E-commerce has definitively changed the way we shop. The analytical abstraction of the economy, the model of the rational, utility-maximising homo economicus became more real through the internet. The range of suppliers and the transparency provided by comparison portals and price search engines turns the rational agent from theory into a tangible realist, the consumer who can search, compare and make an immediate purchase decision in real time.
Consumer loyalty is low and consumers jump from one sales channel to the next, always aiming to find the best offer at the best price. Data-driven, empowered with smartphones for constant shopping, consumers move around very selectively. Competition is increasing and although sales are up, profits are barely rising as margins have been squeezed. Suppliers are fighting for attention and customers on the internet.The internet knows no time and no national borders. Chinese companies such as Alibaba, for example, are coming to Europe and, with the experience of 500 million consumers, want to make their own offers on the European market. At the same time as online Commerce, Alibaba is also expanding its stationary Commerce . Alibaba Managing Director Karl Wehner explained what this looks like at this year's GS1 ECR Day.
GS1 ECR TAG 2018: TRENDS IM Commerce took place in Wiesbaden on 19.09.18 and 20.09.2018. The advertising focused on "Growing together" and "Growing together" and offered insights into current e-commerce digitalisation, corporate strategies, innovations and industry trends. In the plenary programme and in-depth expert forums, Nestlé was able to talk about internal transformations in the market, discuss the relevance of the food industry, individualisation and IoT. Unilever spoke about digital twin, social marketing and the non-linear consumer decision journey. Google spoke about conversational commerce and the new ecosystem of partnerships, GfK talked about new category management tasks and Media Markt Saturn presented its own multi-player approach.
Markant, the largest trade and service cooperation in the food trade in Europe, took time for master data quality and pointed out the relevance of product data; the consumer makes decisions based on available information, so accurate and comprehensive product information should be available in Commerce .
An exhibition with over 100 companies offered opportunities for research and networking. In summary, the message of the event was that, in addition to one's own growth, it is above all growing together in the sense of cooperation that drives a successful digital transformation. It is important to use synergies and to exchange ideas with players from within and outside the industry. The focus is on human qualities such as empathy and creativity. And this component would be refreshing for homo economicus: thinking in a non-linear consumer decision journey.
