E-Commerce Trends & Innovations
Hamutal Schieber | July 2016

Introduction: The New Marketplace
• In 2014, we published a research on e-commerce trends and innovations, focusing on key
needs and solutions pertaining to: Personal Touch, Better Decisions, Hyper
Convenience, Delivery & Shipment and Call to Action.
• We had also highlighted an upcoming trend, which we dubbed as “buy/sell economy”.
• Over the last 2 years, a lot of money went through the e-commerce funnel ($ 700 billion,
to be specific, to almost $2.5 trillion).
• This caused competitors to really up their game in regards to supporting decisions, providing
convenience, personalizing and offering easy shipment / collection and return options.
• Today, e-commerce is not merely a channel. It is a whole new world, changing industries in
every possible aspect: from product variety (“1-brand retail”), through positioning (“1-niche
retail”), to selling.

The Global E-Commerce Market

Online Retail: Global Market Size
• According to eMarketer, global retail ecommerce
sales, including online and mobile commerce,
reached nearly $1.671 trillion in 2015, accounting
for 7.4% of total retail spending.
• By 2019, eMarketer expects worldwide online
sales to more than double to $3.578 trillion,
making up to 12.8% of total retail spending.
eMarketer, Worldwide retail ecommerce sales: emarketer’s updated estimates and forecast through 2019, 2016

E-Commerce Growth Leads US Retail CAGR
American Bakers Association, “What’s in store 2016 & beyond”, March 2016

Online Retail: Global Sales By Region
• According to eMarketer, Asia-Pacific has been the
leader in e-commerce in both value and growth rate
terms, and is expected to continue and drive the
market. The biggest markets in value terms are
China, US, UK and Japan.
• Schieber Research believes that the opportunities
in new model creation in W. Europe and N.
America will drive growth faster than forecasted.
eMarketer, Worldwide retail ecommerce sales: emarketer’s updated estimates
and forecast through 2019, 2016

Online Retail: Global Sales By Industry
A.T Kearney, connected consumer study, April 2015
• The things we buy online today
extend to any possible category:
Products – food, beverage, non-
food, beauty, household goods,
appliance, etc.; services – health
insurance premiums,
telecommunications, financial
services, consultancy, diet plans,
fitness lessons; and content –
subscriptions, information, video.
• Overall, electronics, fashion,
services, books, and tickets are the
top categories for e-commerce;
groceries and household items are
the least commonly purchased,
according to A.T. Kearney.
Kantar Worldpanel, Accelerating the growth of Ecommerce in FMCG, 2015

Fastest-Growing Categories in US E-Commerce
• According to comScore, in the U.S,
Computer Hardware has long been the #1
category in digital commerce, but the
Apparel & Accessories category is now
the leader.
comScore, 2016 U.S. Cross-Platform Future in Focus
• Automotive is an emerging online commerce industry. Accenture
surveyed 10,000 people in the U.S. and a handful of other countries
about buying cars. Three-quarters of respondents said that “if given
the opportunity, they would consider making their entire car-buying
process online, including financing, price negotiation, back office
paperwork and home delivery.” This is especially the case in China
(90% of consumers) and Brazil (75% of consumers).
Carvana, the digital used car retailer, is
enabling consumers to complete the
purchase process online, and then collect
the car from a vending machine.

Largest Ecommerce Sites Globally
• 10 Largest Ecommerce Sites Globally
Rank Brand Name
Monthly (Cookie)
Unique Visitor
Location
1 Taobao 601,450,542 Hangzhou
2 Amazon 524,470,572 Seattle
3 eBay 267,904,800 Bay Area
4 Alipay 104,530,651 Hangzhou
5 Alibaba 106,760,063 Hangzhou
6 Rakuten 65,012,387 Tokyo
7 Flipkart 64,870,673 Bangalore
8 Etsy 44,289,271 New York
9 Fiverr 53,670,235 New York
10 Snapdeal 30,232,183 New Delhi
ecommerce-platforms, 2015
• Top Shopping Sites by Alexa
Rank Brand Name Global Rank
1 Amazon 6
2 eBay 26
3 Netflix 36
4 amazon.co.uk 90
5 Walmart 142
6 Etsy 154
7 Steampowered 190
8 ikea 233
9 Homedepot 215
10 Target 218

