended marketplace,
for retailers is brand connectivity.
and a seamless shopping experience, customers will be able to walk into any
Brand connectivity is about creating
with the shopper front of mind. By store around the world and retailers
lasting emotional connections with
leveraging consumer-centric technology will know them by name, know their customers across all touch points, that
to personalise a shopper’s experience, exact size and style, know the perfect
draws them into your brand story and
blended experience stores will enhance gift for an upcoming birthday or even culture. Brand connectivity is the
brick-and-mortar retail for customers. the right outfit for a future event,
most powerful and valuable aspect of
In-store experiences must be thanks to data gathered through
customer loyalty, because it is based
highly targeted and personalised for digital channels.
on emotional factors, which is widely
customers. Utilising data gathered known as a powerful purchasing
from analytics and algorithms to THE IMPORTANCE OF BRAND motivator. A study by Motista found
predict products of interest, using CONNECTIVITY FOR CUSTOMERS that 46 percent of “emotionally
Bluetooth connected devices in-store Competition for retail dominance is connected” shoppers indicated they
to send relevant push notifications, or increasingly challenging in the age of always shop a particular retailer first
experimenting with VR to browse a e-commerce. With consumers having compared to 13 percent of “satisfied”
store are just some of the many ways greater access to international retailers shoppers.
retailers can utilise digital and virtual and more products now than ever
technologies in order to enhance and before, local retailers should aim to
personalise the shopping experience
for each individual customer.

To achieve brand connections,
brick-and-mortars need to embrace
the unique physical experience that
stores can offer their customers,
whilst enhancing these with the
latest innovative technology to
expand the shopper’s experiences
across every brand touchpoint. This
will help retailers create a truly
blended retail experience that
increases brand connectivity and
therefore encourages loyalty.
TECHNOLOGY TO ENHANCE, Another core technology is mobile. novel experience that is unique to
NOT ERADICATE With mobile now intrinsic to the each store. Shoppers seek a variety
With the rise of online retail, there’s modern retail experience; it is a of experiences during their retail
a myth that technology will make shopper’s constant companion. With journey, and the vast majority use a
physical retail stores redundant, 59 percent of global shoppers using combination of digital and physical
when in fact it should be doing the their mobile phone in-store on a touchpoints to complete their
complete opposite. The power of regular basis, retailers should consider purchase. So why not offer them a
retail technology rests with its ability mobile a core part of their brand new way to interact with your brand?
to facilitate and enhance the brand experience. Bluetooth connected With no special headset required,
connections that shoppers want from devices in-store, like beacons, just a Google Cardboard, VR gives
the brands and retailers they love. further personalise the experiences customers an easy new way to browse
Data is one area that retailers of shoppers by reaching them with your store by opening up another
must further exploit; it’s important the right messages at the right time, avenue for them to experience your
for retailers to use the wealth of triggered when customers pass the brand.
data provided by technologies to store and a mobile connection is Retail technology should always
unearth consumer insights, and turn established. This is a great way of be implemented with the shoppers’
them into opportunities. Predictive ensuring that only the most targeted experience at the core, in order
algorithms can be used to help and directly relevant information and to ensure channels are effectively
products find customers before they content is delivered to the customer working together to contribute to the
even start to look. Using data to go at a time that’s appropriate for them. blend of physical, digital, and virtual
one step further from meeting a need Directing marketing and sales efforts experiences sought by the customer.
to anticipating it, feeds a consumer’s to a specific time and location can The future of Australian retail relies
personal connection to a brand and improve customer loyalty by only on establishing strong customer
greatly improves their experiences targeting relevant shoppers who are connections with brands they love. As
with it. This type of personalisation interested in receiving the content we move deeper into the omnichannel
can drive a revenue increase between and therefore improving positive world, the retail sector cannot stand
7 and 10 percent, according to sentiment and connections towards alone on either physical or digital.
SapientRazorfish and Salesforce, the brand. Today’s consumers crave personalised
highlighting the positive impact The next evolution of mobile experiences in a blended retail
targeted messages and content can is virtual reality (VR). Thanks to marketplace, and retailers need to
have for retailers. mainstream adoption of VR, retailers ensure they deliver this by investing
of any size can experiment with in technologies that will give them a
this technology to give customers a competitive advantage.

Take your store
to the cutting edge
$49/month for stores
Brands join free*
* Conditions apply see business.brauz.com for details
business.brauz.com
BUYERS
GUIDE
New-Fashioned
Service
WORDS: JAMES JOHNSON - REGIONAL DIRECTOR CUSTOMER SUCCESS & RETAIL PRACTICE AT SALESFORCE COMMERCE CLOUD
REFINING AND IMPROVING CUSTOMER SERVICE MAKES

YOUR CUSTOMER HAPPY AND IS GOOD FOR BUSINESS.
LEVERAGING A CUSTOMER SUCCESS PLATFORM MAKES
IT POSSIBLE TO BOOST CUSTOMER LOYALTY,
DELIVER BETTER SERVICE AND ENABLE CONSUMERS
TO SELF-SERVICE PURCHASING REQUESTS.
G
ood, old-fashioned service. Today, in the era of e-commerce,
The phrase won’t go away, your market has broken the bounds of
although in most other time and space – your customers may
respects the world is very be anywhere, and they’re ready to buy
keen to leave the past behind and at all hours (as long as it’s now). There
move on to new and improved. are many, many more of them – but
In the old days (or so I hear), the million-dollar question is: What
shopkeepers knew their customers. does each one of them actually want?
They knew their lives, their families, Getting this right has always been
and what they already had. They had the key to retail success, and as
a handle on what their customers the market becomes more and more
needed next. But their customer base sophisticated, customer expectations
was fixed and limited. are also growing. Trying to anticipate
their needs and wants in an
increasingly consumer-centric world
can be time-consuming, expensive,
stressful and bewildering – but it is
essential.

A customer success platform covering HOW IT WORKS
marketing automation, e-commerce A truly intelligent customer success
and service support in providing a platform has the data smarts and ana- “A truly
core foundation in engaging with
customers – and technology provides
lytical power to create a personalised and intelligent
unique experience for every customer. It
the unique experience based on the automatically collects every clue yielded customer success
ever-changing consumer behaviour.
You can have good, old-fashioned,
by a customer’s browsing behaviour, to platform has
build a picture of their purchase history
real-time customer insight for every and product interests. It’s then that the the data smarts
one of your vast and growing customer
base. You can reach a mass market,
magic happens, and the system uses and analytical
this data to create an instantaneously
with personal service. unique shopping experience for each power to create a
customer on your site. It’s true one-to- personalised and
one personalisation, on a mass scale.
Just like old-fashioned service in change unique experience
rooms, with staff making product sugges- for every
tions to shoppers, it is now possible to
let technology offer online shoppers customer.”
new-fashioned service, with personalised
recommendations that enhance their
shopping service experience.

With the right technology, it’s also CRAWL, WALK, RUN SORT THE SEARCH
simple, efficient, and highly cost- Today, your customers expect to Intelligent platforms can also use
effective. Data-driven personalisation see personalised recommendations their knowledge of the customer to
doesn’t need any specialised expertise and messaging. With an intelligent predictively sort search results. By
or external consultants, and it customer success platform, the tracking customer behaviour, the
generates greater returns over time. recommendations your site presents products each customer is most likely
Everyone involved in your brand to your customers are effectively to buy will appear at the top of the
is genuinely connected to your self-generated – they’re driven by search results. This simple capacity
customers on a single intelligent real knowledge of the customer (just greatly improves the customer
platform. like in the good old days). It’s best experience and increases conversion.
Plus, the more data it collects, the to introduce intelligent product To make searches even more effective:
smarter your platform becomes with recommendations incrementally. ■■ Get strategic with the location of
increasingly accurate insights and Start with one product type, test the the search bar. Place it somewhere
more compelling personalisation. results as well as the usability, then customers will see at first glance.
Because intelligent platforms add products based on your learnings. ■■ Make the search bar ‘sticky’ so it
collect data from thousands of Other tips from the experts include: stays in sight while the customer
businesses like yours, you can access ■■ Don’t showcase product scrolls through products.
aggregated data for your sub-industry, recommendations. Place them LEARN FROM YOUR CUSTOMERS
benchmark your performance for key somewhere visible, but not too The data which the platform collects
business-critical parameters and learn distracting. The aim is to entice generates information that has power-
from the best. your customers to interact with ful value for your business, automati-
Icebreaker, a New Zealand-based your brand, but not to overwhelm cally producing smarter merchandising
lifestyle clothing business, offers the original purchase. insights. You no longer need to
online shoppers a personalised ■■ Add recommendations to various manually analyse a myriad of sales
new-fashioned shopping experience parts of your site, such as on the data to know how to increase customer
with predictive recommendations home page and customer profile as engagement, sales and revenue.
that “you may also like” or “designed well as the product page. Platforms empowered by artificial
to go with,” which show a number intelligence can run models to produce
of suggested items. These have recommendations for increased
generated 28% more revenue from revenue. Want to know where a price
recommended products and an 11% reduction will stimulate sales across a
overall increase in average order value. category? What campaign bundle will
grab new customers’ attention? Or how
to best match slow-moving stock to
customer preferences?
Welcome to good, new-fashioned
service. The personal touch with mas-
sive reach, so your business decisions
online, in store and behind the scenes
are driven by real intelligence.

Blaze your trail to
1-to-1 personalisation
Salesforce Einstein automatically learns from your data to deliver
product recommendations and search results based on your unique
business processes.
Start your path to intelligent 1-to-1 shopping journeys.
www.salesforce.com
BUYERS
GUIDE
Endless Aisles –
the Next Retail
Revolution
WORDS: MICHEL VAN AALTEN, COUNTRY MANAGER OF AUSTRALIA AND NEW ZEALAND FOR ADYEN.
FOR SMART BRICK-AND-MORTAR RETAILERS THAT

WANT TO USE THEIR STRENGTHS BOTH IN-STORE
AND ONLINE, THE ‘ENDLESS AISLE’ CONCEPT IS
EMERGING AS PARTICULARLY USEFUL AS RETAIL
CONTINUES TO EVOLVE. SO, WHY SHOULD YOU PAY
ATTENTION TO ENDLESS AISLES?
S
ince e-commerce made its This has been further enabled by the
debut in the early 1990s, rise of smartphones, which makes it
brick-and-mortar stores and much easier for customers to browse
online stores were often on the go. Online sales exceeded $21
thought of as opposites – even if they billion in Australia during 2016. Yet,
were two departments within the that’s still only 7.1 percent of total
same company. But, as both online retail sales in the country1 – so on
and physical retail has matured over paper at least, it seems customers will
the last few decades, it has become still be shopping at physical stores.
increasingly evident that the two have Customers still enjoy many aspects
a more symbiotic relationship than of the in-store experience. For smart
previously anticipated. Even when brick-and-mortar retailers that want
buying in-store, customers frequently to use their strengths both in-store
research a prospective purchase online, and online, the ‘endless aisle’ concept
before making their final decision. is emerging as particularly useful as
retail continues to evolve.
1 http://business.nab.com.au/nab-online-retail-sales-
index-indepth-report-december-2016-22325/

“The endless
aisle solution
provides a
frictionless,
personalised
experience for
the customer.”
■■ Offer a more personalised

customer experience: Working
in conjunction with existing user
accounts (e.g. loyalty cards or logins),
endless aisles can be used to provide
recommendations of products that
might be of interest to the consumer,
based on prior purchases. Customers
might even be inclined to buy more
with recommendations customised to
their preference.
Essentially, an endless aisle blurs THE BENEFITS ■■ Provide additional product
the line between in-store and online The endless aisle solution provides a information: This functionality
shopping. It provides offline customers frictionless, personalised experience isn’t just for customers. After
with access to your complete product for the customer and allows retailers all, one of the most overlooked
range, beyond what’s available in-store. to: purpose of POS materials is to alert
This can take a variety of different ■■ Increase store revenue: Customers or remind staff of ways that they
forms, ranging from full-blown now have the option to continue can potentially upsell to customers.
terminals - to tablets, but the ultimate with their purchase even if their With this information inbuilt,
benefit of boosting sales and revenue, is item currently isn’t in stock. This staff can stay current on new and
much the same no matter how they look. prevents businesses from taking upcoming stock. Traditionally, this
Endless Aisles are still relatively new advantage of previously missed has been carried out by company
in Australia, though they’ve gained sales opportunities as the available intranet functions, but there’s no
significant popularity in the USA. inventory extends beyond the reason that endless aisles can’t
They’re easily adaptable to a wide physical or online store. showcase this capability.
variety of retail applications, making ■■ Have less stock on the shop
them an ideal fit for just about any floor: Less physical stock on the
retail business. So, why should you pay shop floor allows retailers to utilise
attention to endless aisles? smaller retail spaces, saving money
on rent. Additionally, it enables
the store to be easily monitored by
staff, reducing the chances of issues
like shoplifting.

■■ Gain access to targeted data: ■■ Customer database: If you don’t ■■ Payments: Having an effective,
Endless aisles are invaluable as a already have a dedicated customer integrated and frictionless
source of data for your business. database, introducing an endless payment system is essential for
When used in conjunction with aisle solution will necessitate bringing these disparate elements
the right payment provider, they building one. This will not only together. Your backend IT systems
can help build more complete ensure that items are properly should always make it easy for the
profiles of your customers, shipped out, but will also aid in customer to pay according to their
including their average spend, your data collection for future preferences. It should also provide
how they like to pay and what consumer purchases. you with data to give a more
they like to buy. It’s a great tool ■■ Rapid turnaround: Customers personalised experience for them.
for developing future customised expect convenience and instant This will also enable you to combat
marketing. gratification. They’ll be willing and prevent potential fraud from
to put up with some delay, but problematic customers seeking to
THE CHALLENGES there’s no incentive if the wait is take advantage of the in-store and
As with any new technology, going to be weeks or more. online capabilities.
implementing an endless aisle ■■ Transport and Logistics: This is
solution isn’t without its challenges. an ongoing challenge in Australia; THE FUTURE
Any business looking to use this we are a widely distributed In the present retail landscape,
technology should keep in mind that country, postage costs rising and successful retailers will need to adopt
it’s not a solution in and of itself – it is not always practical to have the best of both online and in-store
it’s also reliant on the co-operation of an in-house transport team. Retail capabilities to secure their future.
numerous other departments within staff who work across multiple Though Australia has only taken
your business. But when implemented store locations can sometimes tentative steps into the field, the
properly, it can yield incredible assist the transfer process, but first major stores utilising endless
benefits for your business. this will depend on your individual aisle solutions are likely to enjoy
■■ Suppliers and warehouse: business processes. considerable success. Australians are
Whether your endless aisle system ■■ Shipping costs: Being willing to fond of new retail technology that
is linked directly to your suppliers absorb the cost of shipping to the enables customer convenience; for
or simply draws on the warehouse, customer is crucial. It provides example, just look at how quickly Tap
a high standard of integration is a point of differentiation for N Go has become the norm.
essential. Off-site facilities must customers. If you’re charging for Once it has been widely adopted,
be able to update in real-time, in shipping, then there is no strong the real test will be the creative ways
order to provide the best service to incentive for consumers not to that companies capitalise on the
your customers. turn to an online store, where concept and differentiate themselves
shipping may be free anyway. from competitors moving forward.

BUYERS
GUIDE
It’s Not the Big

that Eat the Small,
it’s the Fast that
Eat the Slow
WORDS: GRAHAM JACKSON, CEO OF FLUENT RETAIL
BY EXPLOITING THE ADVANTAGES THAT

TECHNOLOGY ENABLES, A LOCAL BRICKS
AND MORTAR PRESENCE OFFERS, AND
GETTING SALES AND DISTRIBUTION
PROCESSES STREAMLINED, RETAILERS
CAN OFFER A HIGHER LEVEL OF SERVICE
AND CONVENIENCE TO ITS CUSTOMERS.
I
n retail, it’s not the big that But, price is only one factor.
eat the small, it’s the fast Customers also choose to shop with
that eat the slow. Yes, we all retailers who provide a seamless
know that Amazon is coming customer journey, that is, they are
to Australia. Australian retailers are easy to deal with, provide convenience
meant to be quaking in their boots and can give them what they want fast.
about the retail giant that is coming to By exploiting the advantages that
our shores. Apparently they’ll undercut technology enables, a local bricks and
prices, squeeze profit margins and mortar presence offers, and getting
Australian retailers just won’t be able sales and distribution processes
to compete. streamlined, retailers can offer a
higher level of service and convenience
to its customers.

With constantly changing styles,
seasons and multiple size options for
each item, holding a large amount of
stock at a central distribution centre
shouldn’t be the only fulfilment option.
By decentralising stock management
to include the store inventory as
well, retailers can benefit from the
ability to fulfil click-and-collect orders
direct from the store. This avoids
situations where an e-commerce site
is showing out-of-stock for an item
in the distribution centre, but it is
available in-store for sale. This also
helps retailers minimise end-of-season
clearance sales, by allowing store-to-
store shipping for order fulfilment and
inventory balancing.
Below are a few tips that can help For many consumers, buying online
your retail business reduce the time and picking up in-store is considered
it takes you to get your products in the cheapest and most convenient
your customer’s hands, improve your option. Australians increasingly don’t
customer experience and grow your want to pay or wait for their goods to
profit margin. arrive in the post, or be out when the
delivery arrives, or have to queue up at 1.SMART FULFILMENT
CLICK-AND-COLLECT the post office. Using click-and-collect Investing in a cloud and mobile-
Australian retailers that have been means customers don’t risk a trip to optimised platform to power your
improving their click-and-collect the store and the goods they want are online store’s click-and-collect
service over the past couple of years out of stock. technology will enable orders to be
are enjoying revenue boosts of at When selecting the right click-and- fulfilled from both your distribution
least 30% through cross selling and collect technology for your retail centres and stores. From your
additional sales. bras N things rolled business, it’s crucial to make sure it e-commerce platform to your in-store
out its click-and-collect technology can deliver a single view of inventory experience, the technology you invest
and achieved a 12 x return on held across the entire business. Getting in should make it easy for both your
investment in the first year alone, with this right at the backend means that customers and your customer service
one in five click-and-collect customers you can turn every store into a mini team. Woolworths, Big W, bras N
walking out with an additional item distribution centre, and your retail things, French Connection and Glue
or unplanned purchase when coming business can process online orders via Store are all examples of retailers who
in-store to pickup their goods. the customer’s store of choice at speed. have adopted a solid cloud platform
which makes it easier to deploy,
integrate and scale.

