Shop.org 2010 Annual Summit Reflects Purposeful Use of Technology and Renewed Focus on Customer Expe

October 28, 2010

Article for Apparel Magazine
By Bill Palmer

According to Forrester’s 2010 State of Retail report, online stores and warehouse stores were the only growth sectors in past 5-10 years. Is this trend due to a flight to value pricing, discounts, convenience, or a preferred shopping experience? The reasons for the trend are interconnected, but one thing is clear, online shopping experiences are getting more unified, personalized, and relevant to the overall customer experience and companies are actually listening now.

I recently attended the 2010 Shop.org Annual Summit in Dallas, Texas to gain some additional insight into the rapidly maturing and ever-changing world of eCommerce. Shop.org is part of the National Retail Federation (NRF) and represents a great mix of both pure play online retailers as well as traditional brick and mortar retailers. The conversations, networking, panels, and sessions were excellent.

The summit kicked off on Monday, September 27th with an interactive boot camp that focused on social media and search engine optimization. More than 250 people attended the boot camp, laptops blazing, for some real time workshop activities. Mitch Joel, author of “Six Pixels of Separation”, discussed recent stats and tools showcasing the fact that leveraging web 2.0 means active engagement and community participation. The breath and depth of current web usage now impacts all types of consumers as an integral part of daily life.

After the boot camp, attendees celebrated the official kick-off of the Summit and EXPO Hall with an opening reception where we mingled and networked with a "who's who" of digital retail. The expo featured a wide variety of innovative eCommerce solutions and services spanning the full spectrum of the modern retail world. Here is a full list shop.org exhibitors. While infrastructure and eCommerce platform companies still have a strong presence, it was clear that mobile and location-based retail, online video solutions, social commerce, and personalization solutions were the hot ticket for invigorating discussion with industry leaders.

Tuesday and Wednesday featured inspiring keynote presentations in the morning, followed by an afternoon filled with concurrent sessions, one-on-one tutorials, roundtable discussions, and numerous networking opportunities. Each afternoon focused on four major tracks: Mobile, Cross Channel Optimization, Tactics and The Customer Experience.

The keynote speakers were excellent and shared unique perspectives on some of the most popular topics in the world of digital commerce. Glen Senk,, CEO of Urban Outfitters, may lead a $2.5 billion company representing iconic fashion brands like Urban Outfitters and Anthropologie, but he clearly still considers himself a merchant at heart. Senk began his retail career as an assistant buyer at Bloomingdale’s, so when an attendee at today’s Shop.org Summit asked a question about the future of merchandising, Senk’s eyes lit up. His insights – about why customers shop, how merchandising has changed, and why the best companies leverage technology to make decisions – held the interest of the Summit’s 3000+ attendees.

While much of what he said was riveting, some of Senk’s most compelling insights came when he was talking about mobile retail. Mr. Senk believes that mobile technology is revolutionizing the in-store retail experience even more than online. By synergizing labels and merchandizing tactics to include mobile applications that allow customers to research, check inventory, review, and check-out in-store via smart mobile phones, a unified shopping experience that empowers customers, enriches experience, and potentially cuts cost is the future or cross channel merchandizing.

The keynote address from Scott Savitz of Shoebuy.com was equally engaging and showcased his key lessons from the entrepreneurial trenches on how to trust your path and focus on the customer through constant improvement. A year after Mr. Savitz started Shoebuy.com in 1999, it seemed that every “dot.com” company was failing fast, but Shoebuy.com weathered the storm. Shoebuy’s success through the highs and the lows and have positioned the company as one of the largest online footwear retailers in the industry and #86 on the Internet retailer top 500. Some of the most notable lessons from Mr. Savitz are as follows:

1. Always remember why you got into the business in the first place. “Everyone will tell you how you should be doing your business…but don’t forget why when you started your business it was important to you.”

2. Don’t ever stop innovating and building value. “There are no rules in how you innovate, just that you need to never stop innovating.”

3. Every dollar should be spent as though it is your last; maximize opportunity and minimize risk. “You are not being frugal, you are being smart and responsible.”

4. Go for better than good, be in it to win it; maintain a refuse-to-lose mentality across your entire team. “It is your customers, employees and partners that make you succeed – it is them that allow you to thrive, during good times or bad.”

5. Help others. “Small or big – everything makes a huge difference.”

Clearly the online world is maturing both in terms of technology utilization, integration to the physical world, and underlying focus on the fundamentals of always keeping your eyes and ears focused on the customer and fulfilling their desired experiences. The clear message I got from the keynote speakers and throughout the conference was that in order to prosper outstanding customer service and unified brand experiences across all communication channels is the key. It is the core human skills of listening and responding to customer needs while offering them richer experiences that still makes all the difference.