9 Nifty Digital Strategy Insights from the Past Week: E-commerce Link Digest

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Hey, Big Thinkers! Hope you’ve had a great week. On this chilly, cloudy, early fall Friday, let’s get right to this list of 9 nifty digital strategy insights from the past week to get you through the weekend. Enjoy:

1. Frank Kochenash over on Brand Quarterly has an excellent look at “The Long Play: Competing In The New Phase Of Consumer Empowered Retail.” Really good read.
2. On a highly-related note, Ted Rubin advises “Web Retailers: Focus on Experience, Not Just Conversion” over on the Future of Commerce blog.
3. Kieran Flanagan, HubSpot’s VP of Marketing, talked with WordStream Founder Larry Kim and ClassPass CMO Joanna Lord all about “The Future of Marketing” that you’ll really want to check out.
4. While we’re talking about the future of marketing, don’t miss a recent episode of our Thinks Out Loud e-commerce and digital strategy podcast that looked at “What the Future of Marketing Might Look Like” as well as this post from the ongoing E-commerce Link Digest series that rounded up “13 Near-Perfect Posts Featuring Future Marketing Trends.”
5. Bringing the future into slightly more practical focus, you’ll definitely want to check out this recent post that asked, “How Can You Succeed at Digital Marketing Next Year? 17 Great Posts Offer Answers.”
6. Marketing Charts has data that shows the “Smartphone Share of E-Commerce Visits Grows, but Conversion Rates Still Lag Other Devices.” I strongly suspect those conversion numbers will improve now that both Android Pay and Apple Pay will work via web browser. Clearly, it’s going to take a little time before websites actually enable that functionality, but it’s a must-do and one of the many reasons “Why I’m Bullish on Mobile Payments and Messaging.”
7. With all these changes, you’ll want to take a look at these “13 Key Insights About Mobile Commerce, Payments, and Content Marketing” also from the E-commerce Link Digest series.
8. Looking at digital a bit more broadly, Microsoft’s Dynamics Blog asks “What’s Driving Digital Transformation?” as well as offers some terrific insights into how your business can adapt most effectively to the changes we’re seeing due to digital.
9. You might also want to get yourself up-to-speed on digital transformation with this recent Thinks Out Loud episode, “Digital Transformation: A Brief Introduction.” Which is as good a way to wrap up this list of 9 nifty digital strategy insights from the past week as any, don’t you agree?

If you want learn even more about how your customers’ changing behavior shapes e-commerce and marketing, be sure and register to receive a special report I’ve produced in conjunction with hotel marketing firm Vizergy, “Digital Hotel Marketing in a Multiscreen World.” While it’s targeted specifically at hotel and resort marketers, the lessons apply to just about any business. You can get your free copy of the report here.

You can also check out these slides and video from my recent webinar, “Digital Marketing Directions: Three Key Trends Driving Your Marketing Next Year”:

Finally, you might enjoy some of these past posts from Thinks to help you build your e-commerce strategy and your digital success:

• 6 Mobile Commerce and Strategy Insights: E-commerce Link Digest
• Content is Still the King
• The Digital Strategy Myth
• Why Mobile Payments Will Rule
• Driving Seamless Experiences in 2016 (Thinks Out Loud Episode 149)
• Mobile is So Much Bigger Than You Think (Thinks Out Loud Episode 140)
• It’s Not “Mobile First.” It’s “Customer First.”
• 8 Killer Entries About Improving E-commerce Experience: E-commerce Link Digest