“Offering
alternative
collection points
for when in-store
isn’t convenient
is also important.
There are a range
By using smart omnichannel of chemists, It’s a delicate balancing act to make
fulfilment technology and some supermarkets and sure you have enough stock in each
best practice ideas, a retailer can channel to satisfy customer demand,
leverage their existing systems and newsagents now while not having to mark-down
mobile devices in a new way. With offering parcel excess stock at end of season. Ship-
the right smart technology, orders from-store technology should help
can be automatically routed to a collection that you you move stock faster by leveraging
simple in-store app which shows could partner with.” the inventory in your retail outlets
exactly what needs to be picked and and routing online orders to stores
packed, flagging any issues along the where stock turnover is slow. With
way such as out-of-stock items, and margins continually being squeezed,
it can generate labels. Items can be finding new ways to take costs out of
provisioned from the store or the the fulfilment chain is essential.
2. SHIP-FROM-STORE
distribution centre and customers are
Inventory management has never
automatically notified via email or 3. OMNICHANNEL RETURNS
been more important than in today’s
SMS once the package is ready. Staff If you’re offering your customers
omnichannel retail operations.
can then easily check a customer’s ID, click-and-collect and ship-from-store,
By investing in ship-from-store
locate the item and mark the order as then you need to be able to also offer
technology, your customers get
complete. a hassle-free way to return goods. You
the products they want as soon
Being able to route orders based on could use the opportunity when a
as possible, and you can minimise
tailored, configurable fulfilment rules customer comes in-store to pick up
markdowns of excess stock. It enables
including proximity, reassignment an order to encourage them to touch
retailers to streamline the amount of
and split limits, enables retailers or try it on before they leave to make
stock they need to hold centrally by
to balance shipping and handling sure they’re happy with the purchase.
using retail outlets to fulfil online
costs with overall order profitability. If there’s an issue, you can deal with
orders as mini-distribution centres.
Customer orders are often shipped it on the spot and you might also be
A good technology solution will
from multiple locations, so it’s able to up-sell or cross sell through
easily enable product information
important your system can handle having your team spend a little extra
management integration and
split orders and give you control time ensuring the customer is satisfied.
allows for product substitution. It
over shipping costs. By minimising Offering alternative collection points
should automatically determine
points of friction in your fulfilment for when in-store isn’t convenient is
the available-to-sell inventory and
chain, you can eliminate bottlenecks, also important. There are a range of
configurable buffers are deducted
provide more points of customer chemists, supermarkets and newsa-
from stock on hand so only available
delight, and position your brand well gents now offering parcel collection
stock is shown online, making
in their minds. that you could partner with. Or, if your
sure that online orders can be
store is part of a larger retail umbrella,
fulfilled and there’s ample stock for
consider allowing customers to pick
walk-in customers. Empower your
up from any of their local stores that
customer service team to pick, pack
might be closer or more convenient.
and dispatch orders with barcode
If your current technology and
scanning accuracy.
value proposition revolves around
just range and price, you need to
think again. Consider the tips above
for repeat business and an improved
bottom line, because speed and
convenience count.

BUYERS
GUIDE
Delivering the
Flexibility Today’s
Omnichannel Shopper
Demands with
Next Generation
Technology WORDS: RAGHAV SIBAL, MANAGING DIRECTOR, AUSTRALIA AND NEW ZEALAND OF MANHATTAN ASSOCIATES
AS THE GLOBAL OMNICHANNEL CONTINUES TO GROW

IN PROMINENCE, TODAY’S RETAIL BRANDS ARE
CONFRONTED WITH THE CHALLENGE OF FULFILLING
NUMEROUS, GENERALLY SMALL E-COMMERCE ORDERS
AT A SPEED THAT MEETS THE DEMANDS OF DIGITALLY
SAVVY CONSUMERS.
I
n the fight to secure Retail strategies have focused
customer spend and loyalty, on attracting Millennials in recent
fulfilment has become a key years; but with Generation Z coming
battleground. Consumers of age – as both employees and
expect a range of delivery options customers – retailers need to embrace
and quick service – often free of the expectations of this ‘digital native’
charge – and many retailers are generation. And it will be the retailers
running fulfilment at a tight margin, that are able to create a truly digitally
in order to keep up with the customer enabled, end-to-end e-commerce
and ensure their continued loyalty to business model that will be able to
the brand. capture this increasingly influential
generation.

“When a
company has a
more granular
understanding of
its inventory,
it has far more
ability to take
advantage of that
information.”
E-commerce is not just a market Today, the store is an extension

opportunity for businesses; it is a of the digital experience, and, in
phenomenon that defines a customer’s our omnichannel retail culture, the
experience with a brand. With global concept of the point of sale as a
e-commerce retail sales projected to standalone idea or technology is dead.
reach $3.5 trillion by 2019, there is a In our view, a transaction is universal,
lot more at stake than just fulfilling and users should have the ability
orders. The immediacy and increasing to initiate or modify a transaction When a company has a more granular
personalisation offered online has anywhere in the enterprise. understanding of its inventory, it has
raised the bar. The real opportunity In-store salespeople need a single far more ability to take advantage
for retailers is to reshape the retail view of stock across the entire logistics of that information. Visibility into
experience to support and enhance network and also the ability to transfer inventory allows a company to do a
this new, digitally inspired customer that stock on the fly to meet customer better job accessing that inventory
that expects a unified and seamless demands. They require a customer’s to fulfil a customer order, change
shopping experience across all complete online and offline transaction transportation routes and balance
channels. history plus a quick view of product supply and demand using market
Globally, brands and shippers are recommendations to support a conditions. But before that can
rethinking how they organise and meaningful and timely engagement happen, a business needs data from
structure their distribution centre (DC) and enable up and cross-selling a number of different channels and
operations, inventory management opportunities. For example, enabling processes: from its warehouses, its
systems, ordering and store-based a customer to buy an item in store, stores and its finished goods supplier
processes. Furthermore, they are return an item purchased online and or manufacturer as well as from freight
looking to add many new elements have another item from a nearby store forwarders, 3PLs and local carriers. If
that are purpose-built for speed, delivered to their home in a single this data cannot be consolidated and
customer experience, mobility and the transaction, with a single payment rationalised, a company is failing
unique requirements of omnichannel taken in-store. It is this seamless, high to exploit significant business value.
fulfilment. quality interaction that must underpin With data as a primary resource, the
Here we look at the challenges faced the new in-store experience. architecture — how one collects and
by retailers and the way in which aggregates the data to make sense of
technology can help address these. OMNICHANNEL VISIBILITY it —becomes critical. The back-end
Omnichannel has had a huge impact systems that support and maintain the
PUTTING THE SALESPERSON AT THE on the operations and business models data must be open and able to accept
input from different sources and in
HEART OF THE RETAIL EXPERIENCE of many local businesses. But it has
also had a tremendous impact on the different formats.
The role of the store associate is
changing rapidly, expanding from need for supply chain visibility.
pure merchandise transactions
towards a focus on engagement,
customer experience, micro marketing,
fulfilment of buy online, pick up
in-store orders and direct shipping.

For example, quality supply chain
software should be able to support
the next-generation sales associate
by facilitating personalised, best-in-
class service, while simultaneously
enabling high-velocity fulfillment
for digital sales directly from the
store. It can be designed to enable a
seamless flow of activity, helping to
manage the entire purchasing process,
regardless of the point of origin.
A quality supply chain software
investment should also offer the
flexibility needed to respond swiftly
to the rapidly changing demands
of the digital consumer. This means
THE SUPPLY CHAIN OF THE FUTURE Additionally, dealing with reverse fusing order management and store
For years, warehouses have driven logistics is complicated; it requires fulfilment applications with point of
order processing efficiency by using a specific logic and returns processing sale and clienteling applications on
wave-based processing methodology operations. Most importantly, in order a single platform that is cloud native,
that aggregates order volume and for companies to handle returns, they versionless and fully extensible. This
submits it to the warehouse in must have interconnectivity and a delivers true omnichannel visibility
organised batches. Unfortunately, in strong set of policies and follow-up across the entire retail operation.
environments where demand can capabilities. Investing in the right supply chain
be unpredictable and volatile, this software can also improve warehouse
approach can lead to peaks and valleys JUMPING THE TECHNOLOGY management, for example, features
of activity, as waves are passed from INVESTMENT HURDLE with the option to fully embed
warehouse function to function. Today’s commercial enterprises waveless order fulfillment technology.
The continued growth of e-commerce are facing unprecedented market This dramatically increases asset
has dramatically changed how distribu- pressures. The business environment utilisation and improves facility
tion centres operate. One example is changing rapidly, and updating output, enabling warehouse facilities
of this can be found in the way that complex, highly-customised to process both large shipments and
orders are processed and shipping is enterprise software solutions can individual consumer orders efficiently.
handled. Long gone are the times of be both costly and time consuming. Any good supply chain software
shipping in five to seven business days; While new software releases that solution should optimise both labour
delivery expectations have changed, improve both the effectiveness and equipment assets, and work in
and distribution centres are feeling and efficiency of store, warehouse, either wave or waveless modes.
the pressure. They’re expected to take transportation and inventory
action on an order within minutes management are frequently STEPPING INTO 21ST CENTURY
of when it’s received and complete introduced, adoption of the latest OMNICHANNEL COMMERCE
processing within a couple of hours. technologies is often slowed by As the global omnichannel continues
While this does not necessarily result the need for significant capital to grow in prominence, today’s brands
in same day delivery, the customer investment or change management are confronted with the challenge of
expects that it should result in same requirements. fulfilling numerous, generally small
day shipping. Consumer demands have The right software investments e-commerce orders at a speed that
changed to a point where all standard can address technology challenges meets the demands of digitally savvy
shipping orders are expected to arrive by providing products and services consumers. The next generation of DC
in two or three days, or even sooner, that are always current and operations, inventory management
regardless of where the distribution automatically include the customer’s systems, ordering and store-based
centre is located. latest extensions and modifications, solutions enables warehouse
As e-commerce continues to grow, reducing or eliminating both managers to quickly and easily scale
ensuring distribution centre efficiency downtime needed for upgrades distribution to take on the $3.5
must be a top priority. This can be and additional fees. It must also trillion market opportunity.
achieved with help from a warehouse be flexible enough to run in the
management system (WMS) whose customer’s choice of a public or
algorithms can ensure that processing private cloud environment.
a number of the same simple orders at
once is handled as efficiently as if you
were processing just one single order.

[email protected] (02) 9454 5400
BUYERS
GUIDE
Tech Trends and

Loyalty in Digital
Marketing
WORDS: ZANE MCINTYRE, CEO OF COMMISSION FACTORY
ANY BRAND WORTH ITS SALT HAS A DIGITAL

MARKETING STRATEGY THAT INCLUDES KEY COMPONENTS
FOR ATTRACTING CUSTOMERS TO THEIR WEBSITE.
AFFILIATE MARKETING CAN BE A GREAT ADDITION TO
A MARKETING PLAN BECAUSE IT OPENS THE DOORS TO
LOYALTY WEBSITES WITH UNIQUE WAYS OF ENGAGING
CUSTOMERS WITH THE BRANDS THEY WORK WITH.
B
ecause customers have so Brand loyalty is increasingly harder to
much choice today, and global maintain when people are bombarded
companies want a slice of the with retailers advertising and competing
action, Australian shoppers for attention. Fostering loyalty with
are no longer restricted to buying customers by using affiliate marketing
from local brands. With the world wide can be an effective game plan for your
web and rapid growth in e-commerce, business. Affiliate marketing refers to the
customers now have access to buy from process of a retailer paying a commission
virtually anywhere in the world. But on any sales referred to their website,
that’s where brand loyalty comes in and it is an important component of any
– to help attract and keep customers digital marketing strategy. Performance-
coming back to your online store. based marketing gives brands access
to different websites, including loyalty
portals via an affiliate network, which
can leverage sales for their brands and
create a rich experience. This is key to
keeping your store at the top of your
customers’ mind and coming back, and
is vital for increasing conversion rates in
the short and long term.

The good news is that individuals From a campaign like this, I would
tend to stick to their preferred loyalty expect that Hallenstein Brothers
website to build up their points or cash. saw an increase in engagement with
“Fostering
So, if a retailer is working with these returning customers and registered loyalty with
websites, and has a stronger offer than individuals who were trying to take
its competitor, it will not lose sales advantage of the discount, an increase
customers by
because it’s appearing alongside them. in clicks on the homepage with people using affiliate
It will help to encourage customers
to keep coming back each time they
trying to win the best deal and an
increase in sales combined with the
marketing can be
have the promise of cashback or points increased use of coupon codes. an effective game
with every purchase. This in turn, will
increase a brand’s conversion rate as
The affiliates use gamification in
very different ways to advertisers. For
plan for your
customers keep going back to their example, Student Edge use badges business.”
preferred cashback portal. where a user can complete tasks
Because of the word ‘loyalty’ retail and get a badge on their profile to
advertisers may not realise the true encourage activity.
value of working with these portals
Every week there is also a challenge
when their primary focus is attracting GAMIFICATION EXAMPLE:
set by a brand, and if users reach the
new customers. But there are ways RUNNING HEROES
goal, they can win various prizes.
of taking advantage of these affiliate Within the affiliate space, one loyalty
This works because clear goals are
marketing technologies, by using portal has used gamification in an
set for the user, and they can choose
insights to garner valuable data to entirely different way to encourage
which challenge to work towards based
reach a new and engaged audience. users to get out and exercise, thereby
on what is most appealing to them.
Within the affiliate marketing sphere exposing different brands to their
The activity rewards them because they
there are a number of great loyalty users in a unique way to drive sales.
earn points to get discounts, there’s a
affiliates who are one step ahead of
chance to win something, and stats are
the rest.
uploaded instantly.
It provides users with a sense of
GAMIFICATION
community because subscribers to
Gamification is becoming increasingly
challenges can see who else is taking
popular in the affiliate marketing
part and see their stats including,
space with advertisers and affiliates
run time and distances. This also
alike. Gamification is the process
introduces a competitive element.
of turning something that would
Most importantly, it also increases
normally be ordinary, into something
a users’ brand awareness and
more fun and potentially competitive.
engagement – if a user is browsing
Different strategies for gamification
through the site and comes across a
include rewarding people, using
brand which they have never heard of,
leader boards to show an individual’s
or they are competing to get a prize
progress, putting badges onto a profile,
from one of their favourite brands,
challenging people to complete an
awareness and engagement is being
activity, and competitions.
increased with minimal effort.
The real benefit of gamification is
Conversion rates for some advertisers
capturing the interest of your visitors
have increased by up to 5 percent when
to keep them on your website for long Running Heroes uses gamification
working with Running Heroes, because
enough that they make a purchase. This paired with promotions to reward
the exchange of points for coupons means
can also increase your conversion rate active people for their fitness efforts.
that engagement and intent to buy is
and lead to more people signing up to Individuals connect their running
high. In some cases, advertisers saw a 35
your newsletter because they are more app or GPS watch to the website, and
percent uplift in revenue from working
engaged and invested in playing along. accumulate points for running. With
with this affiliate, which is significant.
For example, Hallenstein Brothers ran the points they earn, they can redeem
a promotion where a customer had to these for exclusive offers provided by
spin a wheel for the chance to win up different brands that align with the
to $500 off their purchase. Whatever Running Heroes audience, such as
the wheel landed on became the prize, TomTom or Mizuno.
which varied between coupons for
$10 off and up to $500 off. This was
available both on its homepage and in
an email sent to registered users.

INCENTIVISATION EXAMPLE:
ACORNS
Acorns grow is an unusual affiliate
utilising their commissions in a
very non-traditional way compared
to many other affiliates within the
space. Acorns is an investment app.
You shop online via the app, and they
round up the total amount of your
purchase to the nearest dollar. They
also add onto this a set percentage
INCENTIVISATION INCENTIVISATION EXAMPLE: of the commission they earn and add
Incentivisation has been around CASH REWARDS it to the amount you are investing
for a while. It’s the process of Cashrewards is a cashback website. (which is however many cents are
motivating people to shop again They offer their members money back left between the sale value and the
with an advertiser, using discounts, from each purchase they make online, nearest dollar) which then gets
points, coupons and more to try and by giving away some of their affiliate invested into the stock market.
get a customer to return to a website commission to the member. This is Advertisers they work with can
instead of going to a competitor. a strong incentive for the members target their users within the app
The benefit of running these of the website who can shop across by using push notifications, EDMs
incentives is that it encourages a thousands of participating retailers. and Facebook using different data
habit. A user who gets a discount on Because the end user is getting points they have on their users
their first three orders, rather than cashback, it shows purchase intent including income, age, net wealth and
only their first order, is more likely to straight away. This means that transactions to increase sales for the
return to the website, without having customers will continue to come back advertisers that they work with.
to think about whether they can find for every purchase, if an advertiser’s This means an advertiser gets access
the same thing cheaper elsewhere. In competitors aren’t offering a stronger to, and can highly target the users who
turn, they get to know your brand offer. fit their demographic. It means users
fosters loyalty. Compared to traditional points- are more likely to spend money on the
Personalised incentivisation is more based campaigns, with Cashrewards advertiser’s website. They are already a
effective for driving retail sales to an seeing how much you have earnt is captive audience who are showing intent
advertiser as people are more likely more straightforward. With points, by downloading the app and allowing
to engage with something highly it is more complicated to work out push notifications. Increased click-
targeted to them. If a shopper gets a exactly how much money someone’s throughs, conversions and sales would
push notification that tells them that points equate to in cash value happen naturally on receiving a push
a top they looked at is on sale and without sitting and doing the math. notification that is targeted to a user.
an email saying that their favourite Retailers can run segmented
jeans are on sale, they are more likely campaigns. For example, if a customer WHY ADVERTISERS SHOULD WORK
to go online and buy. For example, clicked through to a website but WITH THESE LOYALTY PORTALS
an advertiser may send out a coupon didn’t go through to make the With the world wide web now at
code to a user on their birthday, or a purchase with an email, or they could consumers’ fingertips, it is important
cart abandonment email to encourage target shoppers who have shopped for advertisers to get ahead of their
the user to come back and purchase with a competitor in the past. The competition by tapping into these
the items. This has a much higher biggest benefit here is that cashback consumers who only shop with their
success rate than a generic email. websites know their members preferred loyalty portal to increase
These two affiliates are completely shopping habits. A brand would get sales and revenue. The ability to highly
moving the goalposts when it comes their offer in front of people who target a user puts a brand one step
to personalised incentivisation and are engaging with an advertiser’s ahead of their competitors, particularly
the benefit is that because your competitors, and brands can improve when someone can target a potential
offering is personalised to a user, the contextual messaging of the customer based on whether they have
their interest is piqued, which results emails and it’s great for activating shopped with a competing advertiser in
in more click throughs, an increased new customers. the past. This is valuable, but when you
conversion rate, and an increase in combine it with other metrics including
sales, which is invaluable to retailers. shopping habits, income and net worth,
it becomes even more valuable. If users
are having fun while they are earning
too, that is a bonus to consumers as it
enhances the purchasing experience – a
win win win in my books!

