2PM - AI, The Internet, and You.

Updated: On August 8, Bold Metrics announced a partnership with menswear retailer Mizzen + Main, adding to a list of top enterprise-level retailers who seek to improve conversion rates and decrease returns. For the future of measure, sizing, and fit: Bold Metrics is proving to be the answer.

Artificial Intelligence, The Internet, and You. Years ago, one could have contended that Zuckerberg is the Robert Moses of the internet, given how Facebook reshaped our digital social landscape. Similarly, Elon Musk, with his ventures spanning electric cars, space exploration, neural interfaces, and paving over Twitter might be hailed as another Moses of the internet. Yet, neither Zuckerberg nor Musk could hold a candle to the transformative power AI promises. The tech magnates, despite their vast influence, are human. Neither are capable of the Emersonian transcendence. AI, on the other hand, is a self-evolving entity, capable of rewriting the fabric of the internet, society, and culture with an omnipresence that Moses had over urban development.

A New Perspective on AI

Google's AI search gives absurd, wrong answers

Data: Given the nature of large language models, like the systems that run SGE, these problems may not be solvable, at least not by filtering out certain trigger words alone. Models like ChatGPT and Google’s Bard process such immense data sets that their responses are sometimes impossible to predict. 

Valuable insights can be found where you least expect them. The link below will be home to the five forecast reports publishing through the month of September. Executive Members will have access. You can view the preview.

Own The Forecast

This is what's fueling U.S. malls' post-pandemic resurgence

Real Estate: Luxury shoppers are only getting younger. According to the latest Bain & Company–Altagamma Luxury Study, Gen Y—those born between 1982 and 1994, also known as millennials—and Gen Z—those born from the mid-90s to the mid-00s—accounted for the entire growth of the luxury market in 2022.

Chinese eCommerce giants pivot to selling inexpensive goods

eCom: I read this as more marketplaces are sourcing directly from factories to cut costs, a la Shein and Temu. “I am glad that more platforms are sourcing directly from factories so that I can get better deals for many daily supplies and save money,” she said. “But that doesn’t mean I would compromise on quality of life,” she said, adding she still buys Estée Lauder cosmetics and water filters from German brand Brita.

Instacart's revenue rose more than 30% in first half

Retail Media: Instacart will be able to boast higher levels of profitability, on some measures, than its peers, Uber and DoorDash. Its gross margin—the amount of profit it generates without accounting for overhead expenses like most employee salaries—is over 70%, significantly higher than those of its peers. That’s in part because nearly one-third of Instacart’s revenue comes from ads, which is typically a high-margin business.

Notes on Grocery: "As grocery eCommerce surges alongside the rising interest in using networks like Amazon, Walmart, Target, and Instacart to improve product awareness – consumer brands are tasked with managing awareness in digital spaces. Long gone are the days where physical store environments dictate availability and perception of value." (Read More)

'Suits' success & the future of Netflixonomics

Streaming Media: Netflix has industry-leading scale and a track record for transforming underwatched series into grand slams. Suits also received an immense boost from social media: interest started picking up on TikTok a few weeks before the show hit Netflix, and then skyrocketed once it was available. Netflix curation teams are increasingly savvy at exploiting these signals.

Updated For August 21: 802 brands covered. Today's breakout is the top brands in women's apparel. With Parade's recent exit and, likely, bright future - it was interesting to see growth rates in comparison to a few companies that have recently exited. If I had to guess on who would exit next, the swimwear category would get the nod. 

How Roku is growing its ad business to attract more DTC brands

Retail Media: Roku primarily works with DTC brands within its growth business, which was formed in the fourth quarter of 2019 with the company’s acquisition of Dataxu. It is a division that works with growth agencies, direct response TV advertisers and emerging brands from the mobile and performance communities to get them to spend more on Roku.

Rokumart: Roku has the content, it’s now building a universe where people can watch movie trailers, save content lists, and more easily navigate the often overwhelming world of streaming. Whether or not that’s where people also want to shop will remain to be seen, but the investment in the ad platform has the makings of a new sort of new retail media network at work. (Read More)

The enduring demand for urban and suburban retail

Real Estate: Since the early days and months of the pandemic, suburban shopping centers have experienced larger visit growth than urban ones. However, in the throes of the recent inflationary crisis, urban malls are showing resilience to consumer cutbacks on mall visits.

"Going shopping" is dead

Big Box: Early department store owners “were real merchants,” Danziger says. “What we’ve got today are executives sitting in their corner offices who haven’t met a shopper in years.” Physical stores will always exist, she adds. “But we’re continuing to see erosion in terms of the number of visits, erosion in terms of time spent there.”

Why are TikTok creators so good at making people buy things?

Digital Media: A creator’s source credibility skyrockets when their recommendation is organic – an unpaid endorsement. “Organic influencers are so much more authentic … their motivation is to genuinely share a good or a service that has brought them joy or convenience in their life,” says Scheinbaum. “They sincerely want to share that with others.”