Commerce Maturity Model

Survey Results

• Business Strategy

• 1. We have a strong understanding of our competitors and the competitive landscape

  You Scored 2/2

  You are ahead of most retailers. This awareness and research should result in annual or bi-annual roadmapping exercises to keep you in front of your competition and aligned with consumer expectations.

• 2. We have a strong understanding of who our customers are

  You Scored 2/3

  You have done a great job of targeting your primary customers. There are always opportunities to look at other types of customers who are outliers within your audience and to understand how to serve them through marketing and messaging.

• 3. We have a cohesive strategy around customer messaging across business channels

  You Scored 3/3

  You are ahead of most retailers. This would be a great time to accelerate A/B testing of creative, content, and cadence to optimize customer messaging.

• 4. We have a strategic roadmap

  You Scored 3/3

  You are ahead of most brands. This is considered best-in-class.

• 5. Our organization makes data-driven decisions

  You Scored 1/2

  Are there are any hurdles (depth, accuracy, etc.) that are keeping you from using this data more frequently? Address these concerns first. Then review the business questions that your brand faces most often, and map them to metrics that could help inform on their behavior (e.g. you want to assess the impact of merchandising elements - so items per order and overall revenue per sessions exposed to those merchandising elements would be helpful). Since your organization sometimes looks at this data, you'll likely need to leverage segments or tests to uncover new insights. These deeper findings are often the most impactful.

• 6. We have a yearly budgeting process

  You Scored 2/2

  You are ahead of most brands. This is considered best-in-class.

• 7. We budget marketing expenses as a percentage of overall revenue

  You Scored 3/3

  You are ahead of most brands. This is considered best-in-class. An additional rec of making sure you put aside 10% for testing in all budgets so you can learn from new marketing programs and or point solutions.

• 8. Our organizational structure prioritizes the overall customer experience through all business channels

  You Scored 2/2

  You are ahead of most brands. This is considered best-in-class.

• 9. We have a customer data repository

  You Scored 2/2

  You are ahead of most brands. This is considered best-in-class.

• 10. We create a bottom-up inventory forecast for each business channel

  You Scored 2/3

  This is how most multi-channel retailers create inventory plans. It is important to add testing and merchandising initiatives into those plans to grow out the assortment and or reduce assortment if sell-through is low.

• Customer Journey

• 11. We tailor our content to various audiences and segments

  You Scored 3/4

  Optimize navigation design and develop a content strategy that will most effectively target these personas and drive measurable results.

• 12. We apply consumer research and usability testing to optimize navigation

  You Scored 2/4

  Great, how recently was this conducted and what were the findings? Have you tested your navigation for distinct consumer types and journeys?

• 13. We apply consumer research and usability testing to optimize key pages

  You Scored 2/4

  How recent was your last test and how often do you conduct them? Can you provide us with the raw data or findings?

• 14. We present enhanced content and creative experiences

  You Scored 2/4

  How active are your social campaigns? It would be smart to review all of your social channels and understand how you are integrating them into your key pages, such as categories, landing pages, PDPs, and your cart.

• 15. We leverage dynamic content

  You Scored 1/2

  You have taken the first step in providing a more personalized email experience. Your next step is to vet and consider predictive solutions for content delivery - e.g. What category is your customer most likely to shop next? Is this customer likely to shop on-sale or full-priced merchandise? Many vendors are offering predictive solutions, so we recommend consulting a research publication like Forrester to find out who the best players are right now. Also, ask your SI to recommend vendors that would work well with your eCommerce solutions.

• 16. We use loyalty segments to target content both on-site as well as through multiple marketing programs

  You Scored 1/2

  Many brands leverage a "Crawl, Walk, Run" approach to using Loyalty data to personalize their site experience. If you are already using your loyalty data in this way, you are on the right path. To move forward without having a heavy investment in asset production for each segment, consider adding areas of dynamic messaging that update based upon loyalty status. For example, customized shipping messages based upon a customer's tier, reminders that a customer qualifies for certain benefits, or threshold messaging when a customer is X points away from the next loyalty tier.

• 17. We segment our loyalty customers based upon tiers of engagement

  You Scored 1/2

  Having loyalty tiers based on customer spend is a standard practice. Many best-in-class retailers structure programs this way - e.g Nordstrom. However, by just looking at spend you may not be nurturing loyal customers at initial lower thresholds that could evolve with you over time. Consider adding points mechanisms for Reviews, user-generated content, and brand advocacy. This content can be extremely valuable in driving traffic to the site.

• 18. We create and manage content such as product descriptions, blog posts, category descriptions, or ‘how to’ articles

  You Scored 1/2

  A content gap analysis can be a smart way to identify opportunities for adding highly relevant content on-site and capture additional relevant traffic in phases of the customer journey that are less established. A search presence audit can give you a high-level understanding of how content performs against competitors and search trends, and how enhancements to SEO elements on-page have impacted page performance. Good content comes from smart planning: creating an actionable plan for consistent content creation will allow you to capitalize on these opportunities. This means that you should regularly monitor page performance after publishing optimizations or new content, using insights to drive additional activities or shifts in strategy.