BUYERS
GUIDE
Online Marketplaces,
the New Age
Shopping Mall
WORDS: ADAM KRON, GENERAL MANAGER OF CATCH.COM.AU
WITH CURRENT TECHNOLOGY AND

PROCESSES IN USE, THE EFFICIENCY
MARKETPLACES OFFER HAS REACHED
NEW HEIGHTS WHERE SELLERS CAN
GET THEIR PRODUCTS IN FRONT
OF MILLIONS OF CUSTOMERS, AND
SEAMLESSLY ACCEPT ORDERS AND SEND
THEM DIRECTLY TO THEIR CONSUMERS.
I
n many ways, online While this specialisation can be seen
marketplaces are a natural everywhere, from the legal profession
progression for the to consulting, the most apt analogy is
e-commerce sector, and one in traditional offline retail. Whereas
that is in keeping with not only retail historically retailers were located
in general, but the wider business throughout a plethora of busy street
world. The driving force behind this corners, over the years we have seen
progression has been the increase in the rise of concentrated shopping
specialisation. precincts, and in particular shopping
centres. A particularly good example
is the home goods market, where more
and more Homemaker Centres have
popped up, where you can find all the
major furniture retailers under the one
roof.

“With the rise
of online
marketplaces,
inter-connected
technology
solutions are
taking their
next natural step
forward, opening
up opportunities
for sellers in a
way never before
possible.”
The reason this has happened is that However, in the early days of Accordingly, the larger e-commerce
it removes from the retailer’s necessary e-commerce, when there were no players that have stepped ahead over
skill set when it comes to some of the incumbents with deep pockets, and the last decade are technology and
marketing and property prospecting there were countless start-ups marketing specialists. They have the
functions. The Homemaker Centre beginning to enter the market, the lions share of online shoppers through
draws in the traffic, provides parking marketing and customer acquisition customer email databases, strong
and accessibility solutions, and costs were much lower. Most players organic search result ranking, and
markets itself to the local community. were self-funded and growing wider brand recognition, bringing
All the retailer has to do is what they organically. This meant that many in more and free direct traffic. This
do best -develop their products and smaller players could jostle for top backbone of effectively free website
product value proposition. rankings and grow from there. After traffic also means they can afford to
In e-commerce, we are seeing the a few years and up until recently, as bid more in Google Adwords, and the
rise of marketplaces now, as a result the better e-commerce retailers started cost per click for those top Google
of the unique development of this new to step ahead of the rest and take rankings has increased significantly
industry over the last few decades. the lions share of customers through over the years.
At the turn of the new millennium, a more attractive value propositions Just like offline retailers use
when e-commerce was still in its (and some with capital injections), shopping centre operators to
infancy, barriers to entry were much together with the early entry into the take care of local marketing, user
lower. Where traditional bricks and market like traditional retailers and friendliness including parking lots,
mortar retailers had to ensure their department stores, these barriers to and bringing in foot traffic, the rise
stores were located conveniently entry are now much higher. To build of online marketplaces is enabling
for consumers, e-commerce retailers an e-commerce store today and acquire product owners that want to sell
needed to be present at the top of a meaningful customer base would online to access customers by relying
Google results, primarily by way of almost certainly require significant on the special skills of the online
Google Adwords. The top ranking capital investment in marketing and marketplaces. They can then sell
results in Google were like being at technology, and a period of operating online without having to do the
the corner of a popular shopping at a significant loss. seemingly impossible, which is fund
precinct, that is, where the customers state-of-the-art digital technology and
were – and this came at cost. online customer acquisition strategies.

WHY TECHNOLOGY MAKES IT With the rise of online marketplaces,
EASIER THAN EVER BEFORE these inter-connected technology
With the current technology and solutions are taking their next natural
processes in use, the efficiency step forward, opening opportunities
marketplaces offer has reached for sellers in a way never before
new heights, where sellers can get possible. The thinking goes, if we can
their products in front of millions integrate our small website with our
of customers, and seamlessly accept ERP and WMS and seamlessly process
orders and send them directly to their orders, why can’t we integrate our
consumers. It has therefore never ERP and WMS with other websites or
been easier to leverage the skills of selling platforms? The answer is you
marketplaces to increase sales. can; it just requires more integrations.
The driver of this efficiency is how While integrations can require
individual business-to-consumer significant development work, typically
retailers commonly design their development work on both ends of
technology platforms, specifically, the integration, the most efficient
how platforms with specific functions and state-of-the-art marketplace
are stitched together, or integrated. websites have already invested and
The typical online retailer has three developed multiple solutions that
technology platforms to serve three mean most the work of the integration
specific functions: the first is an is already done on the marketplace’s
e-commerce website that holds and end. By offering the ability to bulk
presents all the product information upload and export excel spreadsheets
for customers to make purchases (manual integration), through to fully
(or the front end); the second is automated solutions such as FTP file
an enterprise resource planner, or transfer protocols or HTTP (hypertext
ERP (or the backend), which holds transfer protocol) processes, API’s
inventory planning, finance, customer (application programing interface)
and order information; and the third, and integrations with data feed
is the warehouse management system aggregators such as Channel Advisor,
(or WMS), which processes the storage sellers can now integrate their product
and fulfillment of products from the and fulfillment management systems
warehouse to the customer. with e-commerce platforms quicker
The key to an efficient e-commerce and easier than ever before, and at a
operation is how well these three lower cost.
platforms are integrated. If everything Today, sellers can reach millions
is effectively integrated, orders can be of customers via e-commerce
made through a website, the order in- marketplaces that offer sophisticated
formation sent automatically to the ERP, marketing opportunities such as push
accounted for, automatically sent to the notifications to millions of consumers’
WMS with a shipping label, and then phones, and with technology, all
picked from the warehouse and sent out. this can be done seamlessly and with
This can all be done with relatively few minimal effort. This means that sellers
data inputs at the beginning, and very can focus on doing what they do best,
little manual labour at the end – but no which is to work to develop the best
human effort in between. value products for consumers.

BUYERS
GUIDE
The Future of
E-Commerce – Why
Innovation is Key
WORDS: BEN FRANZI, GENERAL MANAGER OF E-COMMERCE AND INTERNATIONAL AT STARTRACK AND AUSTRALIA POST
THE BIGGEST OPPORTUNITIES

AND CHALLENGES FOR THE RETAIL
INDUSTRY OVER THE NEXT TWO YEARS
O
nline shopping continues Every step of the online shopping
to grow – domestically and ecosystem is critical, from e-commerce
globally. In Australia we know platforms, to marketplaces, to supply
we’re about to be disrupted, chain models, customer service and the
and retail as we know it won’t ever last mile. Technology underpins the
look the same. That’s why innovation entire customer journey, in my opinion,
is critical, particularly when it comes the biggest factor to accelerating the
to improving the customer experience success of a business is data. It acts
and making e-commerce as seamless as as a powerful tool to help businesses
possible for retailers. understand their existing and potential
The global economy offers so customers better, so they can create
much in terms of opportunities for targeted offers and grow their sales
merchants; Australian businesses and by giving consumers what they want
consumers have access to markets based on facts and information.
and products that were previously Understanding the changing
inaccessible, but that also means expectations around customer
increased competition for local experience and differentiating your
merchants. Those retailers who business in the market will help you
continue to learn more about their achieve success and stay ahead of
customers to ensure they can meet and the competition, and that is a crucial
exceed their needs and expectations factor to our changing e-commerce
will continue to thrive. landscape.

AMAZON AND THE AUSTRALIAN Online shopping in Australia
LANDSCAPE – IT’S ONLY A accounts for about seven percent of
POSITIVE the total retail market – compared to
It’s only a positive that there’s an double digits overseas. So, while there
element of uncertainty for retailers is definitely more growth to be had
in the market. I’ve always said that in online, bricks and mortar stores
marketplaces are enablers, and in any We know of some of these are also still very relevant and will
industry, it’s a good thing to have ‘barriers’ – such as returns policies or continue to be. Also, buying behaviour
some healthy competition. I know the the cost of shipping – create friction is changing. We know that consumers
Australian e-commerce industry has the for customers. But they can be easily tend to shop online later in the day
passion, the heart and the drive to be avoided, with minimal cost to your with 29 percent of purchases made
successful and maintain a competitive business model. Having a clearly between 7 to 10pm. Bricks-and-mortar
advantage, and in my opinion, Amazon defined returns policy (which can be retailers are combatting this by
will only create further exposure for developed with your shipping partner) extending their trading hours to cater
the e-commerce market. It’s a strong gives customers more confidence for the lifestyle of their customers.
market which continues to grow - our when shopping online. Don’t forget to We’re seeing more and more bricks-
data shows us that Australians are communicate this across all of your and-mortar retailers enter the online
shopping online more than ever with a channels – not just hidden deep within space with omnichannel offerings, and
11.5% growth rate year on year. your website. Managing your customers’ their ability to succeed relies on under-
It will also accelerate innovation expectations by being up front and standing of the e-commerce landscape.
amongst other retailers, resulting in a honest about your policy will go a long And that’s the point of difference for
better experience for customers. way. existing online retailers. Today shoppers
are more informed than ever before
REMOVING THE BARRIERS FOR HOW TO STAY AHEAD OF THE with information, reviews and product
YOUR CUSTOMERS – HONESTY IS GAME – MY ADVICE FOR ONLINE comparisons at their fingertips. Whether
THE BEST POLICY RETAILERS AND BRICKS-AND- it’s online or through store, retailers
With new players coming into the MORTAR STORES should focus on creating consistent
market, differentiating your business The three key drivers of online experiences that are meaningful and
now and removing any barriers or shopping are price, range and memorable for their customers.
friction for your customers will ensure convenience. To stay ahead of The change is coming, we need to
their experience with your brand is a the curve, you need to know your embrace the change and stay ahead
memorable one. And those memories customers and continue to adapt your in order to succeed. My advice to
turn into loyalty. How do you make products and services to suit their every player in the e-commerce
sure that your product, your brand or changing needs. E-commerce is an industry is to consider each stage of
your customer experience is your point incredibly lucrative market, but it’s the e-commerce journey, make it as
of difference in the market? Have also very agile. memorable and enjoyable as possible
you thought about these factors, and and learn from each transaction. That’s
do you have a plan to build on those your recipe for success.
points of difference?
BUYERS
GUIDE
Choosing Your
Same-Day Delivery
Partner
WORDS: WAYNE WANG, CEO OF GO PEOPLE
THERE ARE MANY THINGS TO CONSIDER

WHEN CHOOSING A DELIVERY PARTNER
FOR YOUR RETAIL BUSINESS, BUT
ABOVE ALL, MAKING SURE THEY WON’T
LET YOU DOWN AT THE LAST LEG
OF THE CUSTOMER JOURNEY YOU’VE
WORKED SO HARD TO PERFECT IS MOST
IMPORTANT.
B
y now, everyone has heard But, for those calling Amazon “the The truth is, Australian consumer
that retail behemoth, Amazon, country killer” the main reason is expectations are evolving fast, and will
is preparing to land on because of rapidly changing consumer continue to do so. In the early days of
Australian shores – and the expectations; online shoppers are e-commerce, consumers were prepared
reaction has been a somewhat mixed demanding faster and cheaper to compromise on delivery times,
bag amongst retailers and industry deliveries and Amazon is giving them driven by the novelty of online-only
heads. While some have dubbed it “the exactly what they want. In contrast, bargains. But that model has shifted.
digital monster”, others are optimistic on a global scale, Australia has been Online retail versus bricks and mortar
about the benefits Amazon will bring, lagging a bit behind as compared to retail isn’t just about a price war
like raising the bar in our country’s other key e-commerce markets in the anymore.
e-commerce operations, as well as world, like the US and UK.
growing our e-commerce pie.

“ONLINE RETAIL
VERSUS BRICKS
AND MORTAR RETAIL
ISN’T JUST
ABOUT A PRICE
WAR ANYMORE.”
Today’s time-poor shoppers are important. Here are a few cutting-edge POINT-TO-POINT SERVICE
seeking convenience, pure and simple. features that you should be looking for Traditional courier models are beset
They need their (sometimes last- when considering your delivery partner by their own cumbersome processes.
minute) online shopping experiences to enhance your last mile. Inefficient depot processes where
to rival bricks and mortar retail, goods are unloaded, sorted and
which means acquiring their goods DELIVERY OPTIONS reloaded, means considerable time will
immediately, and they want easy Often, retailers will find themselves pass between the moment a customer
returns procedures, without having trying to fit around their delivery makes a payment and when goods
to go out to make a purchase. It’s partner’s “one pick-up per day” finally land at their door. And they
called the “I want it now” trend, and schedule without sparing a thought can’t do any better (not without a
as such, delivery has become a key to the customer’s needs. But this is hefty price tag).
differentiator in the online retail a mistake. Customers are looking for Technology has enabled a new
space. more personalised experiences to delivery model for courier companies,
Yes, Amazon coming to Australia is suit their individual lifestyles, which which introduces crowdsourcing as
raising the bar, but there shouldn’t means they want choice. an effective means to facilitate fast,
be cause for alarm amongst our local By providing multiple delivery on-demand deliveries. Using similar
retailers, whether large or small. Going options for your customers, including technologies to other well-known
head-to-head with Amazon in the race 1-3 hour, same-day, and evening services such as Uber, Foodora and
for the cheapest and fastest deliveries delivery, you’ll enhance the customer Airtasker – couriers too can allow
might seem like a daunting prospect, journey. This is extremely important casual workers to pick up parcels
but new technologies implemented for increasing customer loyalty and and transport them directly to the
within the courier industry have made you’ll reduce the risk of shopping recipient.
it entirely possible for any retailer to cart abandonment, which could be It works because sophisticated
match (or even beat) their game. hampering your e-commerce success. algorithms immediately match senders
There are many things to consider According to a study by Temando, with the closest and fastest available
when choosing a delivery partner for 79 percent of retailers say they’ve delivery drivers, cutting out the
your retail business, but above all, mak- experienced an increase in sales since need for time-consuming and costly
ing sure they won’t let you down at the introducing multiple delivery options handling processes and rigid pick-up
last leg of the customer journey you’ve to their customers. schedules.
worked so hard to perfect is most

REAL-TIME TRACKING EASY TO USE DIGITAL INTERFACES ROUTING
There’s nothing more frustrating for Forward-thinking courier models The e-commerce industry will
customers than unspecified delivery count for nothing if they’re not continue to get more competitive as
times. In reality, it means they’re straight forward to implement. There time goes on (and not just because
housebound until orders are delivered are several ways courier solutions Amazon is on its way). In future,
and this inconvenience is only made can leverage cutting-edge digital success for retailers will largely
worse for full-time workers. Many technology to ensure their services depend on how quickly they can get
traditional courier models have are convenient, transparent and the goods in customers’ hands, and
attempted to implement tracking flexible for all parties concerned. for maximum speed, efficiencies need
capabilities, but this usually only Above all, look for a delivery to be made.
alerts the customer to when their solution that promises a seamless Today, sophisticated routing
items have arrived and left the depot. end-to-end process, even when you’re algorithms are used to calculate
In practice, this is neither insightful on the move. Some questions to delivery routes for drivers who may
nor useful for the consumer. consider are: have multiple deliveries. These
Real-time tracking capabilities, ■■ Can the delivery solution easily algorithms consider factors such as
using GPS technology, enables book and track deliveries from traffic conditions, geography, volume
retailers and customers alike to know multiple digital devices? and density of deliveries by area,
exactly where their parcels are while ■■ Is it possible for retailers, consum- and difficulty of drop off locations.
in transit. According to a study by ers and drivers to connect to the All this information is combined to
Accenture, 79 percent of respondents delivery solution directly through a provide an accurate estimated time
want full visibility of their deliveries variety of touchpoints such as on- of arrival so customers know exactly
– and it’s not hard to understand why. line instant messaging, call, or SMS? when the goods will arrive in a
It gives customers the transparency ■■ Or, does the delivery solution have matter of minutes - not days. It also
and peace of mind they need to plan multiple communication methods provides certainty that every delivery
around the delivery, while retailers for notifications such as SMS or will be made using the cheapest and
avoid being bombarded with queries online? fastest route.
concerning the whereabouts of goods. In a crowded marketplace, retailers
REAL-TIME COMMUNICATION need to stand out by promising a
INTEGRATION AND ORDER Naturally, mistakes are made and state-of the-art customer journey
MANAGEMENT sometimes customers will change experience and that includes the
It’s important to find a courier their minds about where they want last mile. But for some retailers, this
solution that can accommodate their goods to be delivered. But exceptional experience often falls
the individual needs of modern it doesn’t have to be a done deal down once their customers have
retailers, as and when they change. as soon as your delivery booking hit “confirm and pay”. We’re talking
Fluctuations in sales and customer is confirmed. The combination about winning the last mile delivery
demand for immediate deliveries, of crowdsourcing and increased challenge. When searching for a
means that a one-size-fits-all connectivity through digital devices delivery partner for your business,
approach of scheduled pick-up times means it’s entirely possible for all make sure you consider all the
simply doesn’t work. parties to access a transaction to technology-enabled features available
Delivery solutions offering flexible connect – even when on the run. which work together to promise
methods for processing orders are An open network of instant com- speed, full visibility and maximum
best suited to managing the usual munication between retailer, consumer control over the delivery cycle.
peaks and troughs of online sales. For and delivery driver enables deliveries
example, look out for services that to be rerouted in transit without
provide cost-effective options for retailers themselves having to give
processing a single delivery on- up valuable time to make it happen.
demand, right through to uploading Most importantly, the immediacy of
and handling hundreds of deliveries communication and sense of control
within a short time frame. More experienced by the consumer will
advanced courier services may even result in accolades for customer
integrate with popular e-commerce service.
solutions such as Shopify or Magento
to automatically process orders and
help to minimise time-consuming
manual booking processes.

