Productsup at DMEXCO 2021 - session 2: How to disrupt traditional commerce

How to disrupt traditional commerce

As part of this year’s DMEXCO @home, Productsup held a series of discussions to highlight how leading brands are dealing with the industry’s hot topics. Following on from our first masterclass on commerce anarchy, our next session looked at disrupting traditional commerce.

“The usual campaign optimization tricks are no longer working. Instead, they only add to the chaos. What we need is a radical rethink of the entire global retail value chain.”

Productsup Chief Innovation Officer Marcel Hollerbach spoke with Anke Drewicke, Marketing Director at Peloton, and Alexandra Tymann, CEO & Co-founder of Hēdoïne – two fast-moving disruptors at the forefront of reinventing their respective industries. Why not grab a coffee and watch the full 20-minute session right now?

The hot topic

There’s no question the last twelve to eighteen months have shaken up the industry. Speaking with a lot of the brands and retailers we work with across the world, we hear the same feedback coming up time again: today is all about setting new priorities. So no surprise to see this as the main theme at DMEXCO. With that in mind, Marcel kicked off the session by asking Anke and Alexandra how a world-changing, industry-transforming pandemic has affected their business priorities.

Remote control

Starting with Peloton - the ‘Netflix of Fitness’ - Anke told us that interest in being part of a community has really gained traction over that time. Stuck inside, unable to meet friends or go to the studio, people have looked for new ways to fulfill a sense of belonging. And if they could stay in control of their fitness at the same time, so much the better. How did more time at home affect the experience, the content, class sizes, and subscriptions at Peloton? Watch the video to find out.

How to get out of a tight spot

Hēdoïne’s goal is to completely reinvent tights. Trouble is, of course, that tights are usually worn by people on the go – and that obviously came to a sudden halt during the pandemic. No wonder the company initially thought they’d find the going tough, so it was interesting to hear about the results of a complete rethink of its product roadmap. As you’ll discover, maintaining strong customer loyalty and driving growth of its online community were just the start…

Looking for a long-term relationship

Anke and Alexandra then discussed the big differences they see in go-to-market strategies between established brands and disruptive newcomers. In particular, the conversation went over their shared focus on building genuine relationships with audiences. Taking audiences behind-the-scenes, introducing people behind the brands, even involving customers in product decisions… we discussed several approaches that both Peloton and Hēdoïne have found highly effective.

“More than simply building interest, it’s about creating intimacy and sharing experiences. Looking at people not as customers but as members who play a genuine part in something bigger.”

Dream on

The conversation then flowed onto the role social channels can play in disrupting tradition. By allowing these channels to flourish naturally, our guests explained how they can be transformed into a marketer’s dream and generate a constant stream of fresh content.

Test and track (And no, it’s nothing to do with COVID)

Disrupting traditional commerce is far from a simple matter of throwing money at big ideas, cool tech, and glitzy campaigns. Budget restrictions are all too real and the new kids on the block can’t afford to make expensive mistakes.

“The beauty is that you can track everything, so you identify any particular marketing technology in your stack that you really can't miss.”

Maintaining the best possible return on investment means staying on top of what works and what doesn’t, from TV to podcasts to paid media. So, to round things off, we found out how the likes of Peloton and Hēdoïne are constantly testing and tracking a very broad mix of media. Even so, you’ll discover one or two channels are really helping to drive their businesses…

Watch the webinar

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