EP045 - Apple & Amazon News, Listener Questions
Listener Questions:
Q: Is Amazon's long term play to stock inventory 1P or is it 3P - Large amazon seller
A: Both, they won't abandon 3P but in the short run space is constrained and Amazon will maximize it's value with unfavorable 3p terms.
Q: Enough hinting at the differences of opinion about mobile between Jason and Scot. Can you please spend some time explaining your different POVs. - Scott Silverman (industry pioneer)
A: Jason things improvements in the mobile experience will get mobile conversion rates to parity with desktop... Scot thinks mobile web will never be easy enough and users will find new was to buy on mobile devices.
Q I'm a 20 year old with amazon and eBay experience. I'm interested in Ecommerce, specifically around disruptive technologies. If you were in my shoes and could go anywhere in the world, what company or business would you dream to be part of? - Danny S
A: Consider an emerging opportunity such as Augmented Reality, On Demand Economy, etc... Given that you already have great seller experience and entrepreneurial experience, consider trying a larger company that owns a platform or service (Facebook, Google, Razorfish, IBM, Microsoft).
Q: Perplexed - are malls dying because of Amazon or are Amazon investing in malls? - Kasia Roth
A: There are about 120 top malls in the US (so called "A Malls"), they are thriving and outperforming the market. This is almost certainly where Amazon is looking to open pop-ups. You can usually tell an A-Mall by the presence of an Apple store and/or a Tesla store. Amazon wants pop-up shops here because they need to build awareness and demand for their branded hardware products like the Echo and Fire.
There about 1100 other enclosed Malls in the US... they are struggling, traffic is down 50% over the past few years, the anchor tenants (Macys/ Sears / JCP) are struggling and closing. At least 15% of these malls will likely close in the next decade. Amazon (and e-commerce) is one of the factors hurting these malls, but also urban population shifts, a shift away from the apparel sold in the anchor and specialty stores, and the fact that we are fundamentally over-stored in the US are all contributing factors.
Apple News:
Demand for iphone 7 (and particularly the iphone 7 Plus) was higher than anticipated Advantages and disadvantages to the Apple Upgrade program iOS 10 is live with ApplePay support in Safari and an iMessenger App storeAmazon News:
Amazon Alexa Dots are on-site for $49.99 A major annoyance with multiple Alexia Echo's in one house all hearing the same commands is being address with "echo spatial perception" (ESP) Amazon now has a fulfillment center less than 20 miles from 44% of the US populationOther News:
Facebooks adds payment abilities to messenger Google expands it's Express delivery service Google pilots drone delivery service for burritos 7-11 pilots drone delivery service for SlurpeesThis episode is sponsored by the National Retail Federation. The Jason and Scot show will be live podcasting at the NRF/shop.org digital summit 2016 which is in Dallas September 26-28th this year. We have a custom discount code for our listeners. The code is JASON&SCOT, you will get a 10% discount on the full conference fee. Visit retailsdigitalsummit.nrf.com to enter the code when you register for the show and we’ll see you there!
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Episode 45 of the Jason & Scot show was recorded on Wednesday, September 14th, 2016.
Join your hosts Jason "Retailgeek" Goldberg, SVP Commerce & Content at Razorfish, and Scot Wingo, Founder and Executive Chairman of Channel Advisor as they discuss the latest news and trends in the world of e-commerce and digital shopper marketing.
