Recorded live at VISIONS Summit: NYC 2024, join Alicia Esposito for her sitdown with Seb Reetz, Bloomreach’s Solutions Consulting Lead of the Americas. They dive into the fascinating intersection of AI and art, exploring how AI is transforming both the creation and consumption of art discussing the ethical considerations, creative opportunities, and practical applications of AI in the artistic process. Seb shares insights from his current projects, including a thought-provoking video game that leverages AI for ideation and voice generation.

Key takeaways:

• AI tools aid in ideation and proof of concept, helping artists and writers like Seb generate and refine ideas.
• AI has the potential to revolutionize customer experience through personalized, cross-channel interactions.
• [00:30] Seb: "I sell AI on a day-to-day basis. I also am a writer for video games. So I definitely think about AI and the sort of ethics around it."
• [10:00] Seb: "AI is a really powerful tool to help with that. So again, I go back to the you're the air traffic controller as the marketer."

• Bloomreach
• 11 Labs
• Prague Arts Festival
• Check out Future Commerce on YouTube
• Check out Future Commerce+ for exclusive content and save on merch and print
• Subscribe to Insiders and The Senses to read more about what we are witnessing in the commerce world
• Listen to our other episodes of Future Commerce

Have any questions or comments about the show? Let us know on futurecommerce.com, or reach out to us on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, or LinkedIn. We love hearing from our listeners!

Recorded live at VISIONS Summit: NYC 2024, join Paul Canetti as he sits down with Reggie James and Ruby Thelot. We explore the concept of being "too online" and whether the dichotomy between digital and physical worlds is still relevant. Ruby and Reggie share their thoughts on the cultural shifts driven by our online presence, the importance of physical spaces, and the impact of digital status-seeking on our everyday lives. Listen now!

Key takeaways:

• The line between digital and physical worlds is increasingly blurred. While there's a fascination with the physical realm, the digital world offers unparalleled opportunities for status and connection.
• The pursuit of online status can drive people to act differently in the physical world, often using public spaces as stages for digital content creation.
• As technology evolves, so do our cultural norms. The value of images and digital content is changing, prompting a re-evaluation of what we consider real or trustworthy.
• Looking ahead, there's potential for more personalized, artisanal digital experiences. This shift might move us away from mass-produced technology toward bespoke digital solutions.
• The future of software and digital experiences may lie in highly personalized, artisanal creations rather than scaled, mass-market solutions.
• [00:02:30] Reggie James: "We tend to hit these just accelerated, you know, Internet superhighway vibes mentally, and then you step outside and you realize, actually, the pace of this environment is significantly slower."
• [00:03:30] Ruby Thelot: "There is certainly this fascination that we now have for the physical realm. As soon as we're allowed to go online, suddenly we're like, oh, no, wait. It's gotta be analog or it's gotta be we wanna go back to the physical."
• [00:05:30] Reggie James: "Utilizing public space as a playground for digital status creates this weird, just using up of this previously shared social resource."
• [00:09:00] Ruby Thelot: "Once we are able to generate images that have the semblance of reality, the value socially of images erodes. We can think of it even in a judiciary context where we start to question the veracity of the images that are presented."
• [00:27:00] Paul Canetti: "It might be that when it's all said and done, there was this 50-ish year period of humanity where we spent a lot of effort creating these kinds of interfaces and these new ways to accomplish things. And then in the end, we'll come back to something that looks a lot like it did pre-computer.”

Links & Resources:

• Ruby Thelot's new book on design and beauty theory
• Nathan Jurgenson's essay "The IRL Fetish"
• Eugene Wei's insights on online status optimization
• Martin Guerre (movie) featuring Gérard Depardieu
• Maggie Appleton's discussions on home-cooked software
• William Morris and the Arts and Crafts Movement
• Check out Future Commerce on YouTube‍
• Check out Future Commerce+ for exclusive content and save on merch and print‍
• Subscribe to Insiders and The Senses to read more about what we are witnessing in the commerce world
• Listen to our other episodes of Future Commerce

Have any questions or comments about the show? Let us know on futurecommerce.com, or reach out to us on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, or LinkedIn. We love hearing from our listeners!

Welcome to a special episode of Future Commerce, recorded live from the Outdoor Retailer conference held at the beautiful Tracy Aviary. In this episode, Brian sits down with industry leaders to discuss the future of omnichannel retail in the outdoor industry. Discover insights into enhancing the customer journey, reducing checkout friction, and optimizing operations to create seamless, memorable experiences for both B2B and B2C markets.

• [00:02:30] - Elcee Vargas: "The prevailing research right now is that 70% of carts are abandoned, which is an overwhelmingly large number."
• [00:07:00] - Jordan: "We do a ton of A/B testing to create the quickest checkout experience. Taking a 120-second checkout process down to 6 seconds makes a huge difference."
• [00:21:30] - Travis: "With payments being the lifeblood of your company, you can't disrupt the revenue coming in and where it's going."
• [00:36:00] - Ken: "The closer you are to the top of search results, the more opportunities you have to make sales. Shipping plays a huge part in this."
• [00:39:00] - Carl: "Making sure you've got something that feeds these different channels is crucial for scalability and success."
• Maintaining customer relationships during off-seasons helps keep the brand top-of-mind, ensuring readiness to purchase when the season returns.
• Ensuring that your technology stack is cohesive and scalable is essential for seamless operations across B2B and B2C channels.
• Automating processes and having real-time visibility into inventory and sales trends can help manage tax implications and optimize inventory management.
• Continual A/B testing and optimization of the customer experience, especially at checkout, can lead to significant improvements in efficiency and customer satisfaction.

Links & Resources:

• Learn more about Klaviyo, Stripe, Avalara, ShipStation, NetSuite, BigCommerce
• Check out Future Commerce on YouTube
• Check out Future Commerce+ for exclusive content and save on merch and print
• Subscribe to Insiders and The Senses to read more about what we are witnessing in the commerce world
• Listen to our other episodes of Future Commerce

Have any questions or comments about the show? Let us know on futurecommerce.com, or reach out to us on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, or LinkedIn. We love hearing from our listeners!