top retailers set the pace for innovation

top retailers set the pace for innovation 2

The eCommerce market continues to explode.

According to eMarketer’s latest forecast:

Retailers large and small are rightfully excited by this prediction. However, if they are to capture their share of the projected $1.5 trillion, they’ll need to:

develop strategies that align with the expectations of a new breed of incredibly

demanding consumers. As Forbes notes, today’s online shoppers expect personalized, deeply interactive experiences that cater to – and possibly even anticipate – how they think and what they care about.2 Plus, they want these capabilities to be delivered in sleek, hyper-efficient ways. And with more options than ever before, they won’t hesitate to seek out the services of a competitor if they don’t immediately get what they want.

With consumer behaviors changing seemingly overnight, it’s imperative for retailers to become as agile as possible. It’s the only way they can keep pace with – and even exceed – customer expectations.

agility and innovation Drive success in the ecommerce Market

1eMarketer. “Global B2C Ecommerce Sales to Hit $1.5 Trillion This Year Driven by Growth in Emerging Markets.” February 3, 2014.2Forbes. “Six Trends That Will Shape Consumer Behavior This Year.” February 4, 2014.

In 2014, worldwide business-to-consumer (B2C) eCommerce sales will increase:

20.1%...Reaching an astonishing

$1.5 trillion1


Demandware clients use agility and innovation to their advantage each day. With the help of the Demandware Commerce platform, they’re able to introduce innovative brand messaging, merchandising initiatives and ways of interacting with consumers – and find themselves empowered to stay ahead of rapidly evolving preferences.

Their success stories highlight the value of understanding a continually changing market, anticipating the next trend and acting in a swift, decisive and timely manner.

They’ve become so adept at this, in fact, that we chose to honor the most innovative and forward-thinking among them with our inaugural Demandware Commerce Pacesetter Award.

Introduced at the 2014 Demandware XChange Conference, the Demandware Commerce Pacesetter Award was created to recognize individuals and organizations that used innovative commerce strategies to drive exceptional business results.

These companies accomplished truly impressive results over the last year. For example, they:

how Demandware clients innovate

Finalists for the Inaugural Commerce Pacesetter Award:Crocs, Inc., Michael Hill and Scotch & Soda

Let’s take a look at what makes these retailers so innovative.

Connected consumers to their brands in unique and engaging ways

Executed an international expansion or a new brand rollout in a short timeframe

Increased sales thanks to merchandising and marketing innovations

Built a vision and plan that set them apart from the competition


innovation in action:

crocs, inc.

the initiativeAs the maker of some of the world’s most recognizable shoes, innovation is

a familiar topic to Crocs, Inc. With its iconic clog design and comfortable,

lightweight materials, Crocs set a new standard for casual footwear – and has,

since its inception in 2002, sold more than 300 million pairs of shoes in over 90

countries worldwide.

When Crocs needed to respond to shifting consumer traffic patterns – while

finding a way to quickly sell end-of-life products – it knew an insightful, forward-

thinking strategy would be the key to success.

the innovation Crocs addressed these challenges with a two-pronged approach. Recognizing

that more and more consumers were visiting its web site on mobile devices – and would

continue to do so well into the future – the company reworked its existing web site to incorporate

responsive design best practices. This allowed the site to automatically adjust its display

to fit a customer’s device – whether it’s a smartphone, tablet or PC – while offering

complete feature parity.

In addition, Crocs introduced the “lucky bag” promotion to its Japanese shoppers. Timed to

coincide with the Japanese New Year – a culturally significant event that encourages people to start

the year with good fortune – the promotion gave shoppers the opportunity to purchase a “surprise”

collection of end-of-life items at a heavy discount. The promotion was so popular that many

categories of products sold out in a matter of hours. >>


the outcomeA responsive new web site and the “lucky bag” promotion paid significant dividends to Crocs:

49%return on investment

6 Months

amount of excess inventory sold in 3 weeks

amount of annual sales generated by the promotion

85%

2%

46%

smartphone revenue

smartphone conversion rate



Michael hill

the initiativeNamed after a pioneering jeweler knighted in his native New Zealand, Michael

Hill has grown from humble beginnings into a multi-national company with retail

locations on several continents.

Starting small and building a presence that spans New Zealand, Australia,

the United States and Canada illustrates Michael Hill’s commitment to providing a

top-of-the-line customer experience. In an increasingly digital age, the company

recognized that continuing to drive growth and effectively catering to its customers

required an expanded – and more engaging – web presence.

the innovation To further solidify its position as a global player in the jewelry market, Michael Hill launched

an omni-channel commerce strategy that simultaneously deployed four new web sites in New Zealand,

Australia, the United States and Canada. Built with a responsive design that automatically optimizes the

display based on the consumer’s device, the new sites showcased more than 4,000 products, added

188 pages of new content and included blogs and other social integrations.

Eager to make online shopping rival the in-store experience, Michael Hill also added two inventive new

capabilities to its sites – both of which are designed to turn customer engagement into transactions.

“Build your own charm bracelet” allows shoppers to browse potential charms, drag and drop them into

place and review the finished bracelet before completing their orders. And, “shoppable videos” provide

an immersive, interactive experience that gives consumers more information about a product than

simple, static images. >>


the outcomeThe launch of four new web sites and immersive, innovative online content generated significant success for Michael Hill:

2014 Demandware Commerce Pacesetter Award Winner

sales

290%

Mobile traffic

97%

transactionsMobile revenue conversion rate

500% 200%

page views

90%

5%

85%

site visits



scotch & soda

the initiativeBased in Amsterdam, Scotch & Soda has gained global recognition by designing

clothing that captures a unique blend of comfort, quality and eccentricity.

The qualities that define Scotch & Soda as a unique lifestyle brand are the same

factors that push the company to work hard to distinguish itself in a crowded

marketplace. To support this goal, Scotch & Soda recognized that expanding

its web presence would play a critical role in enabling its brand and products to

reach more consumers.

the innovation Scotch & Soda was not only looking to connect with more shoppers

around the globe, it wanted to do so in a way that aligns with their expectations

and preferences.

So, the company implemented a plan to expand its eCommerce footprint into a

significant number of new countries. In the span of nine months, Scotch & Soda

launched 13 unique sites, with six localized languages and currencies – an effort that

gave the company a presence in 73 countries.

In addition to increasing the reach of its brand, all of these sites were built with a

responsive design that delivers an optimal display and experience on any device,

making it convenient for Scotch & Soda’s customers to shop when, where and

how they choose. >>


the outcomeA rapid rollout of new sites in a number of new geographies enabled Scotch & Soda to reap some impressive benefits: Boosted

revenue growth improved conversion rate

raised average order value

increased traffic

increased page views

received more orders from mobile devices


©2014 Demandware, Inc. All rights reserved. Demandware is a registered trademark of Demandware, Inc.

about Demandware

Demandware, the category defining leader of enterprise cloud commerce solutions, empowers the world’s leading retailers to continuously innovate in our complex, consumer-driven world. Demandware’s open cloud platform provides unique benefits including seamless innovation, the LINK ecosystem of integrated best-of-breed partners and community insight to optimize customer experiences. These advantages enable Demandware customers to lead their markets and grow faster. For more information, visit http://www.demandware.com, call +1-888-553-9216 or email [email protected].

http://www.demandware.com

mailto:info%40demandware.com?subject=

top retailers set the pace for innovation

Technology