From E-Commerce to M-Commerce
• Probably the most important implication of the expectation for immediacy is
the rise in mobile commerce. PayPal and Ipsos’ research expect mobile
commerce revenue to reach $ 291 billion in 2016, in line with the rise in
smartphone penetration.
• Overall, a third of online shoppers surveyed said they’ve used their
smartphone for making an online purchase in the past 12 months. For 18 –
34 year olds, the figure reaches as much as 59% of shoppers. 64% of
smartphone users report using an app for purchases as opposed to the 52%
who used mobile browsers, due to convenience and speed.
• Mobile payments have become a part of the business landscape, and new
technologies such as “pay with selfie” (Mastercard, Alibaba) have emerged.
Source: Pymnts, Global M-Commerce Set To Leave E-Commerce In The Dust, Feb 2015
Starbucks is a leading mobile retailer, with 20% of sales coming from
mobile. The coffee chain’s mobile app integrates content, payments, pre
ordering and delivery.

From E-Commerce to M-Commerce
Mobile shopping and desktop shopping
caters to different occasions and
behaviors, and therefore, multi-channel
strategy is key.
• According to Think With Google,
AliExpress found that shoppers like to use
multiple devices to complete a
transaction (search from the mobile
phone, purchase on their computers).
Think with google, “AliExpress: E-commerce on the go”, May 2015
• Mobile shopping peaks during private time; Desktop transactions peak on weekdays, but mobile
transactions peak on evenings and weekends when people are away from work.
• Mobile sites need to keep it simple (for quick transactions; we assume that this also encourages
impulse purchasing), yet mobile apps are usually used by returning, loyal customers.

Omni-Channel
• According to a Google, Ipsos MediaCT and Sterling Brands study (2014), digital is transforming the in-
store experience for customers.
• 42% of in-store shoppers search for information online while in-store. For the most part, they're using
search engines (64%). However, almost half of shoppers head to the retailer's own site or app. Only
30% will look up details from a different retailer's web site or app.
• In the last few years, many online companies in the US have launched a physical presence in addition
to their digital one.
• According to senior VP at Razorfish, the big benefit of the flagship stores is that they’re terrific
marketing vehicles to generate a lift in incremental shopping to the online store.

Omni-Channel
• Eyewear online
commerce company,
Warby Parker, has
been opening brand
stores as a generator
of awareness for the
brand, as well as to
drive traffic to the
website and accelerate
its e-commerce sales.
In 2016 Amazon launched “Amazon
Books”, a physical bookstore in
Seattle. The store sells a limited
selection of Amazon's best-reviewed
books and doubles as a showroom for
the brand's hardware lineup (Kindle,
Fire TV, Fire tablets and Echo).
• In 2015, menswear online
retailer Bonobos launched
its new "guideshop” – a
showroom offering
consumers to place an
order and have it shipped
for free.

Growing Platforms: Social Media
• Social media growth in
both pure social-driven
retail sales and referral
traffic is outpacing all
other online channels.
• Facebook is the leader
among platforms, in line
with its general position in
the social media market.
YouTube is an interesting
source for online shoppers
with 25% of a PwC survey
respondents using this
platform as part of their
shopping experience.
PwC, Total Retail Survey, 2016
Which social media do you regularly use as part of your shopping experience?

Growing Platforms: Social Media
• In 2015 Instagram, Pinterest and YouTube launched a buy/shop now
option on their platforms. However, these buttons are rarely used
by consumers according to various surveys.
In 2016, Twitter discontinued its buy
button product. Instead, Twitter is
shifting its resources to dynamic
product ads.
Marketingcharts, 2016

Growing Platforms: Content
• Content and online commerce are now interlaced more than ever, with
videos, ads, and editorials, enabling immediate purchase – either from the
same website or through an affiliate.

Growing Platforms: Messaging Apps
• Messaging Apps, like Whatsapp or Wechat, are also becoming an important service tool for
online purchase.
Best in class hotels and airlines have already begun
implementing social media tools throughout the
traveler’s path to purchase.
Stayful is offering a #tweetstay feature – to reserve
a stay through social media
Chinese e-tailer JD.com, allows WeChat users
to shop on JD.com through the chat app.
Payments are supported by WeChat Payment
feature, launched in 2013.

