Tag: amazon

How Brands Can Use Amazon’s New IoT Dash Buttons

Posted on by Lab Team

What Happened
Amazon is now allowing anyone to create their own Dash Button with the release of a programmable version. While looking pretty much identical to existing Dash Buttons, which enable one-push reordering of products from one of more than 100 brands, the new AWS IoT Button can be programmed to trigger a task or service , such as remotely starting a coffee maker, hailing an Uber ride, or locking the front door, all with a simple tap. These AWS IoT Buttons, which will cost $19.95 each, can also integrate third-party APIs from Twitter, Facebook, or Slack to extend its function to social spheres.

What Brands Need To Do
This new product from Amazon offers a way for brands to create a physical presence in customers’ homes with a one-touch connection to their product or service. For example, an auto brand may devise a button for starting cars remotely or a pizza brand could make a “push-to-order” button (like a physical version of the “Push for Pizza” app). Amazon has made an interesting way for brands to reduce friction in customers’ lives with simple devices that boost loyalty.

 

Source: Wired

Header image is a promotional image courtesy of Amazon

How Amazon Is Working With Uber To Promote Its Shows In L.A.

Posted on by Lab Team

What Happened
Amazon has partnered with Uber for a campaign to promote its original shows in Los Angeles. From now till May 14th, Uber users in L.A. may see an “Amazon” option in their app, which, upon selection, will upgrade their rides to an UberLUX with no extra cost. During their rides, they will be given a Kindle Fire HD tablet to watch Amazon’s original shows with. The campaign is limited to L.A. as its goal is to generate some award buzz for the Amazon shows as we enter Emmy season.

What Brands Should Care
This campaign is illustrative of how Uber is positioned to capitalize on the idle attention of its users during rides. Previously, Uber launched Trip Experiences to offer a way for third-party services to integrate with the Uber app and grab the passengers’ attention. This Amazon campaign sets a precedent for more opportunities for brands to work with Uber – or Lyft for that matter – to vie for consumer attention in the backseat.

 

Source: The Verge

 

Amazon To Take On YouTube With Amazon Video Direct

Posted on by Lab Team

What Happened
Amazon is opening up its video streaming platform with the launch of Amazon Video Direct program, which aims to attract content creators to upload their videos to Amazon for better audience reach and monetization. The program offers creators several options to monetize their videos, including making them free and ad-supported, making them available to rent or own, and collecting royalties based on the hours streamed. Larger-scale video producers can also choose to package their content and offer it as an add-on subscription to Amazon Prime Video.

What Brands Need To Do
With this initiative, Amazon is making a strong play for more video content, especially user-generated and independent content, which puts it in direct competition with digital video platforms like YouTube and Vimeo. For brands, Amazon Video Direct opens a door for them to get their branded content onto Amazon’s video platform to reach the streaming audience. Since some videos will be ad-supported, brands can also work with content creators to find compatible videos to run ads with so as to reach their target audiences.

To read more on how brands can take advantage of the ongoing shift in content distribution toward streaming platforms, please check out the Appified TV section in our Outlook 2016.

 

Source: TechCrunch

Alexa Can Now Answer Your Medical Inquiries

Posted on by Lab Team

What Happened
Another week, another new skill for Alexa. Amazon’s voice assistant continues to grow its capabilities as KidsMD, an Alexa skill developed by Boston Children’s Hospital, officially launched last week. It allows users to ask Alexa-enabled Amazon devices for information about their sick children’s symptoms and receive health advice. Users can also ask Alexa for age and weight-specific dosing guidelines for various medications for kids.

What Brands Need To Do
This new skill marks one of Alexa’s first entries (besides My Dermatologist) into the healthcare domain, and it should come in handy when parents are too busy taking care of their sick kids to manually Google for information. As conversational interfaces led by the likes of Alexa and chat bots continue to gain momentum and evolve in their capabilities, it is important for brands of all industries to explore possible integrations into those advanced platforms.

For more information on how brands can develop authentic brand voices and navigate the new rules of discovery, check out the Conversational Interfaces section in our Outlook 2016.

 

Source: Engadget

Amazon Wants You To Pay With Amazon Payments Anywhere Online

Posted on by Lab Team

What Happened
Amazon is expanding its Amazon Payments Global Partner Program to help more ecommerce platform providers and merchants remove payment friction and combat shopping cart abandonment. Previously, individual merchants could sign up to integrate Amazon’s online payment solution into their sites to allow shoppers to check out with their Amazon account payment info. Now, Amazon is bringing this integration to ecommerce platforms, such as PrestaShop, Shopify, and Future Shop, to further expand the reach of its payment service and solidify its leading position in the ecommerce space.  

What Retailers Need To Do
By allowing customers to check out with the credit card information they have on file with Amazon, e-retailers can make it easier for customers to complete their purchases and facilitate more sales. A recent study shows that 46% of shopping cart abandonments occur at the payment stage. Therefore, it would be smart for retailers to consider adding support for “Pay with Amazon” and win over customers with a frictionless shopping experience.

For more information on how brands can modernize their user experiences to better engage with shoppers, check out the Boundless Retail section in our Outlook 2016.

 

Source: TechCrunch

Header image courtesy of Amazon Payments

Amazon Expands Dash Buttons, Now Over 100 Brands

Posted on by Lab Team

What Happened
Amazon continues to expand its “push-to-reorder” Dash buttons to cover more brands and products. Earlier this week, the ecommerce giant debuted about 80 new Dash buttons, bringing the total number of branded Dash buttons to over 100. The new batch covers products beyond the household products category, such as food and beverage products like Starbucks, Red Bull, Slim Jim, and Orbit gum. Amazon says orders made from Dash buttons have increased by more than 75% in the last three months.

