Joyce Qian

Retail Best Practices: 12 Tactics to Maximize Your Mother’s Day Revenue

April 23, 2021 by Joyce Qian in Ecommerce

Mother’s Day is a big day for mothers and the retail industry. Mother’s Day, which is celebrated on May 9th this year, is the third-largest retail holiday in the U.S. The nuance of Mother’s Day is that shoppers are buying primarily for their mothers and stepmothers. A part of that $20B Mother’s Day retail spends also includes purchases for wives, daughters, grandmothers, sisters, and even friends.‌ Consequently, any retailer should have a marketing campaign ready to roll out for the big holiday. Below you’ll find a combination of online and physical retail best practices for your Mother’s Day marketing strategy.‌ Impressive Mother’s Marketing

Facebook Ad Segmentation: A How-To Guide for Successful Ecommerce

March 30, 2021 by Joyce Qian in Ecommerce

The ability to use Facebook ad segmentation quickly and effectively is crucial to generating higher returns from your ad budget. You also enjoy better returns if you couple Facebook ad segmentation with omnichannel customer engagement. Advertising costs decrease while customer satisfaction and sales increase. Getting traffic to your website is progressively becoming more expensive. Revealbot informs us that in December of 2020, Facebook CPM, or the cost per 1000 visitors, hit a high of $16.27, up from $8.59 in January, nearly doubling in only one year. So, what’s can you do? More and more, marketers realize that they have to

Retail Trends 2021: What 61 Industry Experts Predict for the Post Covid-19 Era

March 16, 2021 by Joyce Qian in Ecommerce

In 2020, the unexpected pandemic unsettled the world as we know it. Fortunately, the retail industry’s growth rates in nearly all leading economies remained positive. For instance, in the United States, the retail index grew by 6.9% (YoY), with eCommerce sales contributing 21.3% of the total retail revenue or more than a fifth of the GMV generated for the first time. E-commerce sales spike is not entirely surprising since the lockdowns kept the physical retailers shuttered for weeks in many countries. “In 2020, the YoY growth of eCommerce in retail is 3 times higher than that of 2019.” Despite the favorable

Valentine’s Day Retail Best Practices to steal your customers’ hearts.

February 11, 2021 by Joyce Qian in Ecommerce

Who doesn’t love Valentine’s Day? If you’re an online retailer, you already know that the international celebration of true love is a great time to boost sales and to recover from the post-holiday slump. In 2020, Valentine’s Day sales reached an all-time high, hitting $27.4 billion in the United States alone. This year, as retailers cope with the economic fallout of the COVID-19 pandemic, Valentine’s Day sales are more important than ever. The future of eCommerce in the post-pandemic era seems to be promising, with emerging retail technologies and opportunities arising. Since Valentine’s Day campaign is one the most important marketing campaigns of

Sephora: The Omnichannel Strategy Which Redefined CX in Cosmetics

February 3, 2021 by Joyce Qian in Brand Stories

While many other brick-and-mortar high-street brands have crumbled throughout the decades, luxury cosmetic giants, Sephora have gained a stronghold in the competitive cosmetics retail landscape. Survival has been, in part, a result of Sephora’s omnichannel strategy, which ultimately redefined the cosmetics shopping experience. From its humble beginnings as a small perfumery in the French town of Limoges, Sephora is firmly in the retail spotlight as one of the leading brands of personal care and luxury beauty products. Like Fartech (which we covered in this case study), Sephora’s business model is geared towards a diverse range of customer segments. In this case

The Top 15 Retail Technologies to Watch in 2023

January 27, 2021 by Joyce Qian in Ecommerce

Much of the world we live in today depends primarily on technology. It influences nearly every aspect of our lives, from how we communicate with one another to the way we conduct our businesses. At the same time, technology is ever-evolving, shifting to make our lives more convenient and enjoyable. As new technology trends emerge, the wisest decision for any business is to keep up and adapt. This is especially crucial for those in eCommerce and retail, as it’s those technological advancements that keep customers coming back for more due to differentiated shopping experience. 2020 put retailers in quite a

