That’s a wrap! Season one of Conversations With CommerceNext: A Retail and DTC Podcast may be over, but there are tons of lessons that we’ll take with us into 2022. Industry experts from every type of brand and retailer regaled us with their experiences and best tips for career success.
Check out our biggest “Aha!” moments from each episode this season below. And don’t forget to subscribe wherever you listen to podcasts.
Episode 1: Purple CEO Shares lessons from Turnaround feat. Joe Megibow, CEO, Purple
- Purple highlights the uniqueness of their product to gain traction and sales, which can lead to the valuable asset of word-of-mouth awareness.
- The success of Purple is “not a convenience play of a digitally-native company,” as Megibow played a huge role in the turnaround of the company.
Episode 2: Joy as a Career Strategy: Alex Waldman, Co-Founder of Universal Standard
- In approaching her career, Alex Waldman chooses joy.
- At Universal Standard, an ethically motivated brand, Waldman focusses on genuine consumer-company relationships.
- Waldman is a trailblazer for women in marketing, and finds joy in helping the greater good in her career.
Episode 3: Reconnecting with the Contemporary Consumer feat. Seth Goldman, CEO, Urbanstems and Ryan Urban, CEO & Founder, Wunderkind
- Urban and Goldman discussed the adaptations their companies made during the pandemic and how the reality is that remote work can be just as valuable as in-person work environments.
- People have become much more comfortable with consumerism and making purchases online. This will only increase as the demand for high quality products from online stores also increases.
Episode 4: Moving at E.L.F. Speed: Ekta Chopra, Chief Digital Officer Of E.L.F. Beauty feat. Ekta Chopra, CDO, E.L.F. Beauty
- Ekta says, “Have your feet on the ground. Listen to your community. Your community will call you out when you’re not doing the right thing: you’re not listening to them, you’re not reaching out to them in the ways that you want to. So, really, having your ear to the ground, your feet to the ground, making sure your foundation is strong.”
- Moving quickly in marketing starts with data, insights and actions.
- E.L.F. stands by their authenticity and transparency in their culture which comes from the top down with their leadership.
Episode 5: JustFab Talks Inclusive Growth: Daria Burke, CMO, JustFab
- All marketing decisions at JustFab are rooted in data, with the customer revealing what they want, when they want it, and how they want to hear it.
- Lean into changing trends by acting in a real-time huddle, adapting your focus to seasonal changes with the flexibility of being online. This has allowed JustFab to be real-time relevant and resonant.
Episode 6: Retail As Child’s Play: CAMP CEO Ben Kaufman
- The CAMP ecommerce team created innovative marketing and merchandising programs that are getting attention in the crowded toy industry world-wide
- Marketing towards children is different from any other subgroup, because you have to change your perspective to mirror their agile and nimble minds.
Episode 7: Qurate’s Naomi Jacobs on TikTok, Livestreaming and Career Trajectories feat. Naomi Jacobs, Social Strategy Director, Qurate
- Though often overlooked, live streaming across ecommerce channels is an up and coming way to gain traction and market in 2022.
- A strong foundational relationship is the most important part of loyalty, meaning it is through the power of people and relationships that you can build and retain a customer’s trust.
- When taking advantage of a new social media platform, you must manage the account by keeping up with changes in format to ensure you don’t miss out on new opportunities.
Episode 8: Leadership Lessons From the Front Lines: FullBeauty’s CMO Bill Bass
- Your success is completely dependent on the people around you. Surround yourself with more competent workers who take risks to make gains.
- Often, free shipping is a money loser. Only offer it in high value situations, such as new customer acquisition.
Episode 9: THE YES’ Julia Bornstein on Career Growth and AI Powered Retail Innovation feat. Julie Bornstein, Founder & CEO, THE YES
- To keep up with changes in ecommerce, adapt to legacy tech systems to create more dynamic experiences for your customers.
- As an expert in artificial intelligence, Bornstein took a deep dive into the latest forms of personalization in ecommerce, and which ones she uses at THE YES.
Episode 10: How Marketing & Ecommerce Collaborate to Fuel Growth & Seamless Customer Experience feat. Heidi Cooley, CMO and Adam Michaels, CDO, Crocs
- The organizational structure at Crocs is unique with global digital teams reporting to one digital structure and the definition of the scope of responsibility within digital which is both consumer focused and consumer driven.
- Use key markets for your customer base to build authentic trust and engagement with fans.
- Marketing and digital work together at Crocs to stay grounded in a customer-centric approach, clearly define roles and initiatives for each segment and share insights.
Episode 11: Fabletics’ Meera Bhatia on Agility, Membership Models and Mentorship feat. Meera Bhatia, COO, Fabletics
- Membership experiences effectively allow retailers to deliver more highly personalized experiences, because all members share their style and size preferences monthly.
- Product management includes accessing customer problems and delivering delightful customer experiences through keeping the customer in mind always.
- Understanding customer needs through membership programs allows highly predictive inventory management, reducing costs and increasing value for members.
Episode 12: Poshmark’s CMO on Changing Times, Leadership and the Post-Covid Consumer feat. Steven Young, CMO, Poshmark
- Consumers want to engage online with and understand a bit more about what they’re buying, instead of buying a generic product from a huge brand, which is the optimal customer for a brand, like Poshmark.
- Leaders should unlock peoples’ potential and capabilities, functioning more as a coach than a transformation leader through showing more vulnerability. New hires should optimize value by understanding the depth of how things work at a company.
We had such a great season and look forward to continuing to have these meaningful discussions with our guests in season two, which is already underway. For more from CommerceNext, check out season two or catch up on any missed episodes of the podcast here, learn about our holiday research, or read a full recap of our episode with THE YES.
