Thinks Out Loud: E-commerce and Digital Strategy

Tim Peter
Thinks Out Loud: E-commerce and Digital Strategy

Thinks Out Loud, a weekly production of Tim Peter & Associates, looks at the e-commerce and digital trends that influence your business strategy. Hosted by Tim Peter, each episode explores the rapidly shifting digital marketplace and uncovers tips to help you put those trends to work to improve your brand and business. Thinks Out Loud also looks at how mobile and social shape your customers' activities online and how you can develop the right marketing and customer experience strategies to drive growth for your organization.

  1. 2 DAYS AGO

    Will AI Kill Content Marketing for Customer Acquisition? (Thinks Out Loud Episode 449)

    We’re living through an evolving landscape around content marketing in the age of AI. This evolution raises the question of whether AI will kill content marketing for customer acquisition. What do we think? Nope. No way. AI absolutely has its place. But quality content without human connection won’t work for customer acquisition. While AI can enhance content creation, it should not replace the human element that customers actively seek every single day. Personalization and community play a key role in your marketing and customer acquisition strategies. And relying on AI to “be human” almost guarantees that your content marketing won’t work. Instead, businesses that prioritize genuine human interaction will thrive, regardless of technological advancements. Why is that so? Why does this matter? And how can you make sure that AI makes your content marketing more effective for customer acquisition? That’s what this episode of the Thinks Out Loud podcast is all about. Want to learn more? Here are the show notes for you. Will AI Kill Content Marketing for Customer Acquisition? (Thinks Out Loud Episode 449) — Headlines and Show Notes Show Notes and Links * Deal With It: Digital Makes Marketing Easier for Everyone, Which Makes Marketing Harder For Everyone (Thinks Out Loud Episode 213) * How to Put Big Tech and AI — the Biggest Threat and Biggest Enablers of Your Business — to Work (Episode 428) * Digital Transformation is All About Customers (Thinks Out Loud Episode 323) – Tim Peter & Associates * When people are your brand – Tim Peter & Associates * Big Digital Marketing Trends: Who Speaks For Your Business? (Thinks Out Loud Episode 377) * Belonging to the Brand: Why Community is the Last Great Marketing Strategy eBook by