Here is a list of product releases and updates for February from companies that offer services to online merchants. There are updates on content creation, delivery, mobile messaging, and multiple updates from Amazon.
Got an ecommerce product release? Email releases@practicalecommerce.com.
Ecommerce Product Releases
Snap launches Snap Store. Snap has launched Snap Store, in the app’s Discover section. Users can buy Snapchat merchandise, such as a $50 Winkface Sweatshirt or a $20 Dancing Hot Dog Plushie. The store is primarily a promotional tool for brand loyalty. However, it will provide a glimpse of the potential for wider in-app commerce.
Snap Store
Webgility launches 1-Click Accounting for Amazon. Webgility, an ecommerce automation provider in the small and medium business market, has announced an enhancement to its Webgility Unify software. Webgility 1-Click Accounting for Amazon makes it easy for sellers to post Amazon Marketplace orders, refunds, expenses, and payments into QuickBooks or Xero. Unify users can now swiftly reconcile their accounting with their Amazon Settlement Report, eliminating the need for additional data entry or a separate clearing account. Contact for pricing.
Alibaba signs deal to offer Disney shows on video platforms. Alibaba announced a multiyear content licensing agreement with The Walt Disney Company. Under the agreement, more than 1,000 of Disney’s animated episodes will be released on Youku and platforms selected by Alibaba, making them the largest Disney animation collection in China.
Intellyo announces launch of the Creator Engine. Intellyo announced the launch of its free automated content management software. The Creator Engine allows individuals and enterprises to manage every facet of the content creation and production process, from research to amplification. A built-in quality analyzer provides automated tips to maximize search-engine-optimization impact. A comprehensive process management and a list of integrations simplify editing and distribution workflows.
Intellyo
Attentive raises $13 million for personalized mobile messaging platform. Attentive, a personalized mobile messaging platform for ecommerce and retail businesses, announced a $13 million Series A investment led by Bain Capital Ventures along with participation from Eniac Ventures and NextView Ventures. Attentive provides a new way for brands to automatically send personalized mobile messages across the entire customer lifecycle — from product recommendations and limited-time sales to payments and real-time customer service. Contact for pricing.
Vogue and GQ to test content inside Amazon’s Echo Look. Amazon Echo Look, a camera-equipped version of the Alexa-powered devices, will now feature content from Vogue and GQ on the home screen of its mobile app. Users take a selfie using the Look, and when they send it to the app, they’ll see fashion, celebrity, and service content from the Condé Nast titles, some of it shoppable — Condé Nast owns Vogue and GQ. If the user clicks to buy a product from the publisher’s content via the app, the publisher gets a cut of the sale. The content will be chosen by Condé Nast and Amazon employees and be updated weekly.
Amazon to launch delivery service to compete with FedEx and UPS. According to The Wall Street Journal, Amazon is preparing to launch a delivery service for businesses, to compete directly with FedEx and UPS. “Shipping with Amazon” will pick up packages from businesses and ship them to consumers. The service will launch in Los Angeles in the “coming weeks” with companies that sell on Amazon.
Zaius integrates with Zendesk for a complete view of customer experience. Zaius, a B2C customer management platform, announced the immediate availability of its product integration with Zendesk, which builds software for better customer relationships. By ingesting Zendesk customer support data and unifying it with a customer’s shopping behavior data, product data, and more, Zaius provides a centralized customer database, segmentation and campaign targeting, and analytics to understand the relationship between the number of tickets per customer and her satisfaction ratings.
Zaius
Amazon offers Whole Foods deliveries via Prime. Amazon announced that it will start delivering Whole Foods groceries via its Prime Now service. It will add Whole Foods to its one-hour and two-hour delivery service in Austin, Cincinnati, Dallas, and Virginia Beach, and plans to expand it across the country this year.
Monetate and AgilOne team up to deliver smarter personalization. Monetate, a player in personalization software for consumer-facing brands, announced a partnership with AgilOne, a customer data platform for B2C enterprises. Through this collaboration, Monetate will provide clients with smarter personalization — including rich, comprehensive customer profiles, orchestrated omnichannel engagement, and intelligence on who customers are and what they need right now — so brands can match the right content with the right individual to drive engagement, conversions, and revenue.
Episerver announces a new visitor intelligence product. Episerver, the content management and marketing platform, announced the launch of Episerver Insight and a new headless API — i.e., an API for any device — to help organizations gain visitor intelligence and deliver more seamless experiences for their customers everywhere they engage. Episerver Insight allows marketers and merchandisers to track and visualize the digital behavior of both authenticated customers and anonymous visitors. By mining Episerver’s data management platform, Episerver Insight helps users act on behavioral data and create more effective segmentation and targeting. Contact for pricing.
Amazon’s Treasure Truck to provide offers at select Whole Foods Market locations. Amazon announced that Treasure Trucks will appear at various Whole Foods Market locations across the country with new offers and incentives. Treasure Truck handpicks new, trending, local, or delicious items, loads them on the truck. Items are available for purchase from the Treasure Truck through the Amazon App.
Amazon Treasure Truck