Gillette’s Path Forward With “We Believe”: Own The Controversy
In Part 1 of this post, I criticized Gillette for its statement, “We weren’t trying to court controversy. We were just trying to upgrade the selling line that we’ve held for 30 years,” as lacking...
View ArticleNRF 2019: It’s A Visionary Retail Revival
NRF 2019 attracted more than 800 exhibitors that demonstrated to more than 37,000 attendees. If last year’s theme was (Alexa’s) voice, this year’s show was all about computer vision driving:...
View ArticleThe Future Of Enterprise Computing: It’s Time To Develop A Long-Term Vision...
Computing has changed drastically over the past decade. In our report, “The Future Of Enterprise Computing,” we discuss these major changes and examine how computing will evolve in the next 5-10 years....
View ArticleNetflix Has Become HBO
In a 2013 article in GQ, Netflix chief content officer Ted Sarandos laid out the then-nascent streaming company’s challenge: “The goal is to become HBO faster than HBO can become us.” In yesterday’s Q4...
View ArticleGillette’s Biggest Mistake — And How To Fix It
This video gives a 2 minute summary of the biggest mistake Gillette has made with the “We Believe” campaign, and what the brand can do now to fix it. If you want more comprehensive guidance on how to...
View ArticleMy Top NRF 2019 Takeaways (AKA, News Vs. Nonsense)
I say this as both an analyst and a recovering retail professional: NRF is like drinking Red Bull . . . from a 50′ beer bong . . . for three days straight . . . on Jupiter. You just know what’s coming,...
View ArticleBrands: Here Is The Size Of Your Digital Commerce Prize
Consumer-facing brands know that there is proverbial “gold” in generating direct sales through digital commerce — but the big question is the size of the prize. Where will brands place their digital...
View ArticleCEOs And Software
How To Lead The Most Important — And Perplexing — Corporate Domain by John R. Rymer and Jeffrey S. Hammond Summary What if CEOs — not software development and delivery leaders or CIOs — held the keys...
View ArticleRetailers: Extend Omnichannel Capabilities To The Customer, Not Just Operations
Omnichannel investments, including in-store pickup and endless aisle, continue to be top strategic investment for digital business professionals at retail organizations. Forrester predicts that digital...
View ArticleWhy HPE Walked Away From Quantum Computing . . . And Where It Went Instead
I’ve dedicated a fair number of research cycles to understanding quantum computers over the last 18 months because I believe they eventually will be revolutionary. That said, I think they have a long...
View ArticleCunning Plans Are In Short Supply In 2019 Brexit Britain
I expected (naively, some may think) by now that with a withdrawal deal secured by the UK and the EU, I would be able to update my earlier report on Brexit published last summer. Sadly, it was not to...
View ArticleNRF Big Show 2019 Impressions And Trends
Last weekend at the NRF Big Show 2019, I walked for miles back and forth across the crowded conference red carpet, meeting with several retailers, brands, and vendors to discuss the current and future...
View ArticleNRF Big Show 2019: It’s Time To Rethink Brick-And-Mortar Experiences
At this year’s NRF Big Show, I focused my time on discovering and searching out new tech and experiences that will be incorporated in the stores of tomorrow. During my time, here are three quick...
View ArticleThe Three Customer Service Megatrends In 2019
As AI Eats Jobs, Agents Are More Valued Great customer service is not just about cutting costs or making operations more efficient. Instead, it’s a systematic reinvention of established technology,...
View ArticleThe CMO’s Guide To CES 2019: Customer+Brand+Tech
Each thing you see at CES may be wondrous, but after you’ve seen five variations of the same hundred things, the net effect is clutter and confusion. Let me help sort things out. I’ve had a week away...
View ArticleMake The Call On Sales Technologies: Experiment, Invest, Maintain, And Divest...
Digital salespeople need new tools to engage more knowledgeable and empowered prospects or risk looking like dolts. In the age of the customer, wooing prospects and crushing quota has never been...
View ArticleGillette’s Latest “We Believe” Response Earns A C- Grade
After I lambasted Gillette for its initial response to the blowback to the “We Believe” campaign, it’s only fair that I acknowledge that the firm has continued to engage with the controversy. Damon...
View ArticleRetailers: Use In-Store Sensor Tech To Understand And Enhance Customer...
Sensor-based technologies have been around for a while now — remember all the beacon hype? — and are now rapidly gaining traction. In-store sensor technology and, more importantly, its contribution to...
View ArticleVideo: How AI Is Transforming Advertising And What You Should Do About It
Did you know that artificial intelligence has infiltrated all parts of the advertising process? My guess is, probably not. But chances are, in an era of programmatic advertising when machines are...
View ArticleTelecom-Only = Disrupted
My theme at PTC’19 this week was that telecommunications and colocation companies that maintain a focus on their traditional value propositions will be fully disrupted by 2025. Customers, in the era of...
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