BUYERS
GUIDE
Pay Attention to
the First Mile
WORDS: TONY REPACI, MANAGING DIRECTOR ANZ, HONEYWELL SAFETY & PRODUCTIVITY SOLUTIONS
ONCE A CUSTOMER CLICKS “PURCHASE” ONLINE,

RETAILERS MUST ENSURE AN EFFICIENT AND
ACCURATE TRANSACTION FROM DISTRIBUTION
CENTRE TO THE DOORSTEP, OR RISK LOSING
RETURNING SHOPPERS. THIS MEANS EMBRACING
TECHNOLOGY THROUGHOUT THE DISTRIBUTION
CENTRE AND INTO THE TRUCK.
G
lobally, in most developed As price and selection becomes Regardless of how easy and seamless
nations, e-commerce has more of a commodity, the focus turns the online order process that you
transformed the retail to the efficiencies and effectiveness provide your customer with is, the
sector. While Australia has that distribution centres and shipping part of the transaction the customer
experienced significant growth in can deliver. Consumers are very remembers most is what arrives at the
online retail in the past year, relatively unforgiving when it comes to receiving door. Some of the questions that circle
speaking, it is only in its infancy. This their goods – they (rightfully) expect a consumers mind about delivery of
growth is expected to be accelerated the product to arrive to them quickly their parcel are: Was it on time? Did it
in the near future, as retailers respond and in perfect condition. Any hiccup arrive in perfect condition? What were
to both the growing demand of here can result in a customer never the delivery options? Could I change
consumers wanting the ease of online returning to your online store and bad my delivery slot or location? Can I see
shopping and the pending arrival reviews. where my parcel is now? How much
of Amazon. eMarketer estimates will it cost me? Can I switch to another
that Australia’s total online sales are delivery provider? And as consumers
forecast to exceed $32 billion in 2017, become more environmentally
up from $26 billion in 2013. conscious, they increasingly
consider how much excess packaging
surrounded the delivery and how many
boxes were used for delivery.

So how should Australian retailers One of the most impactful recent
respond to and anticipate the evolving improvements to managing the distribu-
customer expectations in the age of “How should tion and fulfilment centre has been
burgeoning demand for e-commerce? the addition of voice technology. The
Once a customer clicks “purchase” Australian benefits of voice, over traditional means
online, retailers must ensure an retailers of picking and packing are numerous,
efficient and accurate transaction from pick accuracy through to the abil-
from distribution centre to the door respond to and ity to make real-time inventory changes
step, or risk losing returning shoppers. anticipate the and ensuring the front end of the
This means embracing technology supply chain immediately knows which
throughout the distribution centre and
evolving customer inventory is available for purchase by
into the truck. expectations customers. Another benefit is the ease
of use – by nature, the people working
THE FIRST MILE
in the age of in these centres are transient, and
The “last mile” has long been widely burgeoning demand English may not be the first language.
By embracing voice technology, distribu-
recognised as a key part of the
delivery experience – but what about
for e-commerce?” tion centres we are working with are
the first mile? reporting an immediate improvement in
After the order is placed, success pick accuracy and pick rates.
relies on the efficiency and Local customers have cited an
effectiveness of the picking and increase in their worker productivity of
packing of orders. Accuracy in picking up to 35% and improvements of 25% in
reduces miss-picks and thereby returns, picking accuracy, meaning a remarkable
while effective packaging reduces decrease in returns and complaints.
damage to goods. With the empowering nature and
business benefits of voice technology,
local labour training organisations are
starting to pre-enable applicants in
this technology to help improve their
employability and enable employers to
have people contributing from minutes
after they enter the work site.

After the successful picking, while With a marked increase in demand Luckily, shippers can bid farewell
it may seem counterintuitive in of goods, there is a need for faster, to tape measures with new
today’s digital age, the need for fast more accurate measurement of innovations emerging from the
and reliable label printing operations package volume. While traditionally likes of new technology like 3D
has never been more critical for weight has been the main decider on depth sensing, which determines an
organisations looking to improve shipment costs, carriers have realised object’s dimensions instantly and
operations and reduce errors. With they have been exceeding their space automatically. These technologies
the rise in warehouse activity, an constraints much before their weight provide auto dimensioning that saves
increasing number of distribution constraints, hence the need for space space from the warehouse to the
centres are using labels to cross check optimisation. palate to the truck. In a country as
and ensure accurate and efficient How do companies optimise for vast as Australia, this technology will
delivery of materials and products. space? Updating shipment technology ensure perfect packing so no space
is crucial. Shippers that use old- goes to waste.
SIZE NOT WEIGHT MATTERS fashioned methods like tape measures It is these technologies – current
Once the merchandise is accurately are losing revenue in multiple ways. and emerging – that together help
selected, packing the goods to First, it is inefficient. It slows down make for the optimal first mile, which
optimise both the protection but the retail counter employee and in turn help ensure the customer
also the cost to the retailer is key reduces their productivity. Second, experience at the end of the last
as a near final step in the first mile. it could mean lost revenue. That mile is flawless. To stay ahead, as
Consumers don’t want their orders to extra 10–15 seconds it takes to the online e-commerce world fires
arrive in multiple boxes, nor do they manually measure a package could up, retailers and those that support
want bulk packaging materials. result in longer wait times and the them, must start to embrace new
Equally retailers don’t want to be risk of losing repeat customers – a technological innovations.
stung with hefty freight charges and problem particularly during peak or
the delivery vehicles want to optimise holiday periods. Thirdly, a wrong
space to deliver as much as possible measurement could also mean you’re
in one load. charging the customer an incorrect
amount – another missed revenue
opportunity. Finally, inaccurate volume
measurements can hurt operational
efficiency. Without proper dimensions,
you can’t accurately plan for how much
space and how many or even what size
vehicles are needed to move packages
from parcel locations to hubs.

A WIRELESS SCANNER
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area-imaging technology
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charged, so operators who forget features a multi-interface
to place their scanner in the charger design with automatic
prior won’t impact operations interface detection,
automatically configuring
itself upon connection
No Battery - Eliminate any

battery management When fully charged the Xenon
hassles including maintaining 1902g battery-free scanner can
a spares pools, shipping, scan over 450 times without the
purchasing, replacing and need for recharging – that’s more
disposing of batteries. than enough to check out 45
customers during peak times
Honeywell is the smartest choice for barcode scanners with over 40 years of
experience developing and innovating leading industry scanning solutions.
Visit: now.honeywellaidc.com/Scanning-ANZ.html
or call: 03 9420 5515 to learn more.
BUYERS
GUIDE
Fulfilment
Differentiation
WORDS: LUKE CONDON, GENERAL MANAGER OF TOLL – E-COMMERCE & PRODUCT DEVELOPMENT
AS TECHNOLOGY ALIGNS TO OUR CHANGING

NEEDS AND EXPECTATIONS, AND MAKES THE
EXPERIENCE EVEN MORE HUMAN, USE IT TO
PROVIDE A SYNTHESISED EXPERIENCE –
MAKE IT ALL ABOUT THE CONSUMER WITH A
PERSON TO PERSON EFFECT.
I
f you think that 20 years Technology holds the key to
from now, we won’t live in a reshaping many areas of the retail eco-
world that is taken over by system, including supply chain and
robots and technology, you last mile fulfilment, or that moment
are sadly mistaken. Augmented and of truth when the consumer actually
virtual reality, 3D printing, driverless touches your brand for the first time.
vehicles, wearable technology, droids, Technology evolves around human
messenger and chat bots are already needs and adapts to what we require,
here - helping us navigate our so whilst all of these latest technology
experience with brands by talking trends will shake up and disrupt
to pre-programmed algorithms and certain areas more than others, I still
predictive models. And, it’s only going believe that personal and human touch
to get more advanced. will prevail. Let me explore how I see
that playing out.

If there is one certainty in fulfilling The most powerful differentiation
consumers’ and retailers’ desire for a a retailer and logistics provider
smooth transactional process, it is partnership can offer is the power of “Don’t forget
that – now and for a long time to its people:
come – people will remain at its heart, ■■ Together, does their behaviour that it’s not
not technological revolution. illustrate they care about the all about the
While technology can expedite customer?
delivery of products and services, ■■ Are they responsive – both technology
it will always – as long as humans proactively and reactively – to the the consumer
possess emotions and can be customer?
characterised as social, sentient ■■ Is the partnership one where
interacts with.
creatures – be enhanced by people: technology, process and people The back end
■■ People develop the technology combine to deliver – to customers’
■■ People physically deliver the expectations, or beyond?
is just as
product and provide the service To future proof your business, you important.”
■■ People endorse – publically, socially must have an Artificial Intelligence
– the product, service, retailer (and (AI) strategy, data automation, invest
logistics partner, for that matter) into Internet of Things capabilities
■■ People respond to, and address and put data scientists on your next
problems recruitment wave hit list. However- at
the heart of it - you must understand
your customers foremost and use
insights of what will enrich their
interactions with you and add value.

Yes absolutely, Artificial AI does two things - it helps create HOW DOES THIS EXTEND
Intelligence (AI) and Virtual Reality a unique experience for the individual INTO CREATING A MORE
(VR) present an opportunity to and, in effect, becomes a market SEAMLESS LAST-MILE DELIVERY
anticipate the consumer’s next move. research process to not only expedite EXPERIENCE?
However, in order for consumers to be the specific purchase in train, but A recent study by Oracle Retail
receptive and open to receiving their helps to prompt further purchase – Retail 2025: Predictions on
next offer or message from you, there extensions, either at the time of this Innovation - shows that around 58%
needs to be a strong foundation of single purchase or later: of consumers indicated a “positive
trust. ■■‘We see that you are purchasing or attitude” to the idea of having their
Diving even deeper…Contextual AI seeking to purchase that lovely grocer suggest a shopping list for
identifies the ‘environmental’ aspect leather jacket. What about these their approval based on purchase
of a person’s online transaction. For stilettos that would go a treat history, social and environmental
example, AI can register a person with them? Here is a picture of data.1 However, 54% of respondents
repeatedly but gets to a particular our model wearing both items in a also indicated that if a grocer
point in a transaction and drops out. coordinated ensemble. automatically charged and shipped
In response, an AI-driven ‘chatbot’ ■■ At a later point, when the items based on purchase history,
appears on the screen, seeking to purchaser goes online again, social and environmental data they
engage the potential purchaser in a further customised purchase would find it “invasive”2
conversation to assist with purchase prompts can be presented. This supports Toll’s recent findings
execution. The removal of a lot of the purchase about offering a range of delivery
This obviously helps generate the ‘friction’ means less human time being options for consumers at the
sale and the income, but it does so spent on the transaction component checkout, but allowing them to have
through a personalised experience, as and the transaction is occurring in a a final say on what will actually
the ‘chatbot’ responses are configured faster, more seamless and contextual suit them best. You can make
to the individual scenarios of each manner. This saves the retailer money, recommendations but not push down
shopper. therefore providing greater ROI, and their final choice.
creates a more memorable customer
interaction.

This ultimately, comes back to the There is no doubt that last-mile company’s sustainability practices
concept of convenience and personalisa- delivery expectations are skewing and materials management in respect
tion. Convenience is about individuality towards a faster, more instantaneous to environmental and/or social
and it’s unique. What’s convenient to experience. However, don’t forget that stewards.4
one person might not work for another. the emphasis will still be placed more Consumers care more and more
You need to understand your customer on convenience than the actual speed. about the origin of where their
needs, how they want to interact with Don’t forget that it’s not all products are coming from and their
you and deliver on those. about the technology the consumer ethical sourcing and authenticity.
As consumers trust brands to interacts with. The back end is just Consider this as part of your overall
share more of their personal data as important. Make sure you invest supply chain management and tell
so they can enjoy more customised into platforms that provide integrated your brand’s story as part of last
and personalised experiences, their inventory management so you can mile delivery interaction with your
expectations will start to shift to offer your customers more accurate customers.
have even more convenient and information regarding product As technology aligns to our
efficient delivery experiences. availability and expected delivery changing needs and expectations,
Wearable technology, adopted by so time. Again, creating that experience and makes the experience even
many already, will further enhance a of convenience, personalisation, more human, use it to provide a
consumers’ drive and expectation of reliability and trust. synthesised experience – make it all
instant interaction and confirmation This concept of personalisation about the consumer with a person to
of what works best for them. As extends into other areas that matter person effect. We need to recognise
well as, delivery by drones or robots now and will continue to grow and celebrate the technology but
into lockers, if it promises me, as in the future. A significant 78% ensure human “voice” dominates the
a consumer additional speed and of consumers favour the option conversation so that genuine and
value. 67% of consumers like the of having detailed information authentic interactions happen and
option of near real-time delivery to about product components (e.g. trust remains intact.
their doorstep by drones and 33% of cotton, spandex, etc.) and their
1 - 4 Oracle Retail 2025: Predictions on
consumers indicated that drone and origin prior to purchasing. 74% Innovation report (2017)
driverless car delivery would improve of consumers favour the option of
their shopping experience and that having detailed information on a
they would use the technology today.3

SOLUTION PROVIDERS
USE THIS COMPREHENSIVE GUIDE

TO TECHNOLOGIES, SERVICES AND
SOLUTIONS FOR YOUR E-COMMERCE
BUSINESS IMPROVEMENT.THESE
PROVIDERS ARE WAITING TO FAST
TRACK YOUR E-COMMERCE SUCCESS.

SOLUTION PROVIDERS
USE THIS COMPREHENSIVE GUIDE

TO TECHNOLOGIES, SERVICES AND
SOLUTIONS FOR YOUR E-COMMERCE
BUSINESS IMPROVEMENT.THESE
PROVIDERS ARE WAITING TO FAST
TRACK YOUR E-COMMERCE SUCCESS.

2018
Adyen is a technology company that provides Celebrating the Champions of E-Commerce. The Power
businesses with a single solution to accept Retail All Star Bash black-tie Dinner event returns in
payments anywhere in the world - online, mobile 2017 to coincide with the launch of the E-Commerce
and at the point of sale. Leaders' Playbook.
Adyen is a technology company that provides businesses with a The Power Retail All Star Bash event brings together the shining stars
single solution to accept payments anywhere in the world. The only of the Australian retail industry and unveils the Top 100 Australian
provider of a modern end-to-end infrastructure connecting directly online retailers, based on research by Power Retail relating to online
to Visa, MasterCard, and 250 other payment methods, Adyen delivers shopping traffic, channel presentation, dedication to good customer
frictionless payments across online, mobile, and in-store. With offices service, as well as a host of other important factors.
all around the world, Adyen serves more than 4,500 businesses, Attendees on the night will have the opportunity to celebrate notable
including 7 of the 10 largest U.S. Internet companies, and 3 of the achievements in the online retail space, which has once again seen
top 5 global apparel brands. Customers include Facebook, Uber, enormous developments over the past year and highlighted a new
Airbnb, Netflix, Spotify, Dropbox, Evernote, Booking.com, Vodafone, breed of high-level performers.
Mango, Crocs, O'Neill, SoundCloud, KLM and JustFab.
CONTACT DETAILS CONTACT DETAILS

W: www.adyen.com W: www.allstarbash.com.au
T: +612 8218 2165 T: +61 03 9585 9875
E: [email protected] E: [email protected]
Amblique is a digital commerce consultancy As leading business systems solution provider and
providing retail strategy, ecommerce platform NetSuite Partner, Annexa work with forward-thinking
implementation and optimisation services. Australian Retail companies ready to take their
systems to the next level.
Amblique is a digital commerce consultancy providing retail strategy, Annexa are NetSuite experts supporting innovative businesses ready
ecommerce platform implementation and optimisation services. to grow. We are well-versed in the design and implementation
We work with retailers and brand owners to deliver a consistent of revolutionary cloud technology for Retailers. With in house
and engaging brand experience across all channels enabling your NetSuite experts in Melbourne and Sydney, we help identify business
customers to shop where they want, when they want. As part of challenges, develop solutions, implement systems and provide
eCargo (ASX:ECG) Amblique provide end-to-end digital commerce ongoing support. Our AnnexaConnect service brings to life a
solutions across APAC including operations outsourcing, China comprehensive integration solution for Retailers. By connecting
marketplace trading, regional eFulfilment, local product photography NetSuite with your current business systems and applications and
and video production services. Consistently outperforming marketing allowing them to seamlessly talk, AnnexaConnect creates frictionless
growth rates by 3X, Amblique clients SELL MORE. business processes to revolutionise your business. .

W: http://amblique.com W: www.annexa.com.au
T: 61 2 8272 3800 T: 03 9676 2555

Together, Australia Post and StarTrack form the Brauz is a personalised retail app that connects
largest parcels, freight and logistics provider in shoppers to brands they love in local brick-and-
Australia. mortar stores through innovative technologies,
including VR and beacon technology.
With an unrivalled network, retail and delivery footprint, we’re Brauz is a personalised retail app that connects shoppers to brands
making it easier for your business to connect to your customers, and in local brick and mortar stores, creating the first ever blended
find new ones, wherever in the world they may be. marketplace for physical retailers to connect with their target
Through our suite of eCommerce-driven logistics, supply chain customers in a digital environment. Through technologies like VR and
and parcel delivery solutions, we can help you to provide seamless beacons, the Brauz app allows customers to discover brands based
end-to-end eCommerce delivery experiences - from checkout to on the ones they already love, and enables them to follow a product
delivery – and everything in between. independent of a store, and find it wherever they may be. Brauz’s
algorithms help products find customers before they even start to
Find out how we can help your business go further, sooner.
look. Based on customer preferences, the app consolidates numerous
products, brands and offers into one location.

