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E-Commerce Best Practices for Emerging Brands

Many emerging brands ask, which is better, getting my product in-store or selling online? With only so many available resources, determining where, when, and how to dedicate your time and dollars is crucial to increasing your chances of landing a deal with your dream retailer. 

Earlier this month, industry experts from Walgreens, Allume Group, Market Performance Group, and Omnicom Commerce Group addressed the above question during our What’s Next for E-Commerce? Why Brands and Retailers Need to Rethink Their Strategy panel discussion. They gave us the inside scoop on today’s e-commerce landscape and identified future business opportunities for emerging brands.

Creating an e-commerce strategy is essential for brands and retailers looking to increase sales and thrive in the digital or physical space. Here are a few takeaways from the panel discussion:

Product discovery goes digital

Andrea K. Leigh, Founder & CEO of Allume Group

Most product discovery happens digitally regardless of whether your product is sold in-store or online. Whether it’s on the retailer’s website or social media, “nearly 80-90% of shopping journeys begin online,” says Andrea K. Leigh, Founder & CEO of Allume Group. Having a strong digital presence at the beginning of the shoppers’ journey is super important since this is when consumers discover and educate themselves …

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It’s time to recession-proof your brand. Recent economic reports highlight market issues like higher inflation, interest rate hikes, lower consumption, layoffs, and reduced hiring. Together, these trends point toward an economic slowdown and potential recession.1 Kelly, Jack. What You Need To Know About Layoffs, Hiring Freezes, Inflation And A Possible Recession. Forbes. June 23, 2022. ,2 Bhattarai, Abha. U.S. economy shrinks again in second quarter, reviving recession fears. The Washington Post. July 28, 2022.

However, there’s no need for consumer packaged goods (CPG) brands to panic. Economic downturns are a natural phase of the business cycle. Many factors remain within a brand’s control, including marketing efforts. That’s why we’re sharing the following marketing best practices to help you grow your top line, even in a recession.

Pause to plan

Recessions can create lucrative new business opportunities because market conditions change.3 6 Ways to Increase Sales in a Recession or Economic Downturn. Sociallybuzz. 2022. To adapt to market uncertainty, re-examine your marketing strategy to stay focused, clarify your priorities, and optimize your resources.4 Price, Seth. Five Marketing Strategies For Coming Out Of The Recession Stronger. Forbes. January 13, 2021.

Since consumer habits have shifted due to the …

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Giant Eagle Uses ECRM and RangeMe to Discover New Products

It’s no surprise that one of the most discussed topics among retail buyers is the challenges they face when it comes to keeping items in stock. The supply chain issues vendors have been facing due to transportation setbacks, labor shortages of their suppliers, and scarcity of ingredients or packaging components – ripple effects of which are directly or indirectly due to the pandemic – have impacted nearly every category.

While buyers typically participate in ECRM Programs and use RangeMe to discover new product innovations, many have come to see both ECRM and RangeMe as their go-to sources to prevent holes in their assortments due to these vendor supply chain issues. Gayle Young, Category Manager – OTC for Giant Eagle, is a case-in-point (see full video interview here). Giant Eagle operates more than 200 stores in Pennsylvania, Ohio, Maryland, West Virginia, and Indiana, and Young discovered she was running low on inventory of poison ivy salve.

“Our vendor just couldn’t get a hold of a regular supply, so it forced us to look for an additional source,” says Young. “So that was of particular interest when I participated in ECRM’s Health Care Program. My category is where shoppers head when they …

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If you recently launched a new business, you’re not alone. New business creation rose in 2020 and 2021 due to pandemic layoffs, the online commerce boom, and the shift to working from home. Since June 2020, the average number of monthly business applications has been 92% higher than between July 2004 and February 2020. 1 Strangler, Dane. New Business Creation In 2022: Continued Surge—Or Another Slump? Forbes. December 29, 2021.

Despite this enthusiasm for entrepreneurship, the reality is not all businesses survive the steep learning curve associated with being your own boss. According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, 20% of new businesses fail during the first two years of operation and about 50% don’t survive past the fifth year. 

We don’t want this to happen to you.

That’s why we’re sharing business lessons of what never to do, according to leading consumer packaged goods (CPG) companies as well as start-ups. We want you to avoid costly pitfalls that erode productivity and profitability as you build, grow, or stabilize your brand. 

Even big brands bomb (and that’s okay)

Companies of all sizes make mistakes, which can serve as lessons for us to apply to our own ventures. Here are …

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How to Use E-Commerce To Foray Into Retail

More and more food and beverage consumer packaged goods (CPG) discovery and commerce is happening online. CPG brands who want to get ahead of the competition use e-commerce activity in different ways to jumpstart their retail strategy. 

Consumers discover products online

Undoubtedly, a utopia for many CPG manufacturers is seeing their products go into shopping carts and out the checkout aisle. Successful brands in national retail distribution know this journey can take more than a decade – if they make it at all.  Ninety five percent of new products fail, according to INC.

While the COVID-19 pandemic has shown an upswing in online grocery sales, the majority of food is still bought in retail stores. At a retailer point of sale, brands will grow and gain maximum consumer awareness.

Yet, retailers – faced with challenges of limited shelf space and the pressure of stocking high velocity goods – will need to rely on brands to bring in customers to their stores and increase product sell-through. Additionally, the average grocery store carries ~30,000 SKUs, according to FMI data*. Therein lies a great responsibility on brands to have some consumer recognition once they hit the shelf. 

Curious to learn more on how …

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Launching a new brand is exciting – you’ve seen a gap in the market and you’re ready to take advantage. For creative business founders and managers, this is the moment to seize the opportunity with the right new product.

However, the best new product in the world won’t succeed unless you get the basics right when running a business. So, in addition to thinking about what will get your product flying off the shelves – from smart customer research to great marketing – you need to think about the basics. Below, we deal with some of the issues you’ll need to address when launching a new brand.

The insurance you need

Liability insurance – This  insurance protects your business in the event that someone brings a legal claim against it in various circumstances. For example, general liability insurance protects your business from claims that it caused injury to someone else or damaged another person’s belongings; it may also cover claims for other types of injury – such as libel or slander claims. Separately, professional liability insurance covers claims that you made some form of mistake when providing services; this cover is sometimes known as errors and omissions insurance.

Commercial property …

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