Sustainability is the new sexy! Exploring Customer Lifetime *Values* at Savant eCommerce Barcelona

I was honoured to chair the Savant eCommerce Barcelona event recently, which was all about Taking eCommerce Innovation to the Next Level. As with all Savant events, the conference was a senior-level eCommerce gathering for advanced omnichannel retailers & pure players. 

The event took place on the 15 & 16 October in the stunning surroundings of the Cerveceria Moritz in Barcelona, and the specially curated audience included over 100 Heads of eCommerce, Digital, Marketing, Consumer Experience and Omnichannel from leading retailers and innovative start-ups.

The agenda was packed with relevant content and networking opportunities, with a focus on transformation both at the front end and the back end. Delegates learned how to: 

• Personalise their marketing and consumer journeys to drive engagement and sales
• Use online channels and the payments process to build trust and loyalty around their brand
• Blend online and offline to offer consumers a seamless omnichannel experience
• Build a delivery strategy that encourages online sales and repeat custom
• Innovate their fulfilment and returns processes to minimise costs
• Expand their business internationally through marketplace platforms
• Use AI and immersive technology to offer the right products at the right price and time

Day One

After that all important morning cup of coffee, day one commenced on the theme of Providing a Seamless Experience Across all Online & Offline Channels. The first section of the day was a deep dive on Reaching the Omnichannel Ideal – Seamless, Frictionless, Convenient. 

Our first inspiring keynote was from Aly Meyers, Digital Acceleration Director - MS Europe, Mars. He spoke about Accelerating Digital Business in FMCG - Examining the future transformational needs of FMCG organisations. Aly introduced the "new context" for FMCG companies, explaining why they need to adapt to stay relevant and attractive. He also encouraged a shift from eCommerce to end-to-end solutions (e2e) to unlock the full potential of digital business. 

Next we had an expert panel examining How Retailers are Overcoming Common Omnichannel Challenges, for example how much time and budget do you need to invest in a good omnichannel strategy, and which omnichannel platforms and solutions should you be looking at? The panel was brilliantly moderated by Paulo Cunha the CEO of Velocidi, and he was joined by experts Javier Figar, Global Direct to Consumer Senior Director of Pepe Jeans, and Carolina Agudo, Head of E-Business at Havaianas Europe 

After this we had a case study from the reliably impressive Dynamic Yield, courtesy of their engaging Iberian Director, Ander Orcasitas. He shared how companies can personalise every customer touchpoint, and optimise for every user in real time. 

Following some welcome refreshments we proceeded to the next section of the day, where we explored Refining your Consumer Journeys to Drive Engagement & Sales. The thought provoking keynote was delivered by Chiara Pavan, Senior eCommerce Product Manager at Parfois, and she emphasised the importance of human-centric design in achieving eCommerce goals, an observation which was very well received by the delegates. 

Next some thought leadership from the highly qualified VP of Revenue at Optimove, Moshe Demri, who shared The Secret to Loyalty in Retail: How to Turn your One-timers into Repeat Buyers. Did you know that 59% of customers do not make a second purchase? many, including myself, were surprised at the scale of this missed opportunity. Moshe shared some tips on how to turn one-timers into repeat purchasers. 

Our next fireside chat was about Delivering a Great Online Consumer Experience. In the age of the customer, nothing is more important than customer experience. But what exactly is a great customer experience, and how do you deliver it in 2019 and beyond? Experts Reyes Eguilior Massó, EMEA Customer Service Manager at Alpargatas Europe, Raúl Rivero, eCommerce Manager Spain at PepsiCo, and Eloy Mariaud, Director Digital & eCommerce at Douglas, shared some great insights to a packed house.

Following a delicious lunch, the delegates enjoyed another thought leadership session about How UX Analytics & AI are Helping Companies Improve Their Conversion Rates & Revenue. For this, two adventurous speakers from Contentsquare volunteered a live demo. Frederic Kingue Johnson, Regional Head of Sales for South West Europe and Loïc Mocellin, Sales Director for Spain and Portugal revealed that it had been prepared during a long delay at the airport. It was thrilling to see the on-screen analysis of user engagement KPIs overlaid on a sample website in realtime. 