Growing Platforms: Subscriptions
• Subscriptions provide a convenient way for shoppers to easily
manage repeat purchase for regular essentials.
• For retailers, this gives the benefit of planning ahead, as well as
a regular revenue stream and less competition once the
decision was made.
• Therefore, retailers should reward shoppers for subscribing, not
only through better prices but also through measures such as
content, customization, VIP offers and other loyalty enhancing
tactics.
Starbucks has joined the
coffee subscription trend
Amazon is offering better discounts when
enrolling in a subscription plan
Harry’s is offering shaving products subscription

Growing Platforms: Peer to Peer
• In 2014, we reported witnessing a
significant trend towards providing the
shopper with a platform through which
he/she is able to sell goods.
• Since then, we have witnessed
numerous apps that enable people to
buy, sell or swap goods, thus creating a
new marketplace, in line with the overall
Collaboration Economy trend. Others,
such as Move Loot, shut down.
• We expect Marketplaces to drive a shift
in the ecommerce market, blurring the
boundaries between individuals and
businesses.
www.trendtrunk.com
eBay’s Valet: sellers take pictures of their
items, and the app gives them an estimated
price. Valets then list items for sale on eBay,
and ship them to buyers. The seller gets 70%
of the sale price. (discontinue of app
announced in 2015 – but the platform still
seems to be operating).StubHub
www.offerupnow.com

Growth Strategies: Affiliate Marketing
• According to BI Intelligence (Dec. 2015),
affiliate programs have moved to the
mainstream, with major retailers and
publishers now using them to drive sales of
all sorts of products, from electronics to
apparel.
• Affiliate marketing now drives as many e-
commerce orders in the US as email –
16% of US e-commerce orders, according
to marketing firm Custora. This makes
affiliate marketing one of the four largest
sources of e-commerce orders,
outperforming social commerce and display
advertising.
•
BI Intelligence

Shopper Motivations and Category Barriers

Shopper Motivations Drive E-Commerce Trends
• According to Nielsen’s research (“Global connected Commerce”, Apr 2016), these are the main
motivations for online shopping:
Convenience
• 53%: reducing
time and effort
spent shopping
Informed Decision
Making
• 50%: reviews to
help make better
choices online &
offline
Deal Seeking
• 49%: finding the
best price
possible
Product
Assortment
• 49%: gaining
access to more
choices than
available locally
Boxed.com: buy in bulk for bigger
savings

Shopper Motivations: choosing a retailer
• A global 2016 PwC survey
found that online shoppers
choose a favorite retailer
mainly because the prices
are good. Another
interesting finding is that
20% of shoppers choose a
specific retailer due to the
retailer’s reward program;
we believe that this figure
will rise as retailers develop
better loyalty programs.
• For Millennials (ages 18-
34) just 56% chose "good
prices”, compared to 63% of
the rest.
PwC, Total Retail Survey, 2016

Barriers to Online Purchase
• The main barrier in online
purchasing is the ability to see,
touch and try merchandise.
Another barrier is immediacy –
shoppers want their products
now.
• The way the product fits is a
smaller barrier, probably because
it is relevant to specific industries
only.
Source: Global PwC 2015 Total Retail Survey

Omni-Channel Retail: See, Touch, Try
• Samsung 837 leverages
“showrooming” by using the entire
showroom for experimentation and
workshops, while the purchase
can only be completed digitally.
• Blue Nile, online jewelry retailer, is dealing
with the barrier for online jewelry purchase
through the opening of physical stores.

Will it Fit
• The “will it fit” barrier is mostly relevant to the apparel industry.
Online retailers are using a variety of methods, including a flexible
return policy; “order in several sizes” (and return the one which
doesn’t fit); and try and decide.
• When a shopper is dissatisfied with the purchase due to lack of fit,
this may affect the shopper’s willingness for repeat purchase not
only from that retailer, but also for the category in general. For that
reason, a flexible and convenient return policy is a must-have for
e-tailers.
• Technology based strategies include body photo analysis or
augmented reality.
• Our “best in class” example is True Fit (see case studies). Sephora offers “Color
IQ” – find it in store with
a special device, then
use your number to buy
online; or find it online.

Will it Fit
Hudson Bay (owner of Saks Fifth Avenue) acquired Gilt, the flash
sales platform, in 2016, to enhance its position in digital commerce.
The site boasts a current membership base of more than 9 million and
delivers 50+ new sales each day. The company leveraged its multi-
channel presence by offering returns to Saks Off Fifth stores.
Lamoda, Russia’s leading fashion
retailers, launched in 2011, offers free
shipping, 365 days for return, and a try-on
service, which includes 15 minutes wait by
the delivery service for the customers to
approve / return the merchandise.

