6 Special E-Commerce Insights for Spring: E-commerce Link Digest

Happy Friday, Big Thinkers . Hope you don’t mind if we skip the setup this week and instead get you straight into the set of 6 special e-commerce insights for spring. Enjoy:

1. Fortune reports that Facebook may start allowing in-store purchases in Messenger , which was also the subject of this week’s episode of Thinks Out Loud — our weekly e-commerce and digital marketing podcast — called, “Why I’m Bullish on Mobile Payments and Messaging.”
2. eMarketer explains how marketers are dealing with the growth of tech . On a highly related note, McCann Japan just “hired” an AI as a creative director . Let’s be fair. What they’ve really done is created software to help with their decision-making. Still, the trend is reasonably clear: Data-driven marketing matters.
3. Luxury Daily offers up 5 insights into the future of relationships and retail . Similarly, eMarketer shines a light on a look at the hits and misses of holiday shopping 2015 .
4. One key takeaway both the above articles highlight is the need for driving seamless experiences in 2016 , which is the subject of another recent podcast episode. Be sure to check it out.
5. Another recent podcast episode explains why mobile won’t just change marketing; mobile will change the world . Don’t miss it.
6. And, finally, you should be sure to read why, when it comes to content marketing, we’re all publishers now .

If you want learn even more about how your customers’ changing behavior shapes e-commerce and marketing, be sure and register to receive a special report I’ve produced in conjunction with hotel marketing firm Vizergy, “Digital Hotel Marketing in a Multiscreen World.” While it’s targeted specifically at hotel and resort marketers, the lessons apply to just about any business. You can get your free copy of the report here .

You can also check out these slides and video from my recent webinar, “Digital Marketing Directions: Three Key Trends Driving Your Marketing Next Year”: