Which direction should a company go in if they want to find their way in the complex world of e-commerce? It is not a simple or linear one and, unsurprisingly, it’s called An e-commerce compass: the webinar held on January 28 which TUTTOFOOD, HostMilano and Traspotec Logitec co-organised on the subject. Speakers included Giovanni Cappellotto, Ecommerce & Retail consultant; Marino Casucci, CEO of Intergic; Federico Gasparotto, Founder & CEO of Growth Automation Studio; Niccolò Giustiniani, Business Innovation Manager of Overture; and Paolo Pizzocaro, Exhibition Director BU Food, Tech, Travel & Industry for Fiera Milano.

There were several useful insights for the Food & Beverage sector. For instance, Giovanni Cappellotto provided interesting signposts for navigating the choice of e-commerce platforms there are to join, while bearing in mind factors that typically take a back seat, such as the total cost of ownership (which is also made up of licensing costs, development, support and so on) and the importance of integrating business systems - such as management and CRM for customer relations - to get the best results. In terms of logistics, Cappellotto stressed the importance of innovating and digitalising, with data in mind like, for example, 67% of global consumers would like free shipping and 45% would like more choice.

From technology to business models

Marino Casucci addressed the topic of how to accelerate digital business by effectively, yet simply, implementing cutting-edge technology such as artificial intelligence. Some of the most current points touched on included the personalisation of the customer journey and AI based predictive targeting, as well as the value of so-called A/B Testing, which is the ability to simultaneously run two alternative solutions with users to verify which is the most effective, saving time and money on the final solution.

Federico Gasparotto demonstrated the need to incorporate an ‘e-commerce framework’ into a single business model. Not just the technological aspects but managerial and sales as well: from the omnichannel approach, marketing and customer support, right up to supply chains and payment and anti-fraud methods. Lastly, Niccolò Giustiniani spoke about the digital brand strategy, stressing aspects such as positioning, online acquisition campaigns and engagement. The long term goals should be to understand consumers and select target audiences.

A real "toolbox" that can be put to use almost immediately, as the webinar’s high rate of participation confirms with over 1,400 users logged in. Full slides are available at:

https://www.tuttofood.it/eventi/webinar/una-bussola-per-l-e-commerce.html