W: www.auspost.com.au and www.startrack.com.au W: business.brauz.com
T: 13 POST (13 76 78) and 13 25 45 T: 0403 284 296
E: [email protected]
Back in 2006 CatchOfTheDay.com.au was born and Click Frenzy burst onto the scene in November 2012
started selling one product a day. Things change and as Australia's first landmark national online sales
now Catch.com.au is Australia's newest marketplace event. Click Frenzy is modelled on the phenomenally
with over 100,000 products. successful Cyber Monday.
Starting out as a daily deals site, Catch Of The Day quickly became Click Frenzy events centralise hundreds of the absolute best online
Australia's favourite place to shop online and the biggest pure play deals in the one location for one frenzied 24 hour period. Customers
retailer in the country. Now known as Catch.com.au, things just keep can search for deals across a user-friendly marketplace built to
getting bigger and better. Catch is Australia's newest marketplace, withstand enormous concurrent traffic volumes. Search by category,
the place where our 3.3 million customers shop for everything they brand, product name, item or just browse the unbelievable range of
want and anything they need. Now you can get your brand and deals to be had. All Australian online and multichannel retailers are
products in front of the crowd and sell with speed and ease by listing welcome and encouraged to become involved, with pricing based on
on the Catch Marketplace. Once you're on board, you'll get all the a simple, flat entry fee plus CPC rates throughout the event itself.
help and support you need plus access to a huge audience of engaged Click Frenzy is among the most efficient retail marketing platforms
shoppers, so get in touch and get selling. available.

W: www.catch.com.au W: www.clickfrenzy.com.au
E: [email protected] T: +61 03 9585 9896

Click Frenzy Mayhem is an online marketplace working A new initiative for Click Frenzy, Travel Frenzy
with hundreds of participating retailers to bring all the was launched in 2016 and has experienced strong
best deals and exclusive offers from throughout the support from both industry retailers and consumers
industry into a centralised e-commerce shopping interface. alike.
In addition to The Sale That Stops A Nation, Click Frenzy launched Filling a noticeable void in the travel industry calendar, Travel Frenzy
Mayhem in May 2015, to drive a retail sales spike in an otherwise is a dedicated 24-hour online shopping netbuster event exclusively
quiet time of the year. for travel, with an emphasis on flights, hotels, packages, tours,
Built into a user-friendly interface, Click Frenzy Mayhem is a experiences, and travel accessories. Travel Frenzy is returning to our
marketplace where customers can search by category, brand, product shores in August of 2018 and it is already ramping up to be bigger
name, item or simply browse through the unbelievable range of deals and better than last year. All Australian online and multichannel
to be had. retailers are welcome and encouraged to get on board early, pricing is
based on a flat entry fee plus CPC rates throughout the event itself.
All Australian online and multichannel retailers are welcome and
encouraged to become involved, with pricing based on a simple flat
entry fee plus CPC rates throughout the event itself.

W: www.clickfrenzy.com.au W: www.clickfrenzy.com.au
T: 03 9585 9896 T: 03 9585 9896
Commission Factory is the complete and proven eCargo is a China-based e-commerce solutions
solution for online retailers and service providers provider, providing on-demand e-commerce enabling
wanting to successfully launch their affiliate and related services for retailers and fashion brands
marketing channel. around the world.
Commission Factory is a global performance marketing network, We provide eCommerce enabling and operation outsourcing services.
with a focus on Asia Pacific and both an innovative and disruptive We offer a wide range of services for our clients from fulfilment,
approach to performance marketing. We offer Advertisers and operating online sales channels, warehousing, customer delivery,
Publishers the best products and services to boost their online marketing expertise and much more. We work with brands and
business on a performance basis. retailers around the world to gain entry into China, the fastest
We provide online retailers with increased reach and brand awareness growing online market in the world. Based in China and Australia,
across the internet and power campaigns for Virgin Australia, Catch the on-the-ground experience and knowledge from our large team
Group, Etihad, Debenhams and 450+ other brands We have a number of professionals will ensure our clients’ needs can be met to support
of service levels available that can be tailored to your region, vertical their successful eCommerce business operations.
or revenue goals.

W: www.commissionfactory.com W: http://www.ecargo.com
T: +61 2 9229 7000 T: +61 3 9421 5037

Sell Anywhere. Fulfil Anywhere. Go People is disrupting the traditional courier model
With Flex Commerce Cloud. by offering businesses, big and small, the ability to
have cheaper, faster and smarter deliveries.
Flex Commerce Cloud is how you will innovate at the pace of your The demand for same-day deliveries is skyrocketing in Australia, and
customers, and out-convenience your competitors. with the impending arrival of Amazon, this demand is only set to
Focusing on the staff and customer experience, our leading commerce enter lower-earth orbit. Go People provides businesses, of any size,
orchestration platform is lightweight and highly scalable. With the chance to compete with the like of Amazon by offering cheaper,
flexible business intuitive tooling you'll be faster, easier to do faster and smarter deliveries. Our state-of-the-art, proprietary
business with, and infinitely more profitable. software efficiently routes multiple jobs at once. A more efficient
route leads to faster deliveries. In turn, with more accurate routing
n Distributed Order Management information comes a more transparent tracking experience for your
n Smart Orchestrated Fulfilment customers. Headquartered in Sydney, Go People serves all mainland
states in Australia.
n In-Store Tooling
Technology specifically built for retail.

W: www.fluentretail.com W: gopeople.com.au
T: 1300 FLUENT (1300 358 368) T: 0451 156 008
Honeywell’s barcoding solutions streamline store INSIDE is a cloud based multi channel customer
operations and point of sale so that a focus can engagement platform that enables clients to engage
return to enhancing a brand’s customer engagement customers across web chat, email, sms, social
and retail experience. media, video chat and with chatbots
Honeywell’s enterprise mobility solutions are built for retail INSIDE's key point of difference is the visualisation of the Agent
operations and online retail supply chain requirements that allow console, which is designed to represent the client's brick and mortar
for an optimised workflow process. By increasing productivity of key store. Visitors are displayed as avatars in 3D, enabling a real-time
operational functions such as receiving, replenishing and customer view into how visitors are interacting with your website content.
service, Honeywell provides retailers the necessary tools to thrive in a Browsing history, basket contents, purchase history, are all 1 click
changing marketplace. With fit- for-purpose mobile computing, voice away from the agent, enabling faster and more efficient service.
directed picking and barcode scanning, retailers can now focus on INSIDE employs data driven engagement rules and methodologies to
creating premier customer experiences and supply chain accuracy. target visitors with personlised proactive messages, increasing chat
conversation while reducing total customer contacts for a better
customer outcome.

W: www.honeywellaidc.com/en-AU W: www.powerfront.com
T: +61 3 9420 5515 T: +61 3 8640 1655

Manhattan Associates is a global leader in Supply NORA is Australia’s Voice of New Retail, a forward-
Chain software solutions. Our flexible and function thinking and influential network providing a fresh
rich solution suites are designed to adapt to the outlook and a balanced, optimistic view of retail in
changing retail landscape. Australia.
Manhattan Associates has been helping Australian retailers drive top Our community is made up of all kinds of businesses: small to large
line growth through optimising their supply chains for more than pure-play and multi-channel retailers, multi-nationals, as well as
15 years. We offer a range of solutions designed to be flexible and service and solution providers – we connect them all to accelerate
functional, easily able to adapt to the changing retail landscape. learning and business growth. We help our members and partners
These solutions include Warehouse Management, Order Management, improve their business performance through the sharing of best
Store Fulfillment and most recently our groundbreaking Manhattan practice and a range of unique, educational, and hands-on events.
ACTIVE solutions which are always current, run anywhere, seamlessly Our community is a great place for retailers to network with their
interconnected and continuously adaptive which can be deployed peers and for solution providers to share thought leadership and
on the cloud or on premise. Our supply chain software solutions support the New Retail ecosystem.
seamlessly integrate with all leading ERP's and eCommerce platforms.

W: www.manh.com.au W: nora.org.au
T: 02 9454 5400 T: 1300 752 946
Neto is the only Australian retail management Oracle NetSuite Business Unit provides a suite of cloud-
platform that provides a complete solution for based financials / Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP),
ecommerce, POS, inventory, and fulfilment. HR and omnichannel commerce software that runs the
business of companies in more than 100 countries.
Our integrated back-end technology enables exceptional and About Oracle NetSuite
consistent customer experiences via any channel be it in store, online Oracle NetSuite pioneered the Cloud Computing revolution in 1998,
or through a marketplace, future proofing retailers in an increasingly establishing the world’s first company dedicated to delivering
competitive market. With a full view of their omnichannel business applications over the internet. For more information, please
operations, our customers are able to make the right decisions to visit http://www.netsuite.com.au.
unlock their full revenue potential. We automate repetitive tasks
About Oracle
and integrate with multiple sales channels to manage orders and
shipments. Empowering our customers to redeploy their team from The Oracle Cloud offers complete SaaS application suites for ERP,
data entry into growth activity. HCM and CX, plus best-in-class database Platform as a Service (PaaS)
and Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS) from data centers throughout
the Americas, Europe and Asia. For more information about Oracle
(NYSE:ORCL), please visit us at oracle.com.

W: neto.com.au W: www.netsuite.com.au
T: 1300 730 300 T: 1800 638 784

Ovisto is Australia's first coupon reward and shop- Productsup is a globally recognized solution for
to-shop voucher network. We enable retailers to ecommerce marketers. It provides powerful, scalable
reward, share and acquire customers through a brand and user-friendly software to efficiently manage and
new marketing channel. optimize product data.
Ovisto enables online retailers to reward customers, support Productsup specializes in the advanced optimization of product data
e-commerce peers and acquire new customers in the process! feeds for large online retailers, brands and agencies. Enabling you to
Acquire new customers and promote your voucher to the customers independently take your product data to the next level is at our core.
of the other retailers in the network just after the customer has No feed is too large. Easily create high-quality, customized feeds for
purchased. more than 1800+ online marketing and shopping channels, such as
Google Shopping, Facebook, Criteo, affilinet, eBay and Shopping.
Reward your customers who make purchases from your store! They
com. Productsup is the preferred solution for more than 800
can choose from a range of vouchers after they check out. Curate
enterprise businesses worldwide, including Superdry, Ikea, GroupM,
your own voucher page and select coupons your customers will love!
Rakuten and Trivago.
You pay on a CPA base only when you acquire a new customer -
otherwise, the service is free!
Ovisto is a new and additional marketing channel to prepare for the
challenging times ahead!

W: www.ovisto.com.au W: www.productsup.io
T: +61 7 5535 2832 T: +61413131717
Push My Button ®
Official Reseller of
Want to have more happy, loyal, and satisfied Connect to your shoppers in a whole new way.
customers and employees? Push My Button are the
resellers of HappyorNot, the smiley faced customer
satisfaction improvement service.
A smiley faced Terminal placed at a highly visible point of experience Technology has created more informed, more connected customers
allows both Customers and Non customers to provide continuous who are no longer loyal to a brand, but to an experience across
anonymous feedback. Coupled with intelligent web based reporting channels. Retailers need a customer platform flexible and fast enough
service which collects and analyses your survey response data, to meet customers' evolving demands. Salesforce for Retail helps
providing actionable insights. Customers like IKEA, Carrefour, you deliver a seamless shopping experience, manage every aspect
McDonalds, Nestle, Dixons Car Phones are using the solution. "Dixons of digital commerce, speed up operations, and unify every part of
can see the close correlation between customer satisfaction and the shopper journey, integrating all your retail operations with the
increased conversion rate, this proves that customer centrism is a world's #1 CRM.
major factor in increasing the bottom line" Magnus Feldt, Head of
People Development, Elkjøp, a division of Dixons Carphone

W: www.pushmybutton.co.nz W: www.salesforce.com/retail
T: (02)8091 4356

With up to 70% of shoppers in Australia abandoning Since 1888 we’ve led the way in logistics across the
their carts due to shipping-related friction, it's clear Asia Pacific region. Today, with the support of Japan
that a good approach to shipping and fulfilment will Post, the world’s third largest domestic mail operation,
pay dividends. we’re expanding our services further than ever before.
Temando (“I send you” in Spanish) is a global technology company With a vast international network and a diverse fleet of 25,000
that exists to connect the world’s logistical resources into a single vehicles strong, Toll is a truly global partner, providing innovative
intelligent software platform and to make commerce universally end-to-end solutions to any logistics challenge, anywhere in the
accessible to everybody. The company’s solutions give merchants world.
the power to move goods from anywhere they are to wherever they We’re driven by our relentless commitment to consumer experience
need to be, no matter how they need to get there. With Temando's and are focused on providing choice and flexibility through a variety
shipping and fulfilment technology solutions, merchants can increase of delivery solutions, notifications, choice of speed and delivery
sales, improve operational efficiencies and enhance CX in a scalable locations. We understand just how important logistics is to your
way. Temando is a Neopost Company headquartered in Australia, with business and want to be an integral part of your success – which
offices in Brisbane, Sydney, San Francisco, London, Paris and Manila. is why at Toll, we see our business as an extension of yours and
For more information, please visit temando.com. your brands and will go the extra mile to support you in exceeding
your customer expectations. We’ll work with you to design the best
solution to suit the needs of your customers lifestyles.

W: www.temando.com W: tollgroup.com
T: 02 8405 0999 E: [email protected]
Powerfront online success

™
online video production
The Powerfront CMS is a powerful eCommerce Online video production.

solution that provides all the technology you need We create high-quality, cost-effective video content.
to sell more products, attract more prospects and
manage your brand online.
We partner with our clients to deliver continued online success. Online video production.
From understanding the commercial objectives to delivering a high We create high-quality, cost-effective video content.
performing digital channel to market with ongoing support and
optimisation. With over 15 years of experience with eCommerce Quickclips offers a complete online
online videovideo solution. Easy to work with,
production
technologies, proven implementation methodology and unique talent, professional and efficient, we plan, create and deliver high-quality
we turn sophisticated requirements into simple solutions. Join the video content, fast.
hundreds of businesses earning online revenue with Powerfront. We make it easy and we do it well.
100% of our clients recommend our services to others.
We have a track record of over a decade, delivering high-quality
content across a wide range of industries.
Call us today to discuss your project.

W: www.powerfront.com.au W: www.quickclips.com.au
T: 1300 795 520 T: 1300 226 330

Address Validation and Autofill Services
Addressify www.addressify.com.au NA
Australia Post www.auspost.com.au Page 2, 3
DataSan for Salesforce www.datasan.com.au 02 9024 2424
DataTools www.datatools.com.au 02 9687 4666
Harmony Address Validation www.harmonyaddressvalidation.com.au 02 9024 2437
Mastersoft www.mastersoftgroup.com/products/harmony-hosted 02 9024 2424
Postcode Anywhere www.postcodeanywhere.com +4419 05 88 85 50
Sensis Data Solutions www.sensisdata.com.au 1800 033 807
StarShipIT www.starshipit.com 02 8007 4997
Affiliate Marketing
1st Choice BPO www.1stchoicebpo.com 66 8 7002 2650
AvantLink www.avantlink.com.au NA
Buyii Daily Deals www.buyii.com.au +61 2 8005 8436
Click Frenzy www.clickfrenzy.com.au Page 7
Commisssion Factory www.commissionfactory.com.au Page 107
Coupon Find www.couponfind.com.au 07 5476 4219
Dealsextra.com.au www.dealsextra.com.au NA
Grabmore www.grabmore.com.au +1 739 591 0299
i love coupons www.ilovecoupons.com.au 1300 825 770
Opentop www.opentop.com 03 9111 0166
Ovisto www.ovisto.com.au Page 48
Rakuten www.rakutenmarketing.com.au 02 919 19758
snip snip Australia au.snipsnip.net 07 3340 7666
Agency
23 Digital Pty Ltd www.23digital.com.au 1 300 233 444
Amblique www.amblique.com Page 5
Atomic Media www.atomicmedia.com 613 9036 7900
Digital360 www.digital360.com.au 03 8394 0407
Emote Digital www.emotedigital.com.au 03 9855 2304
Fortune Innovations Sydney www.sydney.fortuneinnovations.com +91 80 4110 1360
Fotomedia www.fotomedia.com.au 07 3107 1636
Inside by Powerfront www.powerfront.com Page 83
Intelligent Reach www.intelligentreach.com.au 1300 662 556
Jack Media www.jackmedia.com 02 8006 4645
Klyp www.klyp.co 03 8414 1111
Netstarter www.netstarter.com.au 02 9273 7777
Online Store Guys www.onlinestoreguys.com.au 0407 356 044
Practicology www.practicology.com 0406 404 889
Revive Adserver Mod www.reviveadservermod.com 960 045 6681
Ripen eCommerce www.ripenecommerce.com +1 609 529 8820
Shout Web Strategy www.shoutagency.com.au 03 9866 8648
Sparro www.sparro.com.au 0423 311 603
Switched On Media www.switchedonmedia.com.au +61 2 8412 0813
Tangent Snowball www.tangentsnowball.com.au +61 3 9645 8796

The Village of Useful www.thevillageofuseful.com.au 0458 467 873
Think360 Studio www.think360studio.com +91 9915106790
twenty4 www.twenty4.com.au 03 9005 0055
Webnado www.webnado.com.au 07 3177 7181
Wispa www.wispa.com.au 02 9328 3487
Nirmal Web Studio www.nirmal.com.au 02 9281 325
Analytics
11Ants Analytics www.11antsanalytics.com +64 9 889 2733
ClickTale www.clicktale.com +1 1800 807 2117
Competera Online Price Intelligence www.competera.net +1 888 387 2818
Coremetrics www.coremetrics.com.au 13 14 26
Datafying Digital www.datafying.com.au 0422 222 884
Datametric www.datametric.com.au 1300 553 871
Delacon www.delacon.com.au 1300 990 999
E-Web Marketing www.ewebmarketing.com.au 02 9438 5633
Empowered Communications www.empoweredcomms.com.au 03 9940 1600
Evince development Pvt Ltd www.evincedev.com.au 0433 911 516
GfK Retail and Technology www.gfk.com 02 9911 3950
HCL Technologies www.hcltech.com 02 8081 5800
iJento Customer Intelligence www.ijento.com 02 9231 4003
In Marketing We Trust www.inmarketingwetrust.com.au 0438 371 981
Jet Interactive www.jetinteractive.com.au 1300 864 818
Lens10 web analytics agency www.lens10.com.au 03 9607 1316
Ruckus Wireless www.ruckuswireless.com 0447 053 023
Seamless www.seamless-expo.com.au/ 02 8908 8555
Synchromedia Group www.smg.com.au 07 3341 7224
App Development
Aeturnum Australia www.aeturnum.com 0432 502 141
App Xperts www.appxperts.com.au 1300 939 225
CDN Solutions Group www.cdnsol.com +917314035927
Commerce Lab Australia www.commercelab.com.au 02 9099 5776
CommerceLab www.commercelab.com.au 02 9099 5776
Cyberdesign Works www.cyberdesignworks.com.au 02 9439 4436
Datacom Software Solutions www.datacom.com.au 02 8864 9581
Enterprise Monkey enterprisemonkey.com.au 1300 066 653
Flipmind www.flipmind.com 02 8188 2797
MMG interactive www.mmginteractive.com.au 03 9415 6100
Netbiscuits www.netbiscuits.com 02 8935 9460
NoQ www.noq.com.au 1800 028 128
Panacea Infotech Pvt Ltd www.panaceatek.com +16307960282
SAG IPL www.sagipl.com.au/web-development/ 0143 3613 887
Salmon www.salmonap.com.au 02 8251 0044
Technolabs www.technolabs.in 91 98 18 193496
TechXimum Solutions www.techximum.com.au 0430 900 144
Tigerspike www.tigerspike.com 02 9361 5132