The 2016 – 2017 E-Commerce Trend Map

Market Trends Map
BestBetterGoodTrend / Strategy
Real-time customer service,
chats, bots
Loyalty schemes, e-mailing,
personalized couponing,
social log in
Recommendations based
on previous searches/
orders, Wish Lists
Personal Touch
advisory services, AR / photo
analysis for fitting, social
integration, try before you buy
Price comparison, Price
Guarantees, demonstrations
by real people, creating
communities
Ratings and reviews,
videos, guides
Better Decisions
S-Commerce, better delivery &
return options, VR, IoT /
Wearables
M-Commerce, product
comparison tools, omni-
channel, Mobile Commerce
Bundling & item pairingHyper Convenience
Same-day delivery, 1-hour time
frame, “pre dawn” arrival, free
delivery
Click & collect, lockers, track
shipment
2 – 5 days delivery, free
shipping over a specific
sum, package tracking
Delivery & Shipment
New business models (e.g.,
rent it, sell it, swap it), limited-
time offers
Multi channel service, chats,
couponing, free trial /
sampling
Convenient cancellation &
return policies
Call to Action
Source: Schieber Research, 2016

Personal Touch
• Website-generated personal recommendations, based on
the shopper’s wish list and/or previous purchase, is a
basic personalization tactic today.
• Couponing or special offers that are in line with the
shoppers’ interests are becoming an essential component
for loyalty.
• To really drive personalization in the future, we believe
that an actual interaction will have to take place. This
does not have to be led by a human being; “bots”, as well
as other automated, big data and personal data based
systems, can also be utilized.
Taco Bell’s newly announced digital
ordering bot, integrated into Slack
(source: Mobile Commerce Daily)

Personal Touch  Customization
• The online platform enables shoppers
to create their own, unique version of
any product. Many brands have used
this advantage, to turn everyday items
into festive and differentiated products.
Mondelez used personalization in digital
commerce, to grow its Oreo brand as the
company plans to grow its online sales 10
times – to $ 1 billion in 2020

Personal Touch  Loyalty
• One of the main developments of the last 2 years, is
the rise in loyalty management.
• Using re-targeting / re-marketing (specifically, in social
media), inbound marketing, and e-mail marketing,
companies continue to pursue existing clients as well
as leads or former clients, with special offers that are
tailored to them according to previous interest
expressed by them.
Graze, an online subscription-based healthy snack service
uses emailing as call to action. It seems that these offers
are based on events such as hosting and sports games.

Better Decisions  Trial
• Retailers are increasingly using the “try before you buy” strategy.
• To tackle the trial barrier in categories that are harder to cross without trial,
retailers offer to buy several items and return the ones they dislike.
Warby Parker: building a successful online
retailing model for glasses through free trialThirdLove: one of the bra-shopping start ups
that supports decisions through trial, as well as
product reviews.

Better Decisions  Trial
• In 2016, eBay and leading Australian retailer Myer have launched the first-ever virtual
reality department store.
• The innovation allows customers to immerse themselves in a new experience of shopping
inside a Myer store, with product information updated in real time. More than 12,500 Myer
products can be browsed, selected and added to a shopper’s cart using eBay’s Sight Search
function.
• It works by using ‘shoptical,’ a specially designed
virtual reality viewer. shoppers view a product,
and by holding their gaze on it select an item
which then ‘floats’ towards them.
• Users can hold their eyes on the ‘Add to Basket’
icon to complete their purchases via the eBay
app. (Watch the video).

Hyper Convenience  Mobile Commerce
India’s online marketplace Flipkart
has started rolling out image search
on its mobile app to improve the
shopping experience. Instead of
typing keywords, users can upload
photos of fashion items and find
similar products in terms of color,
pattern or style inside the Flipkart
merchandise database.

Delivery & Shipment
• According to Oracle study,
globally, 44% of consumers
preferred to shop in-store and
take items home in 2015.
• However, 34% listed buying
online and having items
delivered home as their
favorite way to shop.
• The rate of buying goods
online and collecting them in-
store has doubled from 4%, in
2014, to 8% in 2015.
Oracle, “Retail Without Limits”, 2015
Walmart: 2-day shipping

Delivery & Shipment  Home Delivery
• Retailers such as Amazon and Walmart
are using the same day delivery as a
competitive advantage.
• Yet, according to A.T. Kearney, most
consumers are happy with two-day
shipping for “non urgent purchase” (we
do wonder, however, what constitutes a
“non urgent” purchase).
A.T. Kearney 2016 Assessment of
Excellence in Retail Operations study
• Amazon Prime members in 27 metro areas receive FREE Same-
Day Delivery on qualifying orders over $35. Amazon Fresh offers
unattended, overnight delivery of groceries.

