In late March, Zoovu joined over 10,000 attendees who took Las Vegas by the shopping cart at Shoptalk 2022 looking to learn from the leaders of the retail ecosystem and identify the technology solutions that will drive their success in the years to come. As a key sponsor, we had the opportunity to showcase how we turn trash data into profitable content and product experiences to a wide range of industries.
Shoptalk brings in a diverse group of attendees, speakers, and sponsors all with their own expertise, challenges, and aspirations. Yet, businesses of all sizes and from different industries are all trying to keep up with the ever-evolving digital world: channel expansion, changes in consumer behavior, massive amounts of data to maintain and leverage effectively, etc. As we looked back at our time at Shoptalk 2022, we pinpointed 4 key themes from our discussions with customers, prospects, thought leaders, and attendees that we see shaping the retail world for years to come.
4 Key Takeaways from Shoptalk 2022
1. Improving Product Search and Discovery is Top of Mind for Everyone
Nearly every business is thinking about how their current approach to product search and discovery is broken and failing to drive customers down the right journey for their needs. Very few have pinpointed how to solve this problem but are eager to elevate their customer experience with superior product discovery.
To improve product discovery, businesses need to reckon with the root of the problem: too much product data and information, not enough enriched product content to facilitate and fuel digital experiences that make a purchase decision easier to make.
2. Scaling Syndication Is Complicated and Difficult to Manage
In the last few years, having an omnichannel approach to sales and marketing is a given. While it’s theoretically easier for brands to expand their sales channels because they are no longer competing for limited shelf space and inventory placement. In practice, syndication on the digital shelf is challenging and both brands and retailers want to work closely and drive strong customer experiences with an effective omnichannel approach.
Scaling syndication for brands requires using robust technology that enables a smooth integration and gives them control of how customers engage with their brand and merchandise. For retailers, it’s critical to make it easier for brands to improve their merchandising. This will require both parties to embrace new technology solutions and adopt more flexible processes, so each group thrives.
3. Preparing for a Zero Party Data World Remains a Priority
Google gave the digital marketing world an extra year to prepare for the death of third-party cookies and data earlier in 2022. While this gives retailers additional time to prepare and find new avenues to collect information about buyers and their preferences to build buyer personas, it’s a significant change in how marketers drive brand awareness and traffic to their sales channels. Selling in a zero-party data world requires solutions that gather customer insights in a non-evasive way where customer privacy is respected but businesses can still collect valuable insights on product, pricing, and channel preferences for a wide variety of buyer types.
Platforms in the AI product discovery and conversational commerce space are the solution to solving this gap. When customers engage in 1:1 dialogue, they are consenting to that buying experience and businesses don’t need to make assumptions about their buyers through these dialogues and interactions.
4. Using AI to Automate Processes Continues to Trend Upwards
It’s hard to find technology in the retail ecosystem that is not leveraging artificial intelligence and machine learning within their platforms. As AI becomes omnipresent, businesses want to adopt applications that will make a significant impact on improving performance and reducing labor-intensive tasks that bog down their employees. When businesses find out an AI application can solve an issue, they couldn’t even put a name to it, which is when a technology standout.
For many of Zoovu’s customers and those we met with at ShopTalk, having product data transformed into enriched product content through AI automated tasks of ingestion, cleansing, standardizing, and classification has been a game-changer. When product content is accurate and 100% machine readable businesses see the immediate benefit of AI.
5. Being Together with Colleagues and Peers was Priceless
Shoptalk 2022 was the first large event Zoovu has participated in since February 2020. Team members from across the US and Europe finally had the opportunity to meet in person and showcase the evolution of our product to everyone in attendance. They got to present demos of Zoovu’s robust AI product discovery platform, meet with customers in real life, connect with industry peers, and more.
We’re looking forward to seeing everyone back in Vegas for Shoptalk 2023!
Interested in learning more about Zoovu? Request a demo and to see how turning trash data into profitable content and experiences is the secret behind today’s leading brands, retailers, and B2B manufacturers’ digital commerce success.