Xperts Infosoft www.xpertsinfosoft.com +91 11 2794 2290
Blogger Outreach Services

Tysiza www.tysiza.com 95570226
Comparison Engines/Marketplaces
All Stores Deliver www.allstoresdeliver.com.au 1800 779 263
Alphatise www.alphatise.com 02 8324 7521
better brands www.betterbrands.com.au 1300 581 745
Blue Parcel www.blueparcel.com 02 8096 2550
Brauz business.brauz.com Page 86, 87
BuyMeStuff www.buymestuff.com.au 1300 226 330
Catch Group www.catch.com.au Page 110, 111
Channeladvisor www.channeladvisor.com/au 1300 887 239
ChannelSale Inc. www.channelsale.com 1 866 709 9495
Comparison.com.au www.comparison.com.au NA
Digital House www.digitalhouse.net.au NA
eBay Australia & New Zealand www.ebay.com.au NA
Ecommerce Courier Integrations www.courierquotes.com.au 1300 66 88 58
Foodtraders.com.au www.foodtraders.com.au 0433 410 644
Getprice www.getprice.com.au 02 9264 0105
Getprice Pty Ltd www.getprice.com.au 02 9299 5178
HAGGLEFREE Pty Ltd www.hagglefree.com.au 1300 438 788
Lasoo www.lasoo.com.au NA
Neto www.neto.com.au Page 78, 79
Quicksales www.quicksales.com.au 03 9093 8600
Retail Price.com.au www.retailprice.com.au 1300 563 031
Sale The World saletheworld.com 0410 526040
Shopbot www.shopbot.com.au NA
Trade Me www.trademe.co.nz NA
Consultants
Astute Solutions www.astutesolutions.com 0418 197 279
Base2Services www.base2services.com 1300 713 559
Be Digital www.bedigital.com.au 02 9388 9531
China Performance Group www.chinaperformancegroup.com +1 908 834 8110
Citak Modern Headhunters www.citak.com.au 61 3 8352 5400
Empired www.empired.com 03 8658 5300
Epicor www.epicor.com 02 9927 6200
ERSA www.ersaonline.com 0457 242 082
Hitworks www.hitworks.com.au 07 3112 5272
ICLP www.iclployalty.com 02 9463 3300
IDP Solutions www.idpsolutions.com.au 1300 131 767
Internet Retailing www.internetretailing.com.au 03 9008 0288
JCurve Solutions www.jcurve.com.au 1800 528 783
"JWH Solutions" www.jwhsol.weebly.com 0403 631 276
Logistics Help www.logisticshelp.com.au 02 8078 6903

LogMeIn www.logmein.com/au 1800 658 079
Logo Pearl www.logopearl.com.au 02 8005 1251
Low Cost SEO Services www.lowcostseoplans.com/seo-sydney/seo-services 0431 459 847
Magenable magenable.com.au 0401 744 597
OMate www.omate.com.au 1800 764 861
Online For Business www.onlineforbusiness.com.au 0403 266 695
Online Store Guys www.onlinestoreguys.com.au 0407 356 044
Retail Return Marketing Solutions www.retailreturn.com.au 0434 260 260
Savvy Consulting www.savvyconsulting.com.au 0421 874 043
ShopScience www.shopscience.com.au 0408 918 166
Smarter Web Strategies www.smarterwebstrategies.com 61 8 9467 1884
Store Coach storecoach.com +1 208 863 0805
Swisslog www.swisslog.com/australia 02 9869 5900
Total Carpet Cleaning Melbourne www.totalcleaningmelbourne.com.au 0426 806 554
Uli Aschenbrenner www.uliaschenbrenner.com 1300 808 239
Userlicious www.userlicious.com.au NA
Webanise www.shoplab.com.au 0413 203 976
Content Marketing
BeaconBee www.beaconbee.com NA
BlueArc www.bluearcgroup.com 02 9467 2500
Brightcove www.brightcove.com 02 8310 4376
Castleford Media castleford.com.au 02 8011 4657
Digital Junction www.digitaljunction.com.au 1300 550 902
eCorner Pty Ltd www.ecornerstoresplus.com.au 1800 033 845
Edge Custom Media www.edgecustom.com.au 02 8962 2600
Elcom www.elcom.com.au 02 8064 0999
Future Information Technology www.futureit.net.au 02 9523 8838
Go Search Directory www.gosearchdirectory.com 08 8205 8500
MacZin - SEO Company Melbourne maczin.com.au 03 8315 3065
One Reason www.onereason.com.au 02 8332 4517
Powerfront www.powerfront.com 1300 795 520
QuickClips www.quickclips.com.au Page 9
Salesforce Commerce Cloud www.demandware.com Page 90, 91
ScribbleLive www.scribblelive.com 0414 520 828
Sitecore www.sitecore.net 02 8014 8857
Stonebridge Systems www.stonebridgesystems.com.au 1300 854 116
Textuar Communications LLP www.textuar.com 8460007789
The Content Folk www.thecontentfolk.com.au 0419 248 936
Conversion Rate Optimisation

Acidgreen www.acidgreen.com.au 1300 139 658
AdRoll www.adroll.com.au NA
Advanced Conversion www.advancedconversion.com 0452 179 874
Alkemi International www.alkemi.com.au 03 9431 4044

Barilliance www.barilliance.com 02 8091 4440
Darwin Pricing www.darwinpricing.com 49 1769 8365 782
Dean Infotech Pvt Ltd www.deaninfotech.com/seo-services 98 1047 0129
deBounce www.debounce.com 02 6161 6363
GMG Digital www.gmgdigital.com.au 1300 058 520
Visual Website Optimizer (VWO) vwo.com + 9111 3001 7679
Web Marketing ROI www.webmarketingroi.com.au 03 8199 8370
Yieldify www.yieldify.com.au 0451 006 413
CRM/Loyalty Marketing
Bulletproof Networks www.bulletproof.net.au 0423 483 692
Capillary Technologies www.capillarytech.com 0401 035 865
Cloud Sherpas www.cloudsherpas.com.au 1300 256 83
Datalicious www.datalicious.com 1300209 601
Emarsys Ltd. www.emarsys.com +852 6012 3025
Enterprise Monkey www.enterprisemonkey.com.au 1300 066 653
Epsilon International www.epsilon.com/apac NA
Eway www.eway.com.au 1800 10 65 65
IBM www.ibm.com/smarterplanet/au/retail 1800 557 343
Jericho www.jerichodc.com 03 8612 6897
Kolossus digital www.kolossusdigital.com.au 07 3053 5571
NetSuite www.netsuite.com.au/portal/au/home.shtml Page 155
Permission www.permission.com.au 02 8024 5400
Push My Button www.pushmybutton.co.nz Page 132
Salmat Digital www.salmat.com.au 02 9928 6500
UXC Eclipse www.uxceclipse.com 1300 660 471
WeAreDigital www.wearedigital.com.au 0423 483 692
Webtrends www.webtrends.com 0401 035 865
Cross Channel Integration

Adyen www.adyen.com Page 94, 95
Balance Internet www.balanceinternet.com.au 03 9415 1463
Codisto www.codisto.com 1300 263 476
Creative Computing Integrated Online Store www.creativecomputing.com.au 1300 646 536
Deloitte www.deloitte.com.au NA
MyDeal.com.au www.mydeal.com.au 03 9077 3529
Salesforce Commerce Cloud www.demandware.com Page 90, 91
Customer Service Software Solutions

Data Integration
Informatica www.infomatica.com/au 02 8907 4400
Productsup www.productsup.iO Page 132
Digital Marketing
1 Digital Marketing Agency www.1digitalmarketingagency.com.au 131 059
ADMA www.adma.com.au 02 9277 5400
Affiliate Traction AU www.affiliatetraction.com.au 61 2 8015 2408

Azoya www.azoyagroup.com NA
BuyMeStuff www.buymestuff.com.au 1300 226 330
Click Click Media www.clickclickmedia.com.au 02 9654 3323
Click Frenzy www.clickfrenzy.com.au Page 7
Clipping Path India www.clippingpathindia.com +447943485171
Complete Business Online www.cbo.me 1300 660 285
Digital Massive digitalmassive.com.au 02 8084 2214
Fast Firms www.fastfirms.com 1300 014 411
Immerzed www.immerzed.com 0427 002 870
MAAN Softwares INC. maansoftwares.com 786-374-2515
Market Strategy & Webplanners www.webplanners.com.au 03 9576 2804
Muzaara Pty Ltd www.muzaara.com 0420 708 540
Next Digital www.nextdigital.com 03 8612 6888
Performance Crew www.performancecrew.com.au 0450 955 336
Productsup www.productsup.io Page 9
R.O.EYE www.roeye.co.nz +64 (0)21 086 46020
Rysen www.rysen.com.au 02 9380 2888
Search Factory searchfactory.com.au 1300 884 320
Shopping Links shoppinglinks.com NA
The Website Marketing Group (TWMG) www.twmg.com.au 02 9639 2711
Webarena Australia www.webarena.com.au 08 6460 0220
Zeemo www.zeemo.com.au 1300 881 594
E-Commerce Systems/Software
Amblique www.amblique.com Page 5, 127
Annexa www.annexa.com.au Page 127
Biztech IT Consultancy Pvt. Ltd www.biztechcs.com +91-9879622024
Bluleader www.bluleader.com.au 02 9037 4345
Braintree www.braintreepayments.com 02 8038 5095
CitiXsys Australia Pty Ltd www.citixsys.com 1800 448 363
Commerce Vision www.commercevision.com.au 07 3369 3733
Contiigo www.contiigo.com 02 8437-3531
Cybersource www.cybersource.com/anz NA
eBay Australia www.ebay.com.au NA
EPiServer www.episerver.com 02 8014 8484
FAIR Consulting Group www.faircg.com 280913247
Fluent Retail www.fluentretail.com Page 98, 99
Go People gopeople.com.au Page 116, 117
Logoinn Australia www.logoinn.com.au 1300 796 707
Neotechnology Point of Sale Solutions www.neotechnology.com.au 1300880048
Neto www.neto.com.au Page 78, 79
Pronto www.pronto.net 1300 776 686
Salesforce Commerce Cloud www.demandware.com Page 91

SDL www.sdl.com 02 9002 1582
SmartOSC www.smartosc.com 0421 606 162
SnowyOwl.com.au www.snowyowl.com.au NA
Stream Market streammarket.co.uk +44 23 9270 4323
Temando www.temando.com Page 133
Web Design Sydney www.smallbusinesswebdesigns.net.au 02 9467 3400
WebAlive www.webalive.com.au 1300 797 471
White Labelled www.whitelabelled.com 03 9034 3300
Email Marketing
Aurea www.aurea.com +61 2 9299 1118
Bronto Software bronto.com 1300 546 112
Custom Lists www.customlists.net 1300 957 443
ExactTarget www.exacttarget.com/au 03 8637 4900
ikoala.com.au www.ikoala.com.au 1800 456 252
INXMail www.inxmail.com.au 1300 434 432
Logonado www.logonado.com.au 07 31777181
Mailchimp www.mailchimp.com NA
Marketo www.marketo.com 1800 352 270
Responsys Asia Pacific www.responsys.com 03 9869 1800
SaleCycle www.salecycle.com 02 8448 2062
Send Now www.sendnow.com.au 03 8685 8818
Sign-Up.to Australia www.signupto.com.au 1300 885 534
Silverpop www.silverpop.com.au 1300 933 757
Vision 6 www.vision6.com.au 07 3257 3906
Wolf Interactive www.wolfinteractive.co 03 9882 7171
Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP)

Annexa www.annexa.com.au Page 127
Fulfilment Software/Services
Agile Commerce Consulting www.agilecommerce.com.au 0414 963139
All Purpose Transport www.allpurpose.com.au 0418 263 230
eCargo www.ecargo.com Page 129
Fluent Retail www.fluentretail.com Page 99
Go People gopeople.com.au Page 117
iVend Retail www.ivend.com (212) 745-1365
Manhattan Associates www.manh.com.au Page 103
QuadLabs Technologies Pvt Ltd www.quadlabs.com +91 124 663 6999
Toll Consumer Delivery www.tollgroup.com/consumerdelivery Page 156
Hosting/Domains
Anchor www.anchor.com.au 02 8296 5155
Blue Central www.bluecentral.com 1300 723 296
Cloudways www.cloudways.com +44 33 0001 0338
Crucial Cloud www.crucial.com.au 1300 884 839
Everest Hosting www.everesthosting.com.au 03 3 8685 8818
Go Daddy www.godaddy.com 02 8023 8592

Host365 www.host365.com.au 02 8015 5874
Hostgeek www.hostgeek.com.au 1300 722 504
Hostworks www.hostworks.com.au 1300 304 848
Macquarie Telecom www.macquarietelecom.com 1800 004 943
Melbourne IT www.melbourneitenterprise.com.au 1800 664 222
Netregistry www.netregistry.com.au 02 9934 0501
Ozhosting.com www.ozhosting.com 1300 467 843
Rackspace Australia www.rackspace.com.au 1800 722 577
UltraServe www.ultraserve.com.au 1800 467 863
Veeps www.veeps.com.au 02 8968 1666
Industrial Real Estate

Blackbox Finance www.bbfinance.com.au 1300 70 12 17
CBRE www.cbre.com.au +61 2 9891 3330
Industry Events
iMedia Online Retail Summit imediasummit.com.au 02 8923 8308
NORA www.nora.org.au Page 11
Online Fashion Success www.onlinefashionsuccess.com 07 56795 143
ORIAS www.onlineretailer.com 02 9422 2397
Retail Global Gold Coast www.retailglobal.com.au 03 9505 9988
Retail Global Las Vegas www.retailglobal.com +1 (323) 794-9666
Insert Marketing/Catalogue Distributors

Letterbox Deals www.letterboxdeals.com.au 1300 151 769
ParcelPush www.parcelpush.com.au 1300 436 806
Yellow Media Brands www.yellowmediabrands.com.au 02 8624 6100
Live Chat
eAssistance Pro www.eassistancepro.com +1800 986 9456
LivePerson www.liveperson.com 03 9040 0000
Merchandising
Apptus www.apptus.com +44 77 3932 4198
Baynote www.baynote.com 0408 213 9601
Certona www.certona.com +1 858 369 3888
Retail Display Direct www.retaildisplaydirect.com.au 1800 338 023
Mobile Commerce
Acidgreen www.acidgreen.com.au 02 9654 3323
Brauz business.brauz.com Page 87
Honeywell https://www.honeywell.com/ Page 121
PredictSpring www.predictspring.com +1 650-917-9052
Red Oxygen redoxygen.com 1800 770 758
Order Management
Directlink Worldwide Pty Ltd www.directlink.com 02 9550 0500

Fluent Retail www.fluentretail.com Page 99
Order Management Systems (OMS) www.ordermanagementsystems.com.au 02 8007 4997
WRL whitebox.id 02 8298 4917
Outsourcing
1st Choice BPO Consultants www.1stchoicebpo.com 02 8006 0014
2ndOffice www.2ndoffice.co 63 2 962 0076
Account Consultant www.account-consultant.com +1 516 515 1675
Boldchat www.boldchat.com.au 02 8093 9900
ColorClipping UK Ltd www.colorclipping.com +4407507989044
Digi Media Infotech www.digimediainfotech.com +1 559-403-0075
Outsourced www.outsourced.ph 1300 784 768
Remote Staff www.remotestaff.com.au 02 8090 3458
Satellite Office www.satelliteoffice.com.au 1300 305 603
The Smart Group www.thesmartgroup.com.au 1300 654 261
Virtual Staff Connections www.helpmegeek.com 888 244 1788
Offshore Business Processing www.offshorebusinessprocessing.com 03 9975 7040
Packaging Materials and Systems

eTail Bag - a product of JMP Holdings www.jmpholdings.com.au 03 9588 2229
House With No Steps www.hwns.com.au 02 9451 1511
IntelliPack Asia Pacific www.intellipack.com.au 02 9674 3355
MPI Australia www.mpiaust.com.au 02 9648 3011
Paramount Packaging www.paramountpackaging.com.au 03 9534 9031
Sealed Air www.sealedair.com 1800 612 604
Payment Systems
Commonwealth Bank www.commbank.com.au/evolve 1800 730 554
Debitsuccess www.debitsuccess.com.au 1800 148 848
eftpos Australia www.eftposaustralia.com.au 02 8270 1800
Ezidebit www.ezidebit.com.au 1300 763 256
Instapay www.instapay.com.au 1800 467 827
IP Payments www.ippayments.com 1300 721 163
Lay-buy Financial Solutions www.lay-buys.com 1300 88 61 51
Magento www.magento.com NA
MasterCard Worldwide www.mastercard.com.au 02 9466 3700
Merchant Warrior www.merchantwarrior.com 1300 225 569
Mony Payments www.monypaymnets.com NA
Novatti www.novatti.com 03 9011 8490
OFX www.ofx.com/en-au/money-transfers 02 86679133
Payment Express www.paymentexpress.com 1800 006 254

