Insight

12 min read - On 20 July, Google confirmed via the Google...

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11 min read - New research from Gartner reveals a striking disconnect in how consumers interact with AI for customer service: customers are now three times more likely to use a third-party generative AI tool such as ChatGPT or Claude than a brand's own chatbot. More telling still, while third-party AI tool usage has doubled in the past year, brand chatbot adoption...

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13 min read - Google AI mode is becoming a commerce platform, and the EU just ordered Google to open its data On July 16, two announcements landed within hours of each other, and together they sketch out eCommerce's near future. Google began rolling out Connected Apps in AI Mode, letting US users complete shopping, design...

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10 min read - A striking statistic emerged from retail industry research highlighted by Retail Dive...

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9 min read - The National Retail Federation's latest forecast says back-to-school spending is set to reach record highs in 2026. At the same time, nearly two-thirds of consumers have already started shopping for the season, and affordability is their number one concern. If that sounds contradictory, welcome to the paradox defining modern retail. The numbers...

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11 min read - Search Engine Land published a deep dive this week on hydration and SEO that every eCommerce team should read carefully. While the concept of hydration, the process by which server-rendered HTML becomes interactive in the browser, has been a developer concern for years, its implications for search visibility have never been more significant...

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10 min read - A convergence of data points from the past 48 hours paints a picture that eCommerce merchants can no longer ignore: AI-powered platforms are rapidly replacing traditional search as the primary discovery mechanism for products, tools, and brands. The implications are profound, immediate, and largely underestimated. ...

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10 min read - Google has confirmed it is investigating reports of reviews going missing from Google Business Profiles, a problem that has been simmering since late 2025 but escalated sharply in early July. As ...

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8 min read - Two pieces of research published on July 2 paint a detailed, and somewhat uncomfortable picture of how AI is fundamentally reshaping product and brand discovery. When read together, they form a clear directive for eCommerce merchants: the discovery landscape is shifting beneath your feet, and the brands that survive will be the ones that own their data...

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10 min read - Amazon's Prime Day just generated $26.4 billion in US online retail spend across four days in June, a 9.3% increase over last year, according to ...

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11 min read - In a week where the eCommerce industry is still processing the surreal spectacle of Allbirds, once valued at $4 billion, completing its transformation into an AI infrastructure company called Smartbird, Reformation has filed for an IPO that tells the exact opposite story. And it might be the most important narrative correction the direct-to-consumer...

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11 min read - Walmart agreed on 24 June 2026 to acquire connected TV (CTV) advertising platform Vibe.co, reportedly for $1.4 billion, in a deal that underscores just how aggressively major retailers are investing in their advertising businesses. Coming just two years after Walmart's $2.3 billion acquisition of TV maker Vizio, this deal represents a strategic doubling-down...

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9 min read - A new study by SEO researcher Lily Ray has exposed a troubling dynamic in Google's AI Overviews that every eCommerce brand needs to understand: Google is citing brands' own "best of" listicles as sources, but recommending competing products 69% of the time. Combine this with fresh Pew Research data showing 60% of Americans now read AI summaries in search...

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10 min read - On 13 June 2026, eCommerce security firm Sansec disclosed one of the most significant supply chain attacks of the year: a coordinated compromise targeting OptinMonster, TrustPulse, and PushEngage, three widely used marketing and conversion tools that collectively serve over 1.2 million websites. The malware adds rogue admin accounts and plants hidden...

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11 min read - In a retail landscape defined by consumer belt-tightening, trade-down behaviour, and relentless discounting, Victoria’s Secret just delivered a masterclass in going the opposite direction. Their ...

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10 min read - New research from the Gale agency has surfaced a statistic that should keep every eCommerce marketer awake tonight: 56% of consumers are now comfortable delegating the entirety of their brand communications through AI. Nearly one in three have already instructed an AI assistant to prioritise certain brands over others. ...

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7 min read - OpenAI has opened its ChatGPT Ads Manager beta to UK advertisers, marking the first significant international expansion of what may become one of the most consequential new advertising channels in a decade. With brands like Tesco, Hilton, Hiscox, and Next among the early UK participants, the pilot is moving beyond Silicon Valley experimentation...

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11 min read - Connecticut has become the second US state to enact legislation restricting how retailers can use customer data to set personalised prices. As ...

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9 min read - On June 16th, 2026, two announcements landed that together paint a picture eCommerce merchants can no longer afford to ignore: Meta launched AI Mode in Facebook search, and Microsoft rolled out significant AI reporting features in Bing Webmaster Tools. Taken separately, they're interesting platform updates. Taken together...

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12 min read - In a single week, three of the most consequential platforms in eCommerce advertising each made a move that, taken individually, would be worth paying attention to. Taken together, they amount to a structural shift: the path from product discovery to purchase is being rebuilt around AI, and every major platform is racing to own a piece of that journey...

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