The direct-to-consumer (D2C) model has been making waves over the past few years, as a greater emphasis on owned and operated online channels has been placed. In 2020, this model became even more attractive as brands and retailers faced disrupted supply chains, delayed orders, and store closures.

The digital divide has widened, particularly over the past year, and left seniors worldwide in the lurch. This issue takes on added urgency in China, where gender imbalance, delayed marriage, and a declining birthrate only exacerbate the rapid aging of its population. In November, the government urged tech companies to cater to the elderly, and China’s digital giants are now tapping into the so-called silver market.

Critical as it is, customer experience (CX) wouldn’t offer competitive differentiation if every brand was successful at delivering strong CX.

On today's episode, we discuss the different ways brands might get involved on social audio apps like Clubhouse, what kind of Summer Olympics we can expect this year, common ad tactics that are alienating people, America's payments revolution, how retailers are using Facebook Shops, what we know and don't know about the ocean, and more. Tune in to the discussion with eMarketer principal analysts Jeremy Goldman, Nicole Perrin, and Debra Aho Williamson.

The coffee chain leading the mobile payments game

Clubhouse has buzz, but social audio isn’t as simple as it looks. The most promising marketing use cases are for thought leadership, virtual events, and influencer marketing.

How much wealthier are boomers than younger generations?

On today's episode, we discuss five milestone changes in how Americans are consuming media. We then talk about multiscreen behavior, newspaper readership trends, and movie studios figuring out the right theatrical release strategy. Tune in to the discussion with eMarketer director of forecasting Oscar Orozco and forecasting analyst at Insider Intelligence Peter Vahle.

LinkedIn joins the race against Clubhouse: The platform is the latest to announce its own live social audio feature. It could stand out in the audio wars by focusing more heavily on structured events like conferences and webinars, which would also help it attract B2B marketers.

There’s no doubt that grocery shopping habits have changed over the past year, with more consumers trying online options for the first time. This year, US online grocery sales will surpass $100 billion, to make up 12.4% of the country’s ecommerce sales.

eMarketer was pleased to moderate a Tech-Talk Webinar featuring Salesforce Datorama's Rebecca Haly, director, customer success, Compare the Market’s Travis Naughton, head of marketing technology and analytics, and Grab’s Asha Gourinath, performance marketing and CRM lead, growth markets. They discussed how APAC marketers have had to pivot their strategies and accelerate digital transformation due to the coronavirus pandemic.

In this Meet the Analyst Webinar, Nicole Perrin, eMarketer principal analyst at Insider Intelligence, explained our latest forecast of US ad spending and the trends driving it.