Commerce in 2013 is about integrating the whole experience around the customer -- social, local, and mobile, bricks and clicks, in real life, in real time, and over time.
It's about loyalty, rewards, as well as relationships.
In an interview with CNET’s Daniel Terdiman, Square COO Keith Rabois said Starbucks’ customers haven’t seen anything yet, that they can “expect full Square Wallet functionality” in 2013 as well as new features and “major enhancements.”
Rabois said Square’s partnership with Starbucks is in its “first inning.”
Rewards at the center of social, local, and mobile
We already saw how the moving line in behavior is driving the blurring of digital and in store. Retailers with stores and without a digital strategy may be getting coal in their stocking come January.
Take a look at Mary Meeker's updated 2012 Internet Trends and you will get lots of ideas of how the world has shifted due to technology fading in the background. Slides 77 and 78 indicate the white space.
To be sure, what you're looking at is where we have been and what smart businesses are already doing now.
It takes more work of interpretation and imagination to re-invent how to provide the next wave of services and products for the job people are looking to do -- including the tools they will hire to do it.
Buying that feels like making
This is also because, increasingly, the people who buy are also the communities of fans who make those products possible. I took a look at the evolution of eBay, Etsy, and Pinterest.
From auction-style shopping, to buying and selling handmade goods, to pinning and sharing visual collections with the intent to display, purchase, recommend and/or all of the above.
Peer-driven commerce is also expressed through the funding of products on Kickstarter.
Connecting data with commerce
Data mining techniques are increasingly being used across industries. From online to offline transactions, product ratings and reviews, customer profiles, social interactions, and so on, there is a wealth to draw from.
However, researchers say that the “widespread belief that large data sets offer a higher form of intelligence and knowledge that can generate insights that were previously impossible, with the aura of truth, objectivity, and accuracy” is not entirely accurate.
In a new paper from Microsoft Research, New York University, Berkman Center, University of New South Wales published in Information, Communication & Society, researchers take a hard look at the “Big Data” phenomenon and implications.
I view data analysis as key. It's about the query set and asking the right questions. While social chatter or buzz can be useful, moving the needle is about connecting what people say with behavior, what they actually do.
+++
So many lines are blurring now that technology is fading into the background.
I covered the blurring line of personal/business, as well as private/public (including how Facebook will steal your customers) in many posts.
This past week, we witnessed another example of community outrage when content ownership being brought into question when Instagram announced changes to its terms and conditions.
It pays off to read what social sites and apps say about your content and data. The Guardian breaks down the TOCs of popular networks.
How do you decide what you share? Is it a deliberate trade? How do you feel about personalized services and recommendations?
+++
Valeria is an experienced listener. She is also frequent speaker at conferences and company events on a variety of topics. To book her for a speaking engagement click here.