By Chris H. Petersen
One of the most misunderstood and missed dynamics of retail today is the renewed importance of “content.” Historically, brands focused on mass marketing of products that drove product content creation and distribution. Brands provided “air cover content” for launching products and educating customers. Brand content was also the “stuff” of retail ads, promotions and in-store merchandising. So, what changed?
What has changed is consumer behavior and expectations. Transformation from physical to digital retail created many new points of access for customers. More than 75% of today’s customers begin their journey online. Another layer of complexity is that consumers are increasingly using their smartphones to research and shop. Consumer-facing content is now dispersed across many channels, systems and the cloud. Consequently, a major challenge for both brands and retailers in today’s ecosystem is how to curate the “rich product content” that engages customers early, often, and even after the sale.
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