The next keynote came from Eloy Mariaud, Director Digital & eCommerce at Douglas. He shared many excellent insights about Collecting the Right Big Data to Make Better Business Decisions & Make Your Digital Channel Profitable. It’s not just about big data, he revealed, but about using the right big data for your business insights. Eloy helped the delegates to understand the killer KPIs which can help them succeed.

Next, Jesus Izquierdo, Sales Director for Western Europe from TVPage, delivered eCommerce with videos is much better - integrating videos into your sales funnel to drive conversion rates. He took us on a lightening speed tour of the TVPage portfolio, highlighting how product-related videos increase the likelihood of purchasing your product. 

For the final part of the day, Expanding your Business with Cutting-Edge Tech & Platforms, we started with two exciting eCommerce Start-Up Demos. 

First, Paco Tormo, Co-Founder & CEO of Singularu, gave a engaging showcase of their product, “We sell joy, retail is about having fun!” Next Borja Duran, Co-Founder & CEO of Comovita.eu, revealed that "Sustainability is the new sexy!" a sentiment our delegates agreed with!

Finally, we had a panel which explored Combining AI & Immersive Technology for More Efficient Online Sales. Moderator Yolanda Martin, Director of Platform & Service Design at Farfetch, expertly guided a conversation with Antonella Girone, International eCommerce & Digital Marketing Manager at Salewa, and Maria Montoro Iniesta, Head of eCommerce at Proyecto 1785.

Day one wrapped up with the all important networking drinks, so the conference setting in one of Barcelona's finest breweries was wonderfully serendipitous. 

Day Two

The theme of day two was Understanding & Fulfilling Consumer Expectations to Build Loyalty, and the morning was dedicated to the theme of Blending Online & Offline to Create an Integrated ‘Phygital’ Experience. 

Our incredibly engaging opening keynote We have been invaded! from Lluis Martinez Ribes, Associate Professor at ESADE Business School, explored using neuroscience to shape a brain-pleasing customer experience for "OnOff customers". He explained how mobile handsets now our "e-bodies," blurring the distinction between online and offline, changing consumers' purchasing behaviour, and creating an OnOff reality. 

Next a wonderful panel discussed Optimising Online-to-Offline Marketing to Improve Brand Awareness, with moderator Damien Poelhekke, Managing Director at MADE.COM, joined by panellists : Ines Rios, Head of Brand Marketing Digital & Customer Experience at Intu Xanadu, Virginia Casillas Santos, eCommerce Manager at Pernod Ricard, and Nico Bour from Uvinum. 

A keynote then examined Trends & Best Practice in Personal Care eCommerce, and the delegates enjoyed an example of the gold standard in physical-digital integration from Yago Llaquet, Head of Digital Transformation Iberia & EMEA Digital Lead at Bayer. 

The next two sessions were all about Building Trust & Loyalty Around your Brand. First we had three dynamic rotating roundtables hosted by Yolanda Martin, Carolina Agudo and Damien Poelhekke, then Paco Tormo returned to the stage to chair a fireside chat with Borja Durán and Raquel Notario Goñi, Head of Social Media at Carrefour España, to discuss Online Channels & Tech Solutions that Build Trust & Loyalty in Shoppers. 

Our final section was all about Logistics 4.0 - Delivering on your eCommerce Strategy. Guillem Perez, the Head of Supply Chain & Customer Experience at Colvin, delivered the final keynote of the event about Building a Delivery Strategy that Encourages Online Sales & Repeat Custom.

We then wrapped up the day with a panel all about Enabling Cost-Efficient Fulfilment & Smart Returns, where I was joined on stage by Yolanda Martin and Guillem Perez. 

My main takeaway from the event was the importance of not only using good UX driven business techniques, such as modelling the CLV or customer lifetime value, to understand where marketing investments were the most effective, but also acknowledging the broader shift towards modelling Customer Lifetime Values; what makes your customers tick, what are their passions, do they care about the environment and about social impact. Sustainability is indeed the new sexy.

Smart retailers and etailers today are ensuring not only that the table-stakes are met with the best technology on the market, but that they use an empathetic view of each individual customer to deliver a frictionless omnichannel CX, to serve their emotional needs, and to resonate with their social values. 

How do you measure Customer Lifetime Values?