Delivery & Shipment  Click & Collect
• In the UK, almost 20% of shoppers used Click & Collect in 2015. In the US this option is just beginning,
with retailers such as Home Depot, Kohl’s, Target and Walmart reporting early success for this
platform.
According to Home Depot, ‘buy online, pick up in
store' and 'buy online, ship to store' are some of
the fastest-growing parts of the company’s
operation.
UK retailer John Lewis offers a variety of delivery
options, and utilizes the sister company Waitrose for
click & collect. The company reported that click-and-
collect overtook home deliveries over the 2014
Christmas sales period, and accounted for more than
half (56%) of all their online orders
• According to Slice Intelligence
(May 2016), Click and Carry still
makes up a relatively low
percentage of orders, making up
8.5 percent of Target orders and
14 percent of Walmart’s orders.
However, Click and Carry orders
grew 64 percent Y-O-Y for Target.

Delivery & Shipment  Peer to Peer
• Shopify merchants can deliver their products to local
customers via Uber Rush for same day delivery.
Practical Ecommerce, “Ecommerce Shipping Innovations Just Over Horizon?”, May 2015
• In 2016, Walmart announced it will pilot a delivery
service utilizing drivers at Uber, Lyft and Deliv to
transport groceries ordered online from its stores
direct to customers’ doors.
• The customers will pay Walmart its normal $7-10
delivery charge online, and make no payment to the
driver.
Walmart blog

Best in Class Companies

Best in Class: True Fit
• The True Fit Corporation is a
promising e-commerce company.
Initially a footwear and apparel
discovery platform, the tool is now
available through thousands retailer
brands and growing rapidly. The
company had already reached an
impressive number of 20 million
profiles, and the untapped potential
is still huge.
• First and foremost, True Fit helps to
solve the number 1 problem for
apparel and footwear shoppers –
“will it fit” – while increasing
conversion and lowering return rate,
thus increasing satisfaction.
• The Kate Spade New York brand has entered into a
partnership with True Fit, and experienced an 18%
reduction in returns according to George M. Carrara,
COO, Kate Spade (Nov 2015).
• Guess publicly shared with Business of Fashion that
they saw a 250% conversion rate increase for True Fit
users.

Best in Class: True Fit
• The second reason for our growth
prediction for the company, is that it
has cleverly managed to leverage the
huge amount of data it had
accumulated, to support
personalization, marketing,
merchandising and product
development (the Genome tool).
• House of Fraser, one of the best-in-
class omni-channel retailers today,
reported that “True Fit helps drive
6%-8% in net revenue. The data
insight is really powerful, and helps
us spot gaps and know where to
expand the range” (Madeleine
Melson, Director of Customer
Insights, House of Fraser).

Best in Class: Amazon
• Amazon.com strives to be “Earth's most customer-centric
company where people can find and discover virtually
anything they want to buy online”, growing through
acquisitions as well as through digital commerce initiatives.
• In 2014, Amazon launched Prime Now in the U.S, later
expanding to the UK, offering customers thousands of
products like paper towels, shampoo, books, toys, televisions
and batteries delivered in an hour or less.
• After launching its Amazon Dash reminder / scanner products
in 2014, in 2015, Amazon launched its new Dash Button, a
pre-set physical Button for product-reordering that Amazon
Prime members can place anywhere in their homes.
Amazon enhanced the service in 2016 by introducing the
Amazon Dash Replenishment Service to
automatically reorder everyday essential items and send
user notifications.

Best in Class: Amazon
• In 2015, Amazon announced “Amazon Home
Services”, a marketplace where customers can
request repair work and personal lessons from service
providers in their area.
• The company also launched “Handmade at Amazon”,
a new store featuring genuinely handmade items
crafted and sold directly from artisans.
• To enhance its content marketing, in 2016 Amazon
launched its first daily, live show, ”Style Code Live”.
The show is dedicated to fashion and beauty, featuring
tips from style experts and viewers, looks the audience
can shop, and an interactive viewing experience that
includes live chat.

