How important is to have the RIGHT data, on a RIGHT time for the RIGHT user in today’s technology-driven, acceleration of Data-to-Everything world…

In today’s ever-changing retail world cross-channel content strategy is a MUST. This is particularly vital for organizations using the content to improve their customer/partner experience while keeping their brand integrity intact.

True success, whichever angel that can be measured, in the retail industry depends on effectively understanding and acting on the content collected from all transactions, movements and processes…most serious and growth-oriented business plans are built on accurate analyzes of content and ability to leverage the results in day-to-day operations and decisions making processes. Plus, most content strategies are complicatedly linked to business goals that are measured by pure financials.

Question is no longer do we have enough content or can we access the content…it is the content that is RELEVANT and can be 100% TRUSTED…

Whereas we may understand the importance of the content, how can we declare that CONTENT is KING when it is proven that at least 50% of product data is either missing or inaccurate and 30% of product data is incorrect in average retail catalogues[1]. It is also worth mentioning that correcting catalogue errors and reconciling inaccurate data between catalogues and invoices, costs retailers between $60 to $80 per error and average 3.5 % of sales are lost due this inaccuracy of the content[2]

Another example for poor content’s business impact is reported in eCommerce – with bad or missing content increases product returns by 40% while almost 30% of shopping carts abandoned due to missing or wrong product content by frustrated customers… According to a survey of 4,000 US online adults by Forrester Research, “The No. 1 feature shoppers want from an eCommerce website is accurate product information.  So can we still claim that CONTENT is KING while leveraging content that is not RELEVANT and/or 100% TRUSTED?

The main message here is the fact that CONTENT becomes a KING only if the content is relevant and represents the 100% truth…

It is predicted that by 2025 the world’s data will compromise 175 zettabytes (up from current 33ZB) …and we are in an era that unprecedented acceleration in the rate of content creation and utilization. This would mean that steering within content-oceans to reach quality and completeness of product content across industries and retail channels will become much more problematic and demanding …

So what should you do to avoid wrong content and provide relevant and trusted content that enables you to improve your eCommerce/online sales and enhance your brand/retail loyalty?

  1. Consolidating your content management efforts:while all content providers (manufacturers/retailers) try to deliver the highest quality and most complete content possible, even with today’s understanding, they still face significant challenges in doing so. This is mostly due to different departments’ interest and involvement to process. Plus, not having the right tools and governance in place. Content integrity and consistency can ONLY be established and maintained if the content management process is controlled and governed in one department with fully integrated communication channels to other key departments (inventory/marketing/supply chain/manufacturing line/ suppliers/manufacturers). Having the right governance and defined roles and responsibilities are key the success.
  2. Prioritizing the content distribution per channel (B2B/B2C) – following the content lifecycle from creation to harvesting, enhancements, discovery, integration and syndication and assigning the department-base responsibilities is the first step. Thereafter, depending on the distribution channel, purpose of the content distribution and also the end-users’ objectives, content must be staged effectively. This process is the most complicated and time consuming effort within the manufacturer/retail organizations. However, once it's done properly with the right governance and tools (technology), benefits to business and the bottom line are truly exceptional.
  3. Selecting the right Technology: Trust and Transparency became the most important attributes in today’s content management, exchange and syndication world. All stakeholders within the product manufacturing/consumption journey and in the relevant value chain, demand transparent, dependable content that they can trust and keep respective (content) owner liable for. Plus, consumers enforce reliable content that they can trust upon while making purchasing decisions. Today’s most promising and available technology infrastructure that can fulfil all these requirements is Blockchain. Platforms that based on Blockchain will not only shape the future of the content management world it would also bring the endlessly demanded security.

In conclusion, the content has and will continue making businesses to run their daily operations effectively and enable strategy departments to outline their business strategies more intelligently. However, real success will only come and the Content becomes (a real) KING once the relevant and trusted content is accessed and leveraged.

[1] https://www.theconsumergoodsforum.com/the-importance-of-transparency-for-the-fmcg-industry/

[2] https://www.inboundlogistics.com/cms/article/supply-chain-data-keeping-it-clean/

 

About the Author:


Nihat Arkan is an International Business Executive with 20+ years of experience in Global Content Management. He has managed several global organizations focusing on multi-disciplined business processes and new strategies in Saas / Technology, Retail, CPG, Manufacturing, Localization, Supply Chain and Logistics. Mr Arkan has recently established World’s First Blockchain-based Content Management Platform “Yaliyomo GmbH” in Cologne Germany.