PayPal www.paypal.com.au/business 1800 729 725
Pin Payments pin.net.au 1 300 364 800
POLi Payments www.polipayments.com 03 8601 5900
Retail Express www.retailexpress.com.au 1300 732 618
SecurePay www.securepay.com.au 1300 786 756
SimplePay www.simplepay.com.au 1300 369 692
Touch Payments www.touchpayments.com.au 1300 665 918
Transaction Network Services www.tnsi.com 02 9959 0800
Westpac www.westpac.com.au/business 02 9455 6939
World First www.worldfirst.com/au 02 8298 4917
Youbill www.youbill.com.au 07 3123 4146
Peak Industry Bodies

ARA - Australian Retailers Association www.retail.org.au 1300 368 041
Australian CCC www.accc.gov.au 03 9290 1409
Internet Industry Association www.iia.net.au 02 6154 5050
New Zealand Retailers Association www.retail.org.nz 1800 128 086
New Zealand Trade and Enterprise (NZTE) www.nzte.govt.nz 03 9678 0206
NORA www.nora.org.au Page 11
Personalisation/Mass Customisation
Criteo www.criteo.com 02 9262 3084
Intentree www.intentree.com.au 0413 018 492
PredictiveIntent www.predictiveintent.com +44 12 0283 2030
Shop Assistant www.onlineshopassistant.com 1800 151 230
Triad Retail Media www.triadretail.com 02 8005 1153
Product Information Management

Fusion Factory www.fusionfactory.com 02 8026 6800
Informatica www.infomatica.com/au 02 8907 4400
SAP hybris www.hybris.com 02 8036 4771
Stibo Systems www.stibosystems.com.au 02 8404 4242
Product Photography
3D Photomation www.3dphotomation.com.au 1300 437 732
Big Picture www.big-picture.com.au 03 9800 2075
Camera Warehouse www.camera-warehouse.com.au 02 8248 5005
Camera Warehouse www.camera-warehouse.com.au 02 9558 3116
Dimension Studios www.dimensionstudios.com.au 03 9538 5888
eCompix www.natalieboog.com 0448 075 772
Graphics Path www.graphicspath.com +880 1719 037 563
Hell Studios www.hellstudios.com.au 03 9429 9733
Hula Hoop Studios www.hulahoopstudios.com.au 02 8971 4450
Images That Sell www.imagesthatsell.com.au 0414 522 343

John Marmaras Photography www.marmaras.com 02 9387 5363
Photogenia www.photogenia.com.au/corporate-headshots 0400 666 474
Photoshopit www.photoshopit.com 07 3188 6667
Pixpert Studio www.pixpertstudio.com 9911484989
Rob Skovell Photography www.skovellphotography.com.au 0418 336 562
Scorpion Technology Computers www.scorptec.com.au 1300 726 770
SKUvantage www.skuvantage.com.au 02 9939 4947
Stock Photo Retouching Services www.retouchingexpert.co.uk 9654548666
Studio Two-One www.studiotwoone.com 0417 233 944
StyleShot www.styleshot.com 02 8964 7735
TAOS www.taoscreative.com.au 02 9700 9707
Thereitis www.thereitis.com 1800 809 833
Project Management
One Dot Project Management www.onedot.com.au 1800 996 194
Rating and Reviews

Bazaarvoice www.bazaarvoice.com 02 9362 2200
Feefo www.feefo.com/en/en 02 8405 7588
mypresences.com www.mypresences.com 0412 187 670
Reevoo www.reevoo.com 02 8966 9923
Stackla www.stackla.com 02 8999 0555
Test Freaks www.testfreaksdata.com +46 8 216 630
Trustpilot www.trustpilot.com.au 03 85 779 607
Yotpo www.yotpo.com +972 3603 6295
Research & Intelligence

Agile Retailing www.agileretailing.com.au 0414 963139
A.P. Web Solutions Melbourne SEO www.apwebsolutions.com.au 1300 780 112
Atomic Search www.atomicsearch.com.au +61 2 9247 8388
Bonfire www.bonfire.com.au 1800 750 204
CINT www.cint.com 02 8219 9937
Click Consult www.click.co.uk +44 84 5205 0292
Competitor Monitor www.competitormonitor.com +1 866 922 8536
Dejan SEO www.dejanseo.com.au 1300 123 736
Emailvision www.emailvision.com.au 02 8024 5400
eMarket Experts www.emarketexperts.com.au 1300 339 170
Experian www.experian.com.au +61 3 8699 0100
Express Marketing seoexpress.com.au 0404 212 235
Flight Digital Media www.flightdigital.com.au 0404 853 843
Gorilla SEO www.gorillaseo.com.au 02 4929 2116
IBM Cognos® www-01.ibm.com/software/au/data/cognos 1800 557 343
Joel House Search Media www.joelhouse.com.au 1800 891 826
Live SEO Service www.liveseoservice.com 0415 141 765
Marin Software www.marinsoftware.com 02 8211 0553
MooMu Media www.moomumedia.com 02 8003 5520
Neustar www.neustar.biz 02 8216 0906

Online Marketing Gurus www.onlinemarketinggurus.com.au 02 8202 9970
Panalysis www.panalysis.com 1300 368 553
Platinum SEO Melbourne www.platinumseo.com.au 03 9018 8150
Prosperity Media www.prosperitymedia.com.au 1300 886 452
Rank Higher SEO www.rankhigherseo.com.au 0434 254 771
Reef Digital Agency www.reefagency.com.au 02 9412 1817
Reload Media www.reloadmedia.com.au 1300 074 259
Resilient Digital www.resilientdigital.com.au 1300 792 704
roi.com.au www.roi.com.au 1300 650 274
Search Academy www.searchacademy.com.au 02 9114 9515
Search Genius searchgenius.com.au 07 3180 3189
SEO Company Melbourne www.seonorthmelbourne.com.au 0404 522 946
SEO Works www.seoworks.com 1300 697 327
SEOBOX www.seobox.com.au 0416 060 348
Sydney SEO Consultant www.nickcavarretta.com.au 03 8091 2674
Testivate www.testivate.com 0404 041 928
The Ultimate Keyword Blueprint www.the-ultimate-keyword-blueprint.com 03 9028 2282
The Web Showroom www.thewebshowroom.com.au 02 8310 2300
Think Big Online www.thinkbigonline.com 1800 706 874
Total Retail and Payments Expo www.totalexpo.com.au
Upstream Commerce www.upstreamcommerce.com +1800 815 1842
Wallis Customer Research www.wallisgroup.com.au 03 9621 1066
White SEO www.whiteseo.com.au 02 9191 9785
Security/Anti-Fraud
Accertify www.accertify.com 1800 734 668
Adyen www.adyen.com Page 95
LawPath www. lawpath.com.au 18005528728
Mailguard www.mailguard.com.au 03 9694 4444
NetMap Analytics Pty www.netmap.com.au 02 8436 8600
Point Of Pay www.pointofpay.com.au NA
Securus Global www.securusglobal.com 02 9283 0255
Shearwater www.shearwater.com.au 1300 228 872
Subuno www.subuno.com +1 646 719 0522
Teradata www.teradata.com 03 9618 2909
Trusted Websites Australia www.trustedwebsites.com.au 1300 387 878
Veda www.veda.com.au 1300 921 621
VeriSign www.verisign.com.au 03 9674 5500
SEM/Optimisation
Clicks2Customers www.clicks2customers.com 0447 635 682
NOW www.nowsolutions.com.au 03 9820 2111
Online Market Experts www.onlinemarketexperts.com 61 9505 9988
SEM/SEO

Shipping & Logistics
Allied Express www.alliedexpress.com.au 13 13 73
Blossom Costumes www.blossomcostumes.com.au 03 9077 5664
Capital Transport www.capitaltransport.com.au 13 14 80
Cellnet Logistics www.cellnetlogistics.com.au 1300 235 5638
Compdata Technology Services www.compdata.com.au 02 9452 3611
Couriers Please www.couriersplease.com.au 1300 753 273
Delivermyparcel.com.au www.delivermyparcel.com.au 1300 787 343
DHL Global Mail www.dhl.com.au/mail 1800 688 280
Direct Couriers www.directcouriers.com.au 13 16 10
Fastways Couriers www.fastway.com.au 61 3 9320 8100
Freight Forwarder Quote Online www.freightforwarderquoteonline.com.au 1300 651 233
Global Orders USA www.globalorders-usa.com +1 818 547 4289
Inkable www.inkable.com.au 02 8488 3116
Invenco www.invenco.com.au 02 9043 6013
Jedcart www.jedcart.com 1300 884 264
JKW Logistics www.jkwlogistics.com.au 0421 832 122
Next Logistics www.nextlogistics.com.au 02 9659 1550
Pack & Send www.packsend.com.au 1300 668 000
Parcel Connect www.parcelconnect.com.au NA
ParcelPoint www.parcelpoint.com.au 1300 025 639
ReadytoShip www.readytoship.com.au 1300 558 110
Ship2Anywhere www.ship2anywhere.com.au 1300 918 372
ShippingEasy www.shippingeasy.com NA
Shippit www.shippit.com 1300 467 447
Signet www.signet.net.au 1300 304 305
Smart Send www.smartsend.com.au NA
Where Is My Parcel? www.whereismyparcel.com 0406 110 454
Shopping Cart Abandonment Software

cloud.IQ www.cloud-iq.com.au 02 9376 7100
eStar www.estaronline.com 1800 503 891
Granify www.granify.com +1 888 340 8429
Listrak www.listrak.com +1 717 627 4528
Shopping Cart Software

Avanti Tech www.avantitech.com.au 02 9029 0259
AWD www.awd.com.au 1300 855 651
BA Creative www.bacreative.com.au 07 3393 2047

Big Commerce www.bigcommerce.com +1 188 8699 8911
Codagenic www.codagenic.com 03 9415 2345
Comzilla www.comzilla.com.au 03 8685 8818
Daydream Websites www.daydreamwebsites.com.au 0419 293 522
eCater www.ecater.com.au 1300 322 837
eCommerce Websites www.ecommercewebsites.com.au 1300 654 100
Fairfax eCommerce www.fairfaxecommerce.com.au 03 9460 7402
Gate 13 www.gate13.com.au 1300 732 603
Insiteful www.insiteful.com.au 1300 467 483
Itomic www.itomic.com.au 1300 486 642
Just X-Cart Australia www.justxcart.com.au 07 3102 5399
Magic Dust www.magicdust.com.au/ecommerce-websites 1300 309 379
Maverick Mav www.maverickmav.com.au 1300 618 418
MeMedia www.memedia.com.au 1300 636 334
My Online Business www.myonlinebusiness.com.au 03 9018 5050
MyWork Australia www.mywork.com.au 1300 809 424
Neto www.neto.com.au Page 79
Ozcart www.ozcart.com.au 1300 889 567
Shopa www.shopa.com.au 03 9510 7477
Shopify Ecommerce Solutions www.shopify.com NA
Sites 'n' Stores www.sitesnstores.com.au 1300 796 530
Soulblu www.soulblu.com/ 03 9078 0538
Spiffy Stores www.spiffystores.com 1300 727 334
Squixa www.squixa.com 02 9119 0444
SVA e-Commerce www.sva-ecommerce.com.au 1300 969 059
SwiftERM www.swifterm.com 08451 706050
Vend www.vendhq.com 03 9018 5509
Websites With Purpose www.websiteswithpurpose.com.au 0414 909 759
Your Online Shop www.youronlineshop.com.au 0402 434 186
Site Design & Usability

AdWise Studio www.adwisestudio.com.au 1300 911 623
Bonsai Media www.bonsaimedia.com.au 1300 55 99 50
Bump Web Studio www.bumpwebstudio.com.au 0431 047 049
CVW Creative www.cvwcreative.com.au 08 9219 1300
Elsner Technologies Pvt Ltd www.elsner.com.au 02 6100 4040
Endobe www.endobe.com 03 9013 6363
eVirtual Technology www.evirtualtechnology.com 91 989 850 7076
eWave www.madebyewave.com 02 8279 7900
Formulate Information Design www.formulate.com.au 03 9036 0263

Netsuite www.netsuite.com.au/portal/au Page 156
Photo Trims www.phototrims.com +880 171 364 1513
Proglobalbusinesssolutions www.proglobalbusinesssolutions.com +1-716-817-8547
PSD-CutUps www.psd-cutups.com.au 02 2 8958 7100
Small Studio www.smallstudio.com.au 03 9381 0996
Speedwell eBusiness Solutions www.speedwell.com.au 1300 077 333
Symplicit www.symplicit.com.au 03 9670 3385
Tweaky www.tweaky.com/services 02 8488 0055
Vivid Group www.vividgroup.com.au 1800 632 341
Web Design Xperts www.webdesignxperts.com.au 1300 551 862
Site Performance/Optimisation
Akamai Technologies www.akamai.com 02 9008 9600
Avial Search www.avial.com.au 0431 966 358
Celebros www.celebros.com 02 8006 2829
Dynatrace www.dynatrace.com 02 8875 5000
Easy Ask www.easyask.com +1800 425 8200
Exorbyte www.exorbyte.com +49 753 1363 3900
FindWatt www.findwatt.com +1 855 346 3926
FIRST www.first.com.au 02 9339 6747
HiConversion www.hiconversion.com +1 866 251 4335
IE Agency www.ie.com.au 03 9001 1700
Mercurian Media www.mercurianmedia.com.au 1300 308 810
Nextopia Software Corporation www.nextopia.com 02 8310 4062
nimbl nimbl.com.au 03 9999 5948
OnQ Marketing www.onqmarketing.com.au 03 9097 1897
SearchSpring Site Search www.searchspring.net +1 719 594 4595
SLI Systems www.sli-systems.com.au 1800 139 190
Smart Logic www.smartlogic.com +1 408 213 9500
SmartBear www.smartbear.com +1 978 236 7900
Social Media
adSpringr www.adspringr.com +91 22 6583 9666
Airtight Networks www.airtightnetworks.com 0401 718 784
Contevo www.contevo.com.au 1300 398 894
Easy Social Shop www.easysocialshop.com +33 6 6400 3005
Evolve Social www.evolvesocial.com.au 0409 320 242
Manalto Social ERP www.manalto.com 0414 532 751
Search Insights www.searchinsights.com.au 02 9290 2400
The Online Circle www.theonlinecircle.com 03 9696 7473

ViralMint www.viralmint.com +91 20 6511 6468
Website Designing Company in India www.ogeninfo.com/digital-marketing +96 54 939 970
Supply Chain Management

BravoSolution www.bravosolution.com 02 8072 0644
Cin7 Inventory Software www.cin7.com 4274 987 420
DHL eCommerce www.dhl.com.au/en/ecommerce 13 14 06
Tag Management
Abobe TagManager www.adobe.com/au/products/tagmanager.html 02 9778 4100
Ensighten www.ensighten.com +1 646 569 2000
Google Tag Manager www.google.com/tagmanager NA
Qubit. www.qubitproducts.com +44 20 3551 3990
Tealium www.tealium.com +1 888 622 2050
Translation Services
DHC Translations www.dhctranslations.com 7712280340
Language Connect www.languageconnect.net 03 9999 6633
Straker Translations www.strakertranslations.com 02 8015 5556
TransPerfect www.transperfect.com 02 9264 0155
Video & Rich Media

Augmented Reality www.exploreengage.wordpress.com 02 9690 1225
Creativa Videos www.creativa.com.au 1300 519 442
Design Identity Australia www.designidentity.com.au 02 8339 0130
Fits.me www.fits.me +64 21 586 190
Invodo www.invodo.com +1 512 279 4800
Media Creatures www.mediacreatures.com.au 0423 483 692
Omnilab Media Group www.omnilab.com.au 02 9467 3400
Oxigeno Film & TV www.oxigeno.com.au 0413 203 976
Premium Animations www.premiumanimations.com 02 8005 8436
Rocket Productions www.rocketproductions.com.au 02 8248 5005
Switch Studio www.switchstudio.com.au 0401 035 865
VMP -Vision Media Post vmp.com.au 07 3324 0900
WebCollage www.webcollage.com +1800 616 1136
Webqem www.webqem.com 02 8968 1600
Webtron www.webtron.com.au 1300 932 876

GLOSSARY
A-B SPLIT TESTING: A form of testing BACK END: The portion of a website CLICKSTREAM ANALYSIS: A
that involves comparing two versions or web application (including the capability of web analytics software
of a web page or email execution underlying database) that does not to display and represent popular
to see which performs better. Site interact with the end user. sequences of pages that visitors
visitors or email recipients are BACK LINKS: A hypertext link from navigate on a website.
randomly shown either the original another website to a page on your CLOAKING: The practice of showing
version (A) or an alternative version site. A sufficient number of properly different content to search engine
(B). constructed back links from reputable spiders and human visitors to
ABANDONMENT: When a user visits websites can increase your position a web page for the purposes of
your site but does not take any on search engine results pages (see manipulating the ranking of the page
action (such as a purchase). SERPs). in search engine results.
ABOVE THE FOLD: The portion of BANNER ADS: Rectangular graphical CLOUD COMPUTING: Applications
a web page that is seen without ads of various dimensions that provided from a server that are
vertical or horizontal scrolling. appear on a website. Banner ads executed and managed by a client’s
AFFILIATE MARKETING: A may contain animation or other web browser, with no installed client
partnership between an e-commerce interactive features. version of an application required.
provider and an online publisher BASELINE: The original version of Any device connected to the
where the publisher endorses a landing page that is used as the internet may access the same pool of
or reviews the product and is benchmark against which other computing power, applications and
compensated based on performance. design variations are compared. files in a cloud environment.
API (APPLICATION PROGRAMMING Also called the ‘champion’ (See also CLOUD-BASED E-COMMERCE
INTERFACE): Strings of programming ‘Control’). SOLUTION: Cloud-based platforms
code that software developers make BLACKLIST: A list of ‘junk’ email are hosted on servers maintained
public so other developers can addresses from which an email and controlled by a cloud computing
create applications that interact program will not accept messages. provider. The multi-tenant approach
with their software. In the case Blacklisting is one form of spam places all customers on the same
of e-commerce platforms, APIs filtering. software blueprint. Upgrades are
open the door to integration of BOUNCE RATE: The percentage of routinely conducted, via open APIs.
third-party applications, such as people who view one page on your COMPARISON SHOPPING ENGINE
email, inventory management and site and then exit without clicking (CSE): Also known as a price
payment processing, by making it through to a second page. comparison service or price engine,
possible for them to exchange data CARD-NOT-PRESENT TRANSACTION: these websites provide users with
with the platform, which extends the A payment card transaction made a list of various prices on specific
platform’s functionality. where the cardholder does not or can products. Most CSEs don’t sell product
AVERAGE TIME ON SITE: The average not physically present the card for directly, but instead refer users on to
amount of time a user spends on a merchant’s visual examination at a retailer website.
your site. the time payment is effected, such CONTENT MANAGEMENT SYSTEM
B2B: Acronym for business-to- as for mail-order transactions by (CMS): Software that allows users to
business. Refers to vertical industries mail or fax, or over the telephone or upload and edit content on a website
or businesses whose clients are also internet. from a ‘back end’ interface. These are
businesses (rather than consumers). CLICK THROUGH RATE (CTR): The the most widely used form of website
B2C: Acronym for business-to- percentage of web page viewers creation software.
consumer. Refers to vertical who click on a particular link CONTROL: See ‘Baseline’
industries or businesses whose (often abbreviated to CTR). CTR is CONVERSIONS: The percentage of
clients are consumers or the retail often applied to the percentage users who complete an action divided
buying public (rather than other of internet users who click on a by users who are presented with the
businesses). PPC advertisement and land on the opportunity to complete the action.
advertiser’s landing page.

