Here’s a piece of hot Tuesday news: Amazon just announced the fees and requirements for its low-cost store! And it’s a long list—a story for another day.
But our list of equally sizzling news for today isn’t that long, so why not check it out first? 👇
- AI-powered fraud? 🫣
- The key to becoming a go-to destination for holiday shoppers 🗝️
- unBoxed 2024 highlights 🎁
- Edutainment marketing 📜
BLACK MARKET
AI adoption in ecommerce has been astronomical. Not only did it help with generating marketing content, but it also streamlined workflows and automated tasks.
But…
There are always two sides to a coin. A recent article from Security Boulevard reports on the rise of ecommerce fraud and how AI is becoming its driving force.
🤖 Fraudulent AI
- According to Juniper Research, ecommerce fraud will reach $44 billion this year and exceed $107 billion in 2029.
- AI is being used to commit fraud, specifically, identity fraud. Cybercriminals are using AI to generate deepfakes or create synthetic identities.
- Real-time payment models are susceptible to these types of fraud. It’s instant and irreversible. And, sadly, it’s the victims who are fooled into initiating legitimate transfers to scammers. 💸
- AI's ability to scale can overwhelm traditional, rules-based prevention systems. Scammers can generate similar attacks faster and in greater quantities.
How do you fight it?
The most common strategy so far is to strictly implement Know Your Customer (KYC). In short, confirm shoppers’ identity to make sure they’re actual people.
However, this will increase the buying friction because adding more identification steps will lengthen the checkout process. Right now, it boils down to a difficult choice: Do you want less fraud or less customer friction?
Which would you choose? 🫵
TOGETHER WITH WALMART MARKETPLACE
Be a go-to destination for holiday shoppers in just a few minutes
Holiday shoppers are crossing off their gift lists earlier than ever. According to Vericast, 44% plan to start their 2024 holiday shopping in October or sooner.*
With Walmart.com being the go-to destination for millions of holiday shoppers, it’s a crucial time to join Marketplace and get your products within their reach.
As a Marketplace seller, you can access:
- A network of millions of customers
- Innovative tools to fuel your growth
- Walmart’s omnichannel advantage
Plus, no monthly or setup fees, ever. It only takes a few minutes to create an account for what could be a game-changing move in scaling your business. Sign up for Walmart Marketplace today.
BITES OF THE WEEK
- Still Battling Bad Actors: Amazon just filed new lawsuits against fake review brokers.
- Tell Your Customers: Here are 8 Amazon app features to make your customer’s shopping journey more exciting.
- Value-centered Holiday: A report revealed that this holiday season will be extra intense due to shoppers’ cautious spending mindset.
AMAZON NEWS
Unboxing Amazon Ads’ new features (and promises)
As we promised yesterday, we’re gonna give you an overview of the innovations unboxed during unBoxed 2024.
Let’s dive in, shall we?
- Launch of Audience Bid Boosting. This new feature allows bid adjustment based on custom audience segments. This would help advertisers optimize their bids and re-engage shoppers.
- Integration of Amazon insights and publisher data. Advertisers can make better-informed publishing decisions by leveraging insights from Amazon Marketing Cloud (AMC) and Amazon Publisher Cloud (APC). They can even customize campaigns to achieve higher engagements.
- New product campaigns. Amazon’s new-funnel advertising solution allows brands to quickly introduce new products to customers. What’s more, Amazon Ads will take care of everything—from planning the lacuna to ensuring sufficient inventory!
- Multi-touch Attribution (beta). U.S.-based advertisers will be given access to multi-touch attribution metrics. ICYDK, multi-touch attribution is a new campaign metric that lets you see your ads’ value in the early stages of customers’ journey (before they’re ready to buy).
- AI creative studio (beta). As the name implies, AI creative studio is where you can use AI functions to create high-quality content. The studio features video and image generation tools to fuel your creativity.
- New regions for Prime Video ads. In 2025, limited ads on the platform will be available in Brazil, India, Japan, the Netherlands, and New Zealand. This gives you a chance to reach new audiences in other countries.
SOCIAL PULSE
A fresh marketing tactic to shine this holiday season
If you’re looking for a fresh way to stand out this holiday season, Net Influencer has an interesting suggestion: edutainment marketing. It’s basically what it sounds—content that educates while it entertains. 👓
According to a report by Sprout Social, 66% of consumers find edutainment content the most engaging. In fact, 48% have increased their interaction with brands that use this tactic over the past 6 months!
🤸♂️ How can you jump on this trend?
- Use short, snappy videos. Create bite-sized tutorials or fun demos of your products. Consumers love quick, informative clips.
- Tell a story. Sharing a personal or brand story never fails to engage and capture shoppers’ attention.
- Add interactive elements. Use quizzes, polls, or challenges to keep shoppers engaged while teaching them about your products.
🖐️ Should you use edutainment marketing?
Definitely!
Consumers are overloaded with traditional ads, especially during the peak season. And edutainment cuts through the noise!
When people learn something from your brand in a way that entertains them, they’re more likely to trust you and even share your content with others. So, don't miss out on this strategy. It’s fun and effective, and stats show it works!