What Brands Need To Do
The Dash button is a great tool for brands to develop and maintain consumer loyalty by enabling convenient reordering. With the popularization of connected devices, we expect to see more automatic replenishment service like Amazon Dash pop up in the near future. For brands with CPG  products, it would be wise to work with Amazon to develop their own branded buttons to cultivate a long-term relationship with consumers.

For more on how retailers and CPG brands can better build relationships with consumers through multiple touchpoints and channels, check out the Boundless Retail section in our Outlook 2016.

 

Source: TechCrunch

Header image courtesy of  Amazon’s YouTube Video

Capital One Customers Can Now Bank With Alexa

Posted on by Lab Team

What Happened
Alexa keeps getting smarter as it adds basic banking to its long list of skills today. Capital One announced at SXSW the integration of its banking app with Amazon’s voice-activated virtual assistant. The new skill allows users of Alexa-enabled devices to ask Alexa to check their account balances, review recent transactions, and even pay their bills with pre-linked accounts. All they need to do is to enable the skill in the Alexa mobile app, then link Alexa with Capital One accounts.

What Brands Need To Do
As Amazon and their developer community continue to build out Alexa’s capabilities, the Echo is becoming an increasingly business-friendly platform for brands to connect with consumers via a conversational interface. As Amazon expands the Echo family and makes push for Alexa integrations, brands will need to be proactive in getting on board with those devices via deep integrations or partnerships.

For more information on how brands can develop authentic brand voices and navigate the new rules of discovery, check out the Conversational Interfaces section in our Outlook 2016.

 

Source: The Verge

Amazon Debuts First Live Show With Shoppable Content

Posted on by Lab Team

What Happened
Amazon is set to launch its first live programming today as the ecommerce giant pushes deeper into original content development. The show, titled Style Code Live, features a trio of YouTube stars and reality TV personalities on a QVC-like set where they talk about fashion trends, give make-up advice, and, of course, plug select products. Viewers will be able to buy the corresponding products from a carousel under the video player. The half-hour show airs live every weekday at 9PM ET, which puts it in direct competition with primetime TV programs. All previous episodes will also be available for streaming for free on Amazon’s site, no Prime membership required.

What Fashion And Beauty Brands Need To Do
Amazon has yet to reveal which brands will be featured on the show, but it seems safe to assume that the company will feature items from its own private fashion labels like Scout + Ro and Franklin Tailored. Amazon reportedly stands to make as high as a 40% profit margin on apparel, but only 15% of Amazon’s customers ever buy clothing and accessories on the site. So it makes perfect sense for Amazon to launch this live show to give its apparel products a strong push. For fashion and beauty brands, this live show presents a great new opportunity to get their products in front of online viewers with a better discovery mechanism and encourage purchases right on Amazon’s site.

With viewers moving away from linear TV to OTT viewing, the proliferation of streaming content is giving brands more opportunities than ever to be discovered by new audiences. To learn more about how brands can reach viewers on OTT platforms with branded or sponsored content, check out the Appified TV section in our Outlook 2016.

 

Source: Variety

Amazon Prime Video Dips Toe Into Free, Ad-Supported Content

Posted on by Lab Team

What Happened
Amazon has been steadily building out its OTT streaming service Prime Video with new shows and branded content to compete with Netflix. On Thursday, the streaming service broke new ground by launching its first ad-supported original series. The show, The Fashion Fund, is a 10-episode reality competition series produced by Condé Nast Entertainment. It is free to watch for everyone with no Prime membership required and features some clickable ads that link to the brand’s website or Amazon shopping page.

Although Amazon has clarified that this is merely an experiment with ad-supported content and that Amazon Prime Video will remain ad-free, this new series nevertheless signals Amazon’s exploration of new business models for its OTT service. This new development also dovetails nicely with recent reports that Amazon is mulling over selling slim subscription bundles of TV networks via its OTT service.

What Brands Need To Do
Should Amazon move forward with this ad-supported model and create more free-to-watch content, the new audience they attract could help Amazon get a portion of the video advertising dollars that are increasingly moving to digital. As a result, this would also present a new channel for brands to reach the audience consuming TV content via streaming platforms (check out our Outlook 2016 for more on the Appified TV trend). In this fast-changing media landscape, brands need to stay alert of the new channels and opportunities to effectively reach the right audience, and adjust their ad spending accordingly.

 

Source: Wired

 

Amazon Plans To Open More Physical Stores

Posted on by Lab Team

What Happened
Three months after Amazon opened its first brick-and-mortar bookstore in Seattle, the ecommerce giant is said to be planning as many as 400 bookstores across the nation, according to Sandeep Mathrani, CEO of mall operator General Growth Properties Inc. Amazon uses the data it acquires from its online properties to stock its Seattle store, and we anticipate a similar approach will be applied to its other stores as the company pushes deeper into physical retail.

What Brands Need To Do
As more and more online retailers venture into physical retail, they gain retail presence and leverage what they have learned about their customers online to enhance their in-store experiences and at the same time develop more personal relationships with their customers which can inform the online experience. Amazon is tapping the location and purchase data it has to bridge the gap between online and offline retail, and all brands with an owned retail presence need to start doing the same in order to develop a holistic CRM system that covers the entire purchase cycle.

For more details on how retailers can utilize all customer touchpoints to improve shopping experiences both online and offline, click here to read the Boundless Retail section in our new Outlook 2016.

Editor’s note: A new report from Re/code now indicates that while Amazon does have plans for more physical stores, including retail stores that aren’t bookstores, it has no immediate plans for opening 300-400 stores.

 

Source: Wall Street Journal
Header image courtesy of Amazon