Every month we spotlight one of our client partners. This month, we chatted with Rita Zahir, VP of Marketing & eCommerce at The Giving Keys about marketing, thought leaders and, of course, eCommerce.
1. Choose your adventure: what is your favorite, or least favorite, buzzword recently? Explain why.
Hyper-personalization is my favorite buzzword of late. In most examples, I would say, “I don’t think that means what you think it means.” But when done right, hyper-personalization provides tremendous value to the consumer and creates a more fluid, enjoyable shopping experience. The difference depends on leveraging meaningful data and then planning around the idea of increasing value for the consumer, not just increasing AOV. If you can personalize someone’s online experience to their preferences, shopping behavior, stage of the funnel, etc., then you will be able to mirror some of the best aspects of in-store service.
2. What is the best online or in-store shopping experience you’ve had recently and why?
I recently had a shopping experience that was like the Tale of Two Cities. I went to a Disney store and had a wonderful shopping experience. The sights and sounds, as well as the service, created an experience that supported their fun brand and made me look forward to returning. A couple of days later, I went to the Disney online store and was reminded how ecommerce sometimes falls short of the magic of the in-store experience.
3. If you could have coffee with any thought leader or executive in the world right now, who would it be?
It would have to be Sallie Krawcheck, CEO of both Ellevate Network and Ellevest. Not just for the growth and investment advice that her companies are famous for providing to women entrepreneurs, but also to pick her brain about advice on how to be resilient in the face of repeated hardship, agile in the midst of a changing tide and bravely honest with your children as you fight the battles everyone has in a long, complicated career.
Bonus: Pitch your product! What have you launched recently and/or what are you really excited about right now as it relates to your brand?
The Giving Keys has been partnering recently with a lot of amazing women-led organizations to expand the diversity and breadth of the inspirational fashion that we create. We are working with organizations like Female Collective, Wilder Poetry, Darling Magazine and Wordaful to create new pieces with stories and poetry that truly inspire and move people!