Best in Class: Amazon
• The Amazon Prime Day 2016 was “biggest
day in the history of Amazon.” Customer
orders were up by more than 60 percent
worldwide, compared with last year’s Prime
Day, and up by more than 50 percent in the
U.S. Discount included the Dash buttons,
offered for $ 0.99 with a $ 4.95 coupon for the
first order – a tactic aimed at gaining a
foothold in the consumers’ homes.

Best in Class: Jet.com
• Jet.com is an online marketplace launched
in 2015 in the USA. In 2016, the website
reported having 3.6 million users and more
than 1,600 sellers, with expected customer
spend of almost $1 billion this year.
• Jet is based on the promise of better
prices. The website relies on best price
guarantee, even dropping the $50
membership fee it once proposed would
be its sole source of profit.
• The strategy is combining “everyday low
prices” with a real-time savings engine that
makes prices drop as you shop, by adding
items with a tag on them (gamification
element), opting out of free returns, or
paying through debit, not credit.

Best in Class: eBay
• eBay launched in 2015 the eBay+ loyalty scheme,
offering fast shipping and free deliveries, for €15 – €20 a
year.
• In 2016, eBay announced at the Goldman Sachs
Technology and Media Conference that it is changing
into a highly structured marketplace. Changes include
improving the site’s search capabilities, new search
categories such as “best value,” “brand new” and others,
more product reviews and more tools and data for
sellers to help improve their businesses.
• On the content front, eBay announced a new
platform streaming Sotheby's New York auctions
live – ebay Sothebys. The platform includes
photographs, commentary and audio/ video
components.

Best in Class: eBay
• In 2016, eBay announced users will have the ability to opt-in
to automated Facebook Messenger notifications thanks to a
new integration between Facebook and eBay. eBay buyers
will receive a Messenger reminder 15 minutes before a
listing ends, as well as a Messenger notification if they are
outbid in the final 15 minutes of an auction.
• The company launched eBay Wine, a new destination
to browse collectible, rare and everyday wines based
on varietal, region, price point and more

Best in Class: Alibaba
• Alibaba Group's, founded in 1999, is the largest online and
mobile commerce company in the world in terms of gross
merchandise volume. Alibaba Group's major businesses
include:
– Taobao Marketplace, China's largest online shopping destination
– Tmall.com, China's largest third-party platform for brands and
retailers
– Juhuasuan, China's most popular online group buying
marketplace
– Alitrip, a leading online travel booking platform
– AliExpress, a global online marketplace for consumers to buy
directly from China
– Alibaba.com, China's largest global online wholesale platform for
small businesses
– 1688.com, a leading online wholesale marketplace in China
– AliCloud, a provider of cloud computing services to businesses
and entrepreneurs
Selected mobile apps by the Alibaba Group
Tmall.com Taobao Alitrip
Juhuasuan Alipay 1688

Best in Class: Alibaba
• Alibaba Group also announced that its online travel
business, Taobao Travel will become an independent
business brand named "Alitrip".
• Later during the year, Alitrip announced its "Hotel of the
Future" strategy, including its "Post Post Pay" service –
allowing customers with a high credit rating to reserve
hotel rooms through Alitrip without paying a deposit and
to enjoy express check-out service.
• In 2014, Alibaba Group officially launched Tmall
Global as an extension of Tmall.com to enable
international brands to offer products directly to
consumers in China.

Best in Class: Alibaba
• In 2015, Alibaba Group launched "Tmall Vineyard Direct"
program, where Tmall works directly with wineries globally, to
bring their selection of wines from around the world to the
Chinese consumer market.
• To kick off the program, the group announced the opening of
the Robert Mondavi Wines exclusive flagship store on
Tmall.com.
• In 2015, Alibaba announced a new service named “Smile to Pay“,
allowing consumers to pay for online purchases without entering their
password, by simply taking a selfie picture using Alibaba's facial
recognition technology
Newsweek