LEGO: The Marketing Strategy Behind the Toy Industry Titan

December 11, 2020 by Joyce Qian in Brand Stories

LEGO’s claim to fame goes well beyond its famous interlocking plastic bricks. Since its founding in 1932, LEGO has diversified into movies, video games, television shows, popular social media channels, and even major amusement parks. And despite how devastating the COVID-19 pandemic has been for many in the toy industries, LEGO’s sales rose 14% in the first half of 2020 compared to the same period in 2019, with its operating profit rising 11% to $622 million. Much of this success is due to the LEGO marketing strategy, which embraces digitalization and emphasizes knowing its customer base. By staying true to the brand

Retail Best Practices: Nailing your Holiday Marketing

Retail Best Practices for Holiday Marketing

November 18, 2020 by Joyce Qian in Ecommerce

At this point, it’s no secret to anyone that 2020 has been a trying year that has thrown all standard operating procedures out the window. As we head into the holiday season, there is still a lot of uncertainty ahead. Consumers are expected to spend about $50 less per person this holiday season, increasing competition among existing retailers to secure those holiday dollars. Marketing campaigns need to adapt, along with everything else this year, and follow retail best practices for COVID-19. This year’s best practices will be clearly different (vs last year), since brands are called to take much more complex decisions,

How to Use QR Codes in Retail: Best Practices for Optimal Customer Experience

October 30, 2020 by Joyce Qian in Ecommerce

To deliver exceptional next-generation in-store experiences, retailers must bridge the gap between the digital and physical worlds. QR codes in retail stores enhance the customer journey and facilitate an omnichannel shopping experience that seamlessly connects the dots between the physical and online spaces. Despite having been around for decades, the first wave of QR codes for retail didn’t see the success many marketers hoped it would, mostly due to technological shortcomings that required users to download various scanner apps. But since Apple’s iOS 11 update that allowed iPhone users to scan QR codes directly through the camera app, the implementation

New Look: The Marketing Strategy Behind the UK Fast-Fashion Retailer

October 23, 2020 by Joyce Qian in Brand Stories

New Look is one of the UK’s leading fast-fashion retailers with more than 400 physical retail stores in 66 countries across the world and a robust eCommerce presence. Yet the story behind this phenomenal retailer is far from a business fairytale. After a decade of shrinking revenue (from £1.4B in 2012 to £1.3B in 2019), the company has struggled to turn profitable in recent years. It is a fascinating, down-to-earth, retail case study with many lessons to take away for any industry professional. In this New Look case study, we’ll dive deep into the New Look’s marketing strategy, its channel mix, and

How to Prepare for Black Friday 2023: A Retailer’s Guide

September 22, 2020 by Joyce Qian in Ecommerce

Retailers across the nation felt optimistic in the immediate aftermath of previous Black Fridays. Always a huge source of profit, this beloved shopping day blew away predictions by producing an impressive $7.4 billion in sales. Expectations for Black Friday 2022 were high in light of these numbers. This year, fears of coronavirus transmission threaten to keep shoppers out of stores, as does a struggling economy that leaves many shoppers with little cash to spare. Still, while profits will probably not reach levels enjoyed in 2019, retailers need not lose hope. If anything, this year offers a valuable opportunity to implement measures

Best Back to School Campaign Ideas: How 20 Big Retailers Nailed It

August 14, 2020 by Joyce Qian in Ecommerce

The Back to School season is always an attractive opportunity for retailers to get a foothold ahead of the holiday season. In fact, the Back to School shopping season is second only to Black Friday as America’s largest retail event. For 2022, the National Retail Foundation predicts K-12 back to school spending is set to hit $36.9 billion, breaking the previous record of $30.3, set way back in 2012. Taking college into account, Back to School 2022 could bring over $110 billion, up from $71 billion in 2021. If the forecast comes true, it will be the first time the

19 Mobile Checkout Best Practices For 2023

August 10, 2020 by Joyce Qian in Ecommerce

The digital landscape of 2023 looks little like the eCommerce environment that dominated just a few short years ago. One of the most significant changes? A clear shift to mobile. An Episerver benchmark study involving 1.3 billion website views reveals that, on many days, over 80 percent of viewing sessions originate from mobile devices. As such, organizations that utilize conversion rate optimization (CRO) and other mobile checkout best practices hold the potential to achieve huge improvements in marketing ROI. What Is Mobile Checkout? The term “mobile checkout” references the process of completing a digital transaction from a device such as