• 19. We optimize our customer experience for mobile users

  You Scored 2/4

  Have you designed for specific mobile journeys? Can you elaborate on your mobile strategy?

• 20. We apply a tiered optimization strategy for mobile page load

  You Scored 2/4

  Research shows that a majority of clicks happen on content that is above the fold. It is important to understand that the "fold" is different for every viewer depending on their device and screen sizes. What is your most common viewing size? Consider designing content for display at this size to ensure maximum content viewing.

• 21. We leverage Endless Aisle/Mobile Point-of-Sale solutions

  You Scored 0/4

  Explore extending your commerce platform into the retail store. Many modern commerce platforms support associate-facing "Save-the-Sale" applications - from simple "Order On Behalf Of" functionality within the commerce site to more complex mPOS apps.

• 22. We offer Buy Online, Pickup In Store (BOPIS) functionality to shoppers

  You Scored 0/5

  Consumers increasingly expect a Store Pickup option when shopping online. If technology and organizational hurdles are getting in the way of implementing BOPIS, consider starting with a Ship-To-Store approach.

• 23. Our customers can return online purchases to a retail store

  You Scored 3/5

  Great! Your next step should be integrating your POS with your eCommerce platform to allow in-store exchanges.

• 24. We fulfill online Ship From Store orders

  You Scored 1/4

  A robust order routing/orchestration engine is a must-have in order to achieve Ship-From-Store success. A best-of-breed Distributed Order Management System (DOM) will enable you to optimize order fulfillment across multiple variables - cost, speed, relieving distressed stock, minimizing split shipments, etc.

• 25. We provide customers with full visibility into both online and in-store inventory

  You Scored 1/4

  Customers expect your site to provide access to the same product and availability information that your store associates have. Explore omnichannel Order Management Systems that provide robust "Available To Promise" functionality that can be integrated into your product detail pages.

• 26. We offer standard pricing and promotions across stores and channels

  You Scored 4/5

  Excellent. You're delivering a unified commerce experience to your customers!

• Digital Marketing

• 27. We track the success of our SEO program

  You Scored 2/2

  Continue tracking these KPIs, and keep using result-based insights to inform the activities of your SEO program. Always consider the customer journey as it pertains to the content on your site. Review KPIs to determine page relevance for various types of search. Regularly monitor your top search results to confirm that SEO program strategies are aligned search results to ensure your strategies are having their intended impact.

  Continue to add to campaign tracking as programs mature, making note of any site changes, promotions, and changes to other digital marketing programs. This will help you to better differentiate between external organic SEO impacts and internal optimizations as part of your SEO program.

• 28. When we do sample keyword searches in Google …

  You Scored 2/2

  There are still some tactics you might want to consider. Try expanding your search presence for keywords related to these high-performing pages. Include references to keyword variations and more long-tail terms in the SEO elements of the page. Conduct a content gap analysis, and build new landing pages to expand search presence for related targeted keywords in different phases of the customer journey. Lastly, be sure to always stay on top of the latest and greatest SEO trends to ensure your results stay positive.

• 29. We feel comfortable and up-to-date on Google’s most recent algorithm changes and the impact they have on our website

  You Scored 2/2

  Continue to work with your team or agency to implement any essential changes that come from search engine updates or releases. Monitor search presence and competitor presence after any updates.

• 30. We have an active paid media program

  You Scored 2/2

  Once a media program is established, the next step is constant optimization and mining for additional opportunities - both for increasing efficiency and for next stage growth.

• 31. Our paid media channels are meeting ROI goals

  You Scored 2/2

  Once a media program mix has reached optimal performance, it is usually time to expand into new channels and partners in order to drive new users into the funnel and continue growing.

• 32. We are currently targeting new customers through display or non-brand search

  You Scored 1/2

  Generic search terms can be extremely expensive, so focusing on long-tail and product-level queries, following best practices, and identifying top segments within acquisition targets can help improve ROI and reduce cost. Tracking new users and attributing value to these acquisition programs is also critical to expanding beyond brand traffic.

• 33. We are using an attribution model to properly credit all media channels

  You Scored 0/2

  If you are running any non-brand or acquisition campaigns, you are likely undervaluing ROI from those channels and missing further opportunities to drive top-line growth. Likewise, brand and remarketing program attributions are likely inflated.

• 34. We utilize remarketing tactics and tools, including CRM or email data, to target users through media channels

  You Scored 2/2

  Once lower-funnel users are fully addressed, you can expand your remarketing program to target lapsed customers or lapsed email subscribers to re-engage them during promotions or the launch of new products and functionality.