Best in Class: Nuts.com
• Nuts.com demonstrates how a local,
family-owned shop can utilize digital
commerce to for growth. The
company started operating the
domain Nuts.com in 2011, and
reported $ 35 million in revenue in
2015, from $ 1.5 million in 2002.
• The success of Nuts.com stems
from the fact that it’s not just a
storefront, or a channel, for the
original brick and mortar store.
• Instead of being channel-centric, the
business is consumer-centric, and
uses the digital capabilities to provide
new possibilities to shoppers. It also
changes its product variety (we
assume this is based on data
accumulated from previous sales).
• Free shipping for
orders over a
certain sum
• Addressing special
dietary needs
• Supporting
shoppers with
content
Putting consumer reviews in the
center, to support decisions;
Personal recommendations
Offering occasion-based variants – as
well as special offers; Digital newsletter
delivering offers and news
Offering samples at a reduced price, as well
as “samplers”; auto-delivery discounts
Providing several menus – shopping occasion
based (e.g.: gifts, office), product based (e.g.:
chocolate, nuts, coffee) and consumer need
based (e.g.: gluten-free, organic)

Best in Class: Levi’s
• Levi.com has helped to drive growth in Levi’s 2015 sales. And for us, this is not surprising: the iconic
brand had been experimenting with different tactics over the last few years, and has finally integrated the
most successful tactics into a smooth, rich online shopping experience.
The company utilizes
personalization, recommendation
and online reviews, as well as a
loyalty program and newsletter to
drive repeat purchasing.
The shopper can filter choices by a wide variety of
parameters, to personalize the variety
Call to action achieved via email, coupons

Best in Class: Levi’s
• One of the biggest changes in Levi’s approach, in our
opinion, is that it has made content shoppable. This is
evident both in its YouTube videos, as well as on the
LiveWithLevis website.

Best in Class: Walmart.com
• In 2015, Walmart’s investment in e-commerce
created an online sales increase of 12%, to $
13.7 billiona. Still, this represents a slower
growth rate compared to previous years – and
compared to Amazon’s 20% growth to $ 107
billion.
• The company recognizes that e-commerce is
an important growth engine, and invested
heavily in this field, upgrading its mobile app
and investing in the fulfillment of online grocery
orders, creating click & collect options.
• In December, Walmart announced its own
Walmart Pay mobile payment system, and
introduced a rival to Amazon Prime called
Shipping Pass, offering unlimited 2‫ש‬ -day
delivery for $ 49 a year.

Opportunities, Barriers & Retailers Strategies
Marketer StrategiesOpportunity / Barrier
• Utilizing virtual wallets, mobile payments, bank transfers
• new payment technologies are becoming more
established
• Consumers in many countries do not
own a credit card
• Reluctance to provide card details
Payments
• Communicating the security technology / level to the
shopper
• Utilizing social identities to tailor personal offers and
enjoy word of mouth
• Emphasizing trial, flexible return policies
• Consumers do not trust information
and payment data sharing
• However, younger consumers do share
vast amounts of information with
friends and brands to enjoy personal
offers
Trust
• Price comparison aggregators – both by third parties and
by retailers
• Loyalty schemes – special offers and discounts
• Best price guarantees aimed at building trust
• Bids and “just for you” / “limited time” offers to drive
impulse buying
• Better prices are one of the most
prominent reasons for shoppers to go
online
• The ability to compare prices makes it
easier to support price-based decisions
Prices
Source: Schieber Research, 2016

Opportunities, Barriers & Retailers Strategies
Marketer StrategiesOpportunity / Barrier
• Mobile commerce and social commerce
• QR-Codes and Virtual Stores enable shoppers to shop
on the go
• Pure-play online retailers have been opening physical
stores
• Leveraging showrooming – retailers trim stores for in
store digital purchase
• While online retailing assures
hyper convenience, consumers
seek anytime/anywhere
experiences where online-only
may not suffice.
Pure-Play /
Omnichannel
• Consumer reviews and recommendations provide
assurance, as well as “real life” people demonstrations
and influencer reviews
• New tactics such as trials and rentals are taking
advantage of the digital platform, surpassing physical
retailers
• Consumers prefer to touch the
products and try them before they
buy them. This is a main barrier
to online-only retailing.
Product
Experience
• Chats and multi-channel assistance (via phone as well as
web and video)
• To replace store representatives, advisors and stylists
are made available, as well as bundling completing
products
• Using VR and AR for demonstration
• A flesh and blood person may
answer shoppers’ questions more
easily, thus eliminating frustration
and leading to a bigger sale.
Live Assistance
Source: Schieber Research, 2016

Thank You!
The research was conducted by:
Hamutal Schieber
Schieber Research | Market Research & Competitive Intelligence
www.researchci.com | hamutal@researchci.com
Executive Summary. For the full research - please contact
Carmelon Digital Marketing
http://www.carmelon-digital.com