COVID-19: How 34 Businesses Adapted Their Marketing Strategy During Crisis

adaption of marketing strategy during crisis

July 17, 2020 by Joyce Qian in Ecommerce

The pandemic has brought a paramount uncertainty for businesses across the world amidst forced closures, disrupted supply chains, and lowered consumer spending. According to McKinsey, nearly 24% of the British workforce (7.6 million jobs) is currently at risk because of COVID-19. While in the United States, more than 33 million Americans have reported unemployment during the two months. Retail is among the industries severely impacted by recent events. Most operators struggle to find a way to deal with the new normal, searching through industry reports and whitepapers for ideas and guidance on ensuring business continuity. We decided to talk with 34 B2C, eCommerce, and

[Report] How has COVID-19 Impacted Ecommerce Trends?

May 27, 2020 by Joyce Qian in Ecommerce

At the onset of the COVID-19 outbreak, many governments enforced Stay-at-Home measures that require social distancing for millions and closures of non-essential stores. Unsurprisingly, home confinement forced consumers towards online shopping, as weekly eCommerce sales shot up 61% within the first weeks of the closures. That growth in online sales seems to be the main hope for retailers to retain part of their market share and survive through this crisis. This report examines the weekly eCommerce sales patterns as a result of stay-at-home measures, which products consumers are purchasing online, and which categories consumers have cut back on, in an

Business Continuity for Retail: Lesson from COVID-19

May 18, 2020 by Joyce Qian in Ecommerce

The COVID-19 crisis has been devastating on businesses around the world, causing major disruptions to all business functions – from operations to supply chain management to marketing and sales. One of the sectors most affected by the crisis is the retail industry, as physical retail stores are ordered to shut down in cities across the world. Yet, despite all the trauma induced by this global pandemic, there is a glimmer of a silver lining out of this crisis. COVID-19 is considered to be one of the most impactful market disruptors in recent history, opening several windows of opportunity for businesses

Farfetch Case Study: Analyzing The Strategy of the UK Fashion Unicorn

April 2, 2020 by Joyce Qian in Brand Stories

In just 13 years since founding, Farfetch became an online fashion retail unicorn. This Farfetch case study explores the keys to its success from a marketing and sales perspective. Read the Farfetch case study here.

Retail Marketing Trends 2020: What 31 Industry Experts Predict

March 12, 2020 by Joyce Qian in Ecommerce

2019 was another glorious year for the retail sector, with sales reaching $25 trillion worldwide, according to eMarketer. Unsurprisingly, the key growth driver was eCommerce, which grew over 16% year over year, accounting for $3.46 trillion (~14% of total retail sales). “Online retail grows twice as fast as the rest eCommerce sector and 5 times higher than the global retail sector. As eCommerce penetration is expected to rise from 56.1% in 2020 to 65.5% by 2024, a major trend to watch is around how retailers can capitalize on their brand assets, starting with their physical stores, which account for a

Gartner Trends 2020 Predictions: What They Mean for Retailers

February 25, 2020 by Joyce Qian in Ecommerce

Each year, Gartner, the world-leading research and advisory firm, identifies top strategic trends that shape the future of businesses across the globe. Retail business owners, CMOs, and eCommerce professionals have highly anticipated Gartner Trends on Digital Commerce 2020, as it provided insights into the ever-shifting digital commerce landscape with sophisticated analysis. From AI to Visual Commerce, there are many emerging trends to watch and, more importantly, adopt to grow your business. In this post, we picked five of Gartner trends on digital commerce that we believe have the most near-term impact on eCommerce business for a deep dive. Aside from

10 Lovely Valentine’s Day Promotion Ideas for Retail

February 7, 2020 by Joyce Qian in Ecommerce

As red and pink hearts begin to pepper the shop windows, it’s a reminder that Valentine’s Day draws near. Despite the proximity to Black Friday and Christmas period, Valentine’s Day remains one of the top holidays for boosting retail sales. In 2019, American consumers spent a record-breaking $21B on gift-giving during this period, according to the National Retail Federation (NRF), with younger millennials (age 23-29) and Gen X leading the spending. In 2021, during the 2nd year of the pandemic, the total spend on Valentine’s Day-related products accounted for $21.8 Billion. Whether if you have already started the Valentine’s Day