Akeneo Unlock ‘On Tour’ 2024 spanned four cites — Boston, Cologne, London, and Paris — over a few months. During this time, speakers from around the company and globe came together to share ideas surrounding some of the hottest topics in ecommerce, like how to maximize business growth via cutting-edge solutions, uplevel product experience (PX), and diversify sales channels.
The following are some of the main themes that surfaced, including their impact on the global ecommerce industry.
Implementing solutions built on AI and other emerging technologies can make the difference between hitting your KPIs and getting washed away by the competition.
Throughout the Unlock events, Akeneo speakers discussed how their AI-based software helps enterprise ecommerce companies revolutionize their workflows, allowing them to quickly and easily onboard and enrich supplier-provided product information and assets as well as seamlessly connect to other tech infrastructures to extend the value of their Product Information Management (PIM) platform.
Also, Generative AI (GenAI) continues to make waves in ecommerce.
Not only does it have various use cases specifically in product discovery, but companies can also use GenAI to unlock the full potential of product experiences. This includes creating captivating product content and visuals and streamlining back-office operations.
Concerned about choosing an AI vendor that turns out to be all smoke and mirrors? Ask these key questions to ensure you’re not experiencing AI washing.
According to Akeneo, “a product experience consists of every interaction an individual has with your product information throughout the entire customer journey.”
It’s focused on the relationship a customer has with a company’s products and the company itself. Each touchpoint between a customer and a product can help strengthen or damage the relationship between them, whether it’s the way a product or a set of products are presented in an ad space, displayed in a marketing channel, turned into compelling brand or product stories in owned or third-party sales channels, or even in customer service interactions.
A core pillar of good PX is great product content. Providing detailed, accurate, and compelling product information helps customers understand and appreciate the value of a product, which leads to more informed purchasing decisions.
Akeneo understands this.
Their PIM platform facilitates the creation and distribution of high-quality product content. By centralizing product data and ensuring its consistency and completeness, Akeneo empowers businesses to deliver cohesive and engaging product narratives across all channels. This not only aids in guiding customers through their purchasing journeys, but also improves the entire search experience, making products more discoverable on-site and via SEO.
In essence, shifting focus from merely chasing customer behavior to creating an outstanding PX with bar-none product content can lead to more sustainable growth and customer satisfaction.
Ecommerce is just the start.
In order to create a seamless and comprehensive brand experience, you must account for the entire buying journey. This means integrating additional offline channels like print and in-store experiences in addition to customer support, social media, etc.
Smart companies will avoid the high costs and complexities associated with data replication across multiple platforms by putting a single source of truth in place for product data. This will ultimately provide a consistent customer experience and lead to more attainable business value.
Ecommerce is a marketplace business. Third-party sellers generate over 80% of online sales for the top 10 ecommerce players.
Exploring and capitalizing on the benefits of selling on marketplaces and unowned channels can help reach a broader audience and enhance market penetration. Launching products on marketplaces also allows companies to test customer demand with limited inventory risk and minimal costs.
This is where ecommerce products built for marketplaces can step in. They allow for strategic channel activation, enabling an easier setup of new channels and global market expansion.
In order to drive growth and competitiveness in an evolving ecommerce landscape, your success depends on being able to implement advanced AI technologies, shift to a product-centric mindset, adopt a comprehensive omnichannel approach, and diversify sales channels.
Sound like a task? Don’t go it alone. The proper ecommerce tech stack can help. See how Akeneo’s AI-based PIM solutions that automate product catalog updates can be integrated with Constructor, the only product search and discovery vendor built for enterprise ecommerce. Now you can integrate all product data from Akeneo to power Constructor solutions, identify optimization opportunities, and empower your ecommerce team in real-time.