This past year upended how people work, are entertained, consume and transact. Yet most of these trends aren’t being disrupted, they are accelerating in a direction already anticipated pre-COVID-19.

Double-digit increases in ROI for every dollar spent on email, higher frequency spending customers and hefty database signups are the kinds of marketing and digital tech investment returns that speak for themselves. But it’s also the ability to lift that human connection with customers that’s top of mind for Winedirect.com.au's chief digital officer, Adam Hollinshead.

In the race to make interactions digital, one aspect of transacting has remained stubbornly troublesome – identity.

As we continue to grapple with the shake-up to our lives and work brought on by the pandemic, there’s another era of computing innovation on our doorstep waiting to disrupt us once again: Web 3.0.

Learning fast and adapting quickly have become catchcries for Accent Group’s customer experience (CX) team as it gathers lessons from 2020 to take into the festive shopping season and beyond.

​With 50,000 students studying more than 200 courses across five physical sites and one virtual campus, South East Queensland’s Griffith University is a large and complex organisation to manage.

Customer migration driven by the COVID-19 crisis might be here to stay for many businesses across Australia and New Zealand, according to the latest Salesforce State of the Connected Customer report.

It’s a problem many brands have been working for years to solve: Growing interest in digital engagement and commerce and a need for greater capability to meet it. But in Farmlands New Zealand’s case, the timeframe for a response was shortened to just three weeks after the COVID-19 pandemic and lockdown struck antipodean shores.

A 600 per cent surge in leads, the ability to connect the dots on customer journeys and a substantial lift in the quality of prospects are just a few of the initial wins for Australian builder, Wisdom, after overhauling its digital strategy and website.

Human-centred design was once seen very much as a ‘nice to have’ but has increasingly become an essential element to a digital change project. And indeed, it's a key element of the success, or otherwise, of this kind of innovation, says a global expert in the practice.

There’s no doubt COVID-19 has accelerated the shift to digital channels and transactions for Australian retailers. Here, Cue Clothing’s CIO, Shane Lenton, shares how the iconic Australian fashion brand adapted to the new normal of retail presented by the pandemic, the virtual and digital offerings it’s rapidly created, and the longer-term innovations they’re helping inform.

Seamless and frictionless end-to-end customer journeys through automation and bots is the end game for Optus VP of digital consumer, Vaughan Paul, as he works to respond to customers engaging more online and digitally.

Needing to revamp its online presence, high-end fashion house Aje tapped Shopify to improve its online metrics, which came at just the right time for the sudden reliance on ecommerce with the Coronavirus pandemic.

There’s been a sharp growth in online events driven by remote work during the coronavirus pandemic, which could become permanent, according to a new study by Redback Connect.

For Australian linen and homewares brand, Lorraine Lea, decline had set in long before the COVID-19 crisis hit.

The COVID-19 crisis forced thousands of businesses across Australia to either fundamentally re-evaluate their business model or risk shutting up shop for good. But at Vision Personal Training, it’s served to stimulate digital transition that could have long-term benefits.

The launch of IGA’s online grocery delivery service is a lesson in developing minimum viable product that responds quickly to the needs of customers during a rapidly evolving crisis, its shopper engagement leader says.

Citizen engagement is the name of the game for the city of Adelaide and it’s undertaken a digital transformation program and upped the ante on content in order to achieve those ambitions.

In the wake of increased digital marketing following mandatory isolation, new research shows six in 10 consumers are less inclined to use a product if their data is used for any purpose.

Seven West Media has confirmed Pacific Magazines chief, Gereurd Roberts, as its group chief digital officer.

The Spell and the Gypsy started as a brand sold in markets and was driven by personalised customer service and rich storytelling. So as the brand grew into a more omnichannel approach, it only made sense to continue these facets in a digital environment.