COOKIES: Small pieces of information FRAMES: A method of designing web LICENSED E-COMMERCE SOLUTION:
a website sends and stores on a user’s pages in html by which information See ‘On-premise e-commerce solution’.
browser. This information is sent back is pulled from a number of distinct LIFETIME VALUE: The full economic
to the server every time the user visits sources and constructed in a collage- value resulting from a particular
the website again, to alert the server like fashion into the final page. conversion action as measured over
of that user’s previous activity. FRONT END: The portion of a website the whole lifetime of that visitor’s
COST PER THOUSAND IMPRESSIONS: or web application that interacts with relationship with a company.
The dollar amount to be paid by and is seen by the visitor. Often used Abbreviated as ‘LTV’.
an advertiser for each thousand interchangeably with the term user M-COMMERCE (MOBILE COMMERCE):
appearances of an advertisement on a interface. The browsing, buying and selling
particular web page or set of websites FULFILMENT: The process of receiving, of products and services on mobile
(also abbreviated to CPM). packaging and shipping orders for devices.
COST-PER-ACTION (CPA): An goods. While any company selling MERCHANT ACCOUNT PROVIDER:
advertising pricing model whereby products directly to consumers Gives businesses the ability to accept
the advertiser (the retailer) is only through the mail must deal with debit and credit cards in payment
charged once a user completes a fulfilment, this term is most often for goods and services. This can be
specific action, such as a conversion. associated with e-commerce. face-to-face, on the telephone, or over
COST-PER-CLICK (CPC): Also known HOSTED E-COMMERCE SOLUTION: the internet.
as Pay–per–click (PPC), this is an Refers to software that runs on a MERCHANT ACCOUNT: An online
advertising pricing model whereby third party’s server. In most cases, bank account that accepts credit card
the advertiser (the retailer) is users of hosted e-commerce solutions payments.
charged once a user clicks on the don’t have access to the code that MICROSITE: A special-purpose small
advertisement. runs the site. However, upgrades website that is designed to maximise
CPM: See Cost per thousand and maintenance are generally taken conversion rates for an online
impressions care of by the solution provider (cf marketing campaign or traffic source.
CUSTOMER RELATIONSHIP ‘Self-hosted e-commerce solution’). MULTICHANNEL RETAILING:
MANAGEMENT (CRM): Refers to the IMPRESSION: Any time a particular Multichannel retailing (or omnichannel
practices, strategies and technologies item, ad, or image is displayed to a retailing) is the use of a variety of
that companies use to manage, record user. channels in a customer’s shopping
and evaluate customer interactions INTERRUPTION MARKETING: experience including research before a
in order to drive sales growth by Marketing in which the visitor must purchase. Such channels may include:
deepening and enriching relationships be interrupted in the course of their retail stores, online stores, mobile
with their customer bases. normal activities. Examples include stores, mobile app stores, telephone
CTR: See ‘Click-through rate’ billboards, television commercials sales and any other method of
DIGITAL CURRENCY: A form of virtual and web banner ads (cf ‘Permission transacting with a customer.
currency or medium of exchange that marketing’). MULTIVARIATE TESTING: A type of
is electronically created and stored. KEYWORD: A word or phrase typed in testing methodology where data is
They can be used to buy physical by internet searchers. A portfolio of collected simultaneously across a
goods and services and can be keywords related to a particular topic number of different variables (See also
restricted to a certain community. or industry is commonly used as the ‘A/B split testing’).
ENTERPRISE RESOURCE PLANNING basis for constructing PPC campaigns. OMNICHANNEL RETAILING: See
(ERP) SYSTEM: A system that LANDING PAGE: A landing page is the Multichannel retailing
automates and integrates core first page that a visitor lands on as a ORDER MANAGEMENT SYSTEM (OMS):
business processes such as taking result of a traffic acquisition activity. A computer software system used for
customer orders, scheduling The landing page can be a stand-alone order entry and processing.
operations, and keeping inventory page, a part of a special purpose
records and financial data. microsite, or a page on the company’s
main website.

GLOSSARY
ON-PREMISE E-COMMERCE SOLUTION: PAYMENT GATEWAY: An e-commerce PRODUCT INFORMATION

Refers to a type of software delivery application service that authorises MANAGEMENT (PIM): Refers to
model that is installed and operated credit card payments for processes and technologies focused
from a customer’s in-house server and e-businesses, online retailers, bricks on centrally managing information
computing infrastructure. It utilises and clicks, or traditional brick and about products, with a focus on the
an organisation’s native computing mortar. data required to market and sell
resources and requires only a licensed PCI COMPLIANCE: See PCI DSS the products through one or more
or purchased copy of software from PCI DSS: The Payment Card Industry distribution channels. A central set
an independent software vendor. Data Security Standard (PCI DSS) is of product data can be used to feed
The customer is responsible for the a proprietary information security information to multiple output media
security, availability and overall standard for organisations that such as websites, print catalogues,
management of on-premise software. handle branded credit cards from the ERP systems, and electronic data
However, the vendor usually provides major card schemes including Visa, feeds to trading partners.
after sales integration and support MasterCard and American Express. PROPRIETARY E-COMMERCE
services. (See also ‘Self-hosted PERFORMANCE MARKETING: The SOLUTION: A custom-built
e-commerce solution’; cf Hosted definition of getting measurable e-commerce solution, which may
e-commerce solution, SaaS and return on investment for marketing be built using a standard coding
Cloud-based e-commerce solution) dollars. Unlike traditional marketing language (such as .Net or Java), or
OPEN SOURCE: Refers to software platforms such as TV, print or radio, may be based on bespoke coding.
for which the original source code is performance marketing is pay-for- RESPONSIVE DESIGN: An approach
readily accessible and is able to be performance. That means one only to web design aimed at crafting sites
redistributed and modified. In order pays a fixed dollar amount per action to provide an optimal viewing and
to set up an open source e-commerce or share of revenue per sale. interaction experience – easy reading
platform, basic technical expertise is PERMISSION MARKETING: Any and navigation with a minimum of
required in the areas of web design marketing activity that is voluntarily resizing, panning, and scrolling –
and development. accepted by a member of the across a wide range of devices (from
ORDER MANAGEMENT: See OMS target audience (cf ‘Interruption desktop computer monitors to mobile
ORDER TRACKING: The process in marketing’). phones).
which a customer views the progress PERSONA: A detailed profile of a SAAS: A cloud-based delivery model
of their order leading up to delivery. hypothetical person representing in which applications are hosted
This is generally done through a an important class of visitors to and managed in a service provider’s
tracking code provided when a your site. Used as the basis for datacentre, paid for on a subscription
purchase is completed. constructing a relevant and effective basis and accessed via a browser
ORGANIC: A type of search engine conversion experience. over an internet connection. A SaaS
traffic that originates from non-paid PERSONALISATION: The use of service subscriber is exposed only to
search results often as a result of technology to improve the user the application-level functionality,
search engine optimisation. experience on a web page or mobile configuration and other application
PAGEVIEWS: The total number of device based on the characteristics tooling, and does not monitor,
times a page on a site is loaded. of the individual user (interests, manage or control the underlying
PATCHING: A patch is a piece social category, context, browsing or infrastructure (including network,
of software designed to update previous purchase history). servers, storage, databases or
a computer program or its application platform services). (See
supporting data, to fix or improve also ‘Hosted e-commerce solution’
it. This includes fixing security and ‘Cloud-based e-commerce
vulnerabilities and other bugs, and solution’; cf ‘Self-hosted e-commerce
improving usability or performance. solution’ and ‘On-premise e-commerce
Though meant to fix problems, poorly solution’).
designed patches can sometimes
introduce new problems.

SALES FORCE AUTOMATION: A type of SYSTEM INTEGRATOR (SI): A service THIRD-PARTY COOKIES: Cookies left
software that allows you to track all provider that interconnects other by websites other than the one that
important interactions with potential independent systems to communicate the internet browser is visiting. These
sales prospects and clients. with each other. In e-commerce, kinds of cookies are commonly used
SEARCH ENGINE OPTIMISATION system integrators ensure that for tracking advertising campaigns and
(SEO): The process of improving e-commerce platforms are properly are often turned off by web surfers.
the visibility of a website or a web integrated with other systems such THUMBNAIL IMAGE: A small product
page in a search engine’s unpaid as ERP, order management systems image that is used on e-commerce
results – often referred to as ‘natural’, (OMS), web content management website pages to show a large number
‘organic’, or ‘earned’ results. In (WCM), digital marketing, payment of products. Larger images are
general, the earlier (or higher ranked processing, logistics and warehousing, subsequently displayed on the product
on the search results page), and more and analytics. detail pages.
frequently a site appears in the search SOLR SEARCH INDEXING: Solr is a TRIGGERED MESSAGING: A system
results list, the more visitors it will popular open source search platform, that identifies customer behaviour,
receive from the search engine’s users. written in Java. Solr is under constant usually while browsing a retail website
SEO may target different kinds of development by a large community (i.e. shopping cart abandoners) and
search, including image search, local of open source developers, under sends personalised emails to try and
search, video search, news search the direction of the Apache Software trigger transactional behaviour.
and industry-specific vertical search Foundation UNIQUE USERS: Refers to the total
engines. Supply Chain Management (SCM). number of individuals who visit a site.
SELF-HOSTED E-COMMERCE TOTAL COST OF OWNERSHIP (TCO): USABILITY: The relative ease of
SOLUTION: A self-hosted solution The amount you will pay for the navigating and interacting with a
is hosted on servers that the user platform itself, its implementation, website or web application.
controls. The user is responsible for required resources, ongoing USER EXPERIENCE (UX): The
sourcing, setting up and managing the maintenance, marketing and experience a user has when visiting/
hardware infrastructure and operating promotion etc. Ongoing cost of interacting with a website or web
system that the e-commerce site runs upgrades, hosting, content delivery application, especially in terms of how
on. (See also ‘On-premise e-commerce and PCI compliance all need to be easy it is to use.
solution’; cf ‘Hosted e-commerce costed from the start. USER-CENTERED DESIGN: A
solution’ and ‘Cloud-based e-commerce REQUEST FOR PROPOSAL (RFP): philosophy and practice that considers
solution’.) An invitation made by an agency the needs and background of the
SERPS: Acronym for ‘search engine or company interested in the intended user of an object or interface
results pages’. procurement of a commodity or as central to the design process.
SERVICE LEVEL AGREEMENT (SLA): service, to potential suppliers to WCM (WEB CONTENT MANAGEMENT)
Guarantees of a certain level of submit business proposals in relation SYSTEM: A software system that
responsiveness and availability for a to the provision of the commodity provides website authoring,
certain web application or service. or service sought. In the context of collaboration, and administration
SLAs are typically expressed in a e-commerce, an RFP may be issued tools designed to allow users with
latency delay to access the data, and by a large retailer seeking proposals little knowledge of web programming
percentage of uptime that the website from e-commerce platform vendors or languages or markup languages to
should be operational. implementation partners. create and manage website content
THIRD PARTY PAYMENT PROCESSOR: with relative ease.
The alternative to Merchant accounts WEB HOSTING: A type of internet
– some e-commerce platforms can hosting service allowing your site to
accept payment through providers be accessed on the world wide web.
such as PayPal.

INDEX
A G P
Adidas................................... 33 Glue Store.............................. 97 Practicology...... 50, 51, 53, 55, 56
Adyen.................... 92, 93, 94, 05 Go People ........114, 155, 116, 117 ProductsUp...........................132
Alibaba Group........................ 29 H Push My Button.....................132
Amazon...............8, 22, 23, 24, 25 H&M....................................... 15 R
Amblique.................. 72,73,74,75 Hallenstein Brothers..............105 R.M Williams.......................... 73
Annexa.................................127 Hema Xiansheng.... 28, 29, 30, 31 Redbubble......................... 42, 43
Australia Post ............ 2, 112, 113 Honeywell....... 118, 119, 120, 121 Reebok................................... 33
B I Retail Zoo......................... 40, 41
Bigcommerce..................... 59, 70 IBM................................... 59, 65 Rodd & Gunn.......................... 74
Boost Juice........................ 40, 41 Icebreaker.............................. 90 S C
Bras N things......................... 97 Inside.................... 80, 81, 82, 83 Salesforce.... 52, 63, 64, 88, 89, 90, 91 M
M
Y
Brauz..................... 84, 85, 86, 87 SAP Hybris...................59, 65, 66

CM
C Magento.......................60, 66, 67 Shopify............................. 59, 70 MY
Catch Marketplace... 108, 109, 110, 111 Manhattan Associates... 100, 101, 102, 103 Sportscraft ............................ 75 CY
Click Frenzy............................. 7 Mizuno..................................105 T CMY
Commission Factory.....104,105,106 Myer...................... 36, 37, 38, 39 Temando...............................133

Crate + Barrel.................... 34, 35 N The Blue Space....................... 17
D Net-a-Porter...................... 26, 27 The Playhouse Group.............. 55
Demandware.......................... 59 Neto.54, 56, 57, 71, 76, 77, 78, 79 U
Domino’s........................... 46, 47 Netsuite.......................59, 67, 68 Under Armour ....................... 33
E Nike ................................ 32, 33 Uniqlo.................................... 15
eCargo...................................129 Nora.................................. 10, 11 W
Episerver............................... 69 O Walmart................................. 17
F Officeworks..................80, 81, 82 Whole Foods Market............... 84
Flora & Fauna.................... 44, 45 Oracle..........................59, 64, 65 Woocommerce........................ 60
Fluent Retail.... 51, 52, 55, 96, 97, 98, 99 Ovisto............................. 48, 132 Woolworths..................... 97, 107
Foodora.................................115 Q Y
French Connection.................. 97 Quick Clips............................... 9 Yoox Net-a-Porter ............. 26, 27

C
CM
Started online, purchased in-store,

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THE WHOLE WAY

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1800 638 784 | [email protected]

Wherever you are.
Wherever you need it to be.
THE RETAIL TECHNOLOGY SUPERGUIDE

shopping warehousing pickup sorting
We can swing into With same day dispatch We collect the parcels The parcels are sorted transport
action the moment your available, your customer from your distribution for delivery through our
customer orders online orders will be picked centre or store and national network. Whether your customer is located
or purchases in store. and prepared, and provide full scanning in a metro, regional or really
ready for collection. visibility. remote area, our delivery network
will take their parcels to them.
delivery SMS alerts

The parcels are hand-delivered to the Home, Work or Your customer will receive an SMS delivery notification
Collection Point address your customer nominates. on the day of despatch and the day of delivery.
or
home or work direct to a
“can you deliver “are you there?” Collection Point
on another day?”
Published by The Media Pad Pty Ltd

Missed deliveries can be
rescheduled for a day that
suits your customer.
No Yes proof of
delivery
Your customer’s
is it ok to signature is recorded
leave it here? as proof of delivery.
SMS alerts
No Yes “thanks!”
Collection Collection “sorry we parcel left

Point Point or missed you” in safe place
pickup drop-off For deliveries that require a For deliveries where no
We’ll hold your customers Your customer will be sent signature, or cannot be left signature is required, Toll will
parcel for up to 147 days, an SMS notification that their in a safe place, the Toll driver leave your customer’s parcel in
for pick up at a time delivery has been taken to an will leave a missed delivery their letterbox or a safe place.
convenient to them. Collection Point outlet. card with details for the
customer to contact Toll.
“got it, thanks!”
“got it, thanks!” www.powerretail.com.au
Visit - tollgroup.com/consumerdelivery
Call us on 1300 036 631 or visit AU $30 2017
Get in touch with us - [email protected]

www.tollgroup.com/consumerdelivery
[email protected]
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THE RETAIL TECHNOLOGY SUPERGUIDE

delivery SMS alerts

Published by The Media Pad Pty Ltd

Collection Collection “sorry we parcel left

“got it, thanks!”

“got it, thanks!” www.powerretail.com.au

Get in touch with us - [email protected]

8453 Toll CD Press 210mmX270mm 0.1.indd 1 17/11/2015 1:17 pm

004 THE RETAIL TECHNOLOGY SUPERGUIDE | WWW.POWERRETAIL.COM.AU

108................Online Marketplaces, the New Age Shopping Mall

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TARGETED EMAIL MARKETING PROGRAM YEAR-ROUND

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give us a call to find

1300 226 330

ABN 63 019 210 403

online video production

THE RETAIL TECHNOLOGY SUPERGUIDE | WWW.POWERRETAIL.COM.AU 009

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Digital retail technology is advancing at a

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THE AGE OF SOCIAL SHOPPING

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MAKING OUR VOICES HEARD

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As the digital retail juggernaut gathers momentum, the need for

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No entity is more talked about in retail than

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Yoox Net-a-Porter says it aims to double the

Federico Marchetti, YNAP Founder and CEO

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HAVE YOU MET

When Hema Xiansheng is able to provide the

24HRS veggies and seafood.

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Nike may be the most recognisable sports

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In a time where many retail giants are facing

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The pace of change in retail is accelerating. While

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