• 35. We currently have an affiliate program

  You Scored 2/3

  An active affiliate program is a great source of traffic and revenue, but consider taking the program to the next level by driving new and high-quality customers to your website via influencer outreach. By continuously engaging these influencer affiliates, you can create a faster-growing and sustainable affiliate program!

• 36. Our email platform is integrated into mulitple systems

  You Scored 1/2

  You have a view of your customer consolidated in your ESP, and likely have a good foundation of attributes to segment upon. As a next step, you should focus on behavioral or predictive data to round out your customer profiles. There are a large number of vendors that specialize in building out customer data profiles. If you leverage SFMC, collect tags should be implemented to gather on-site behavioral data.

• 37. We email to defined segments

  You Scored 1/2

  Behavior or engagement-based segmentation provides you with a strong foundation. Congratulations on moving beyond blanked blasting your list. Your next step for segmentation is to really focus on building a more robust data profile for your subscribers - particularly taking into consideration past purchase behavior and on-site engagement (e.g. the last category browsed). This will enable the brand to configure a broader scope of targeted trigger campaigns, which are typically top converters.

• 38. We clean and manage our customer records

  You Scored 1/2

  You are on the right path to improving inbox placement and deliverability metrics. However, if you only run this program occasionally, you may still have many un-engaged records in your lists that will drive down your performance metrics. Make sure that your hygiene program takes into consideration both duplicates and aged, unengaged files in addition to just looking at invalid addresses.

• Technology

• 39. We are utilizing the latest version of our eCommerce platform and its associated functionality

  You Scored 1/2

  To improve the user experience, you may want to institute some A/B testing to qualify your statements that the user experience is positive, and analyze your data to verify how users are reacting to the user experience.

• 40. We currently have an eCommerce website post-launch support model

  You Scored 1/3

  There are pros and cons to outsourcing all of your support work. A conversation would be helpful to help balance out utilizing this model versus insourcing your work.

• 41. We use a management workflow tool to help streamline online business operations

  You Scored 0/2

  A system of record is needed, like a JIRA, which helps streamline the release management process and serves as a workflow/ticket management tool. A tool like JIRA is also considered a Gold Standard. We highly recommend you utilize a JIRA instance for workflow management of your online objectives. It also gives you a first-hand look at the status of all of your tickets and your existing backlog.

• 42. We manage site code with an agile and repeatable release management process

  You Scored 2/2

  This is great! You are ahead of most companies as far as Support processes are concerned. There may be even further opportunities to improve the ability to concurrently work on multiple workstreams when one sprint nears completion, while ensuring the subsequent sprint is planned and moving.

• 43. We perform quality assurance testing on all of our site code before we release it to Production

  You Scored 2/4

  You are ahead of most brands. This is considered best-in-class.

• 44. Our site is ADA compliant

  You Scored 1/2

  ADA compliance can consist of a vast universe of compliance measures. Ensuring that the identified remediations are in alignment with ADA standards that pertain to you to avoid fines is a must.

• 45. We have PCI-based security processes in place

  You Scored 1/5

  You should continue to do this on a routine basis, to make sure you identify any stop-gap measures or additional measures that may need to be taken to ensure compliance.

• 46. We have a dedicated analytics platform with customized tracking specific to our online goals

  You Scored 1/2

  Without any customized tracking, it's likely there are major questions around how customers interact with your digital experiences. Start with these major questions, and figure out what kind of tracking needs to be added via custom dimensions, metrics, or events to uncover the answers you need.

• 47. Our analytics program is completely integrated with our customer and marketing data

  You Scored 0/2

  There are some easy things your company can do to enhance customer tracking. Have both a developer and web analyst who are familiar with your site look at your attribution reporting (across three dimensions: marketing, device, and offline behavior). The analyst can then build a plan for leveraging pertinent data, and the developer can provide ways to make that data easier to track.

• 48. Our optimization testing program enables us to trial and validate both simple and robust user experience changes

  You Scored 1/2

  Since you run basic A/B tests, you likely have enough evidence to justify more robust testing initiatives. Have past tests revealed ways to strengthen your digital experience or have otherwise helped your business? If not, ensure that you are running enough tests, and then evaluate future tests' focus against known friction points or pathing arteries to ensure you're capitalizing on high-value areas of the customer journey.

• 49. We test our site with browser/platform/device matrices tied to our user base

  You Scored 0/1

  A testing matrix is a good idea that includes tests against tour prominent user base and ensures that many test scenarios are accounted for. The matrix can also be tailored o match your user base via analytical data.

• 50. We utilize a tag manager to deploy tags, and our team is comfortable deploying or editing these tags

  You Scored 2/2

  With strong tag management support, your business will be able to add or augment tags very easily. Ensure you delete old tags as well to ensure that there aren't any unnecessary impacts on site performance.