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RMIT LAUNCHES ECOMMERCE COURSE TO HELP RETAILERS RMIT Online has partnered with some of Australia’s leading retail brands, including The Iconic, Officeworks and Koala Furniture, global innovation consultancy R/GA, and sizing technology company Tec.Fit, to launch a short new course: ‘Ecommerce strategy and experience’. The “first of its kind” course provides students with the necessary tools to integrate a robust ecommerce business model into their organisation. The Covid-19 pandemic, according to RMIT Online, has accelerated the demand for ecommerce in Australia by 91 per cent (as indicated from AusPost data). It adds that ecommerce now makes up 14.1 per cent of global retail sales and is expected to rise to 22 per cent by 2023, according to research from Shopify, resulting in increased demand for experts in the sector. The new course will guide students through the ecommerce value chain to identify competitive advantages and business opportunities, drawing on best practices from some of Australia’s largest online retailers. Students will learn how to generate revenue in a world of “connected commerce” and develop a strategy and roadmap that consider customer experience and both front and back-of-house operations. RMIT Online CEO Helen Souness says the pandemic has highlighted the importance and the potential of online retail, and many businesses are fast- tracking their omnichannel offering to meet customer demand. “While the pandemic has accelerated the rate at which ecommerce has grown, online has always been an inevitable part of the future of retail,” she said. “The launch of the new ecommerce course is a great way for retailers to stay one step ahead, preparing them for success in a new retail landscape.” Officeworks Customer Experience and Ecommerce General Manager David Pisker says ecommerce has played a critical role for the retail sector, even more so as businesses navigate the post-Covid-19 marketplace. “Officeworks has been pursuing a successful every-channel strategy for a number of years but the disruption that Covid-19 has caused has accelerated the flight to digital,” he said. “To continue our growth, we’ve had to adapt quickly, and we believe this course can help others navigate starting, running and growing their ecommerce businesses and ideas in an ever-changing environment.” RMIT Online’s ‘Ecommerce strategy and experience’ short course costs $1,200 and will run for six weeks, beginning in October. Graduates will receive a credential from RMIT University. NEWS MINTEL’S ‘QUICK WAY’ TO UNDERSTAND AND COMPARE GLOBAL CONSUMERS Mintel has launched Mintel Global Consumer, a new research tool that is said to allow brand owners, marketers, and suppliers to quickly understand and compare consumer attitudes and behaviours across the world’s 35 leading consumer markets. According to Mintel, the biannual survey of 35,000 people offers brands a rich source of information about what drives consumers and influences their choices for food, drink, beauty, personal and household care – across the markets that generate a claimed 85 per cent of global GDP. Mintel Global Consumer, says the company, can help businesses grow domestically and internationally by helping them understand consumer behaviour, sentiment, and demographics across the world. Mintel Global President of Research and Insights Julie Lizer describes the new research tool as an “incredibly powerful innovation”, empowering Mintel’s clients to understand what consumers want and why in the 35 most important consumer markets. “It gives them the dual ability of big picture comparisons on a global scale, while also enabling them to understand what makes consumers different from market to market,” she said. “Whether brands want to expand internationally or strengthen their core market positions, Mintel Global Consumer will keep them ahead of the curve. Our new research tool can help companies break into new territories by understanding what drives consumer behaviour in a specific market, while also enhancing their knowledge of which global trends can be applied to their local market. “By utilising the tool’s demographic capabilities, brands, marketers and suppliers can also more effectively understand key consumer groups and so create segmentation strategies to target them with greater accuracy.” SEP, 2020 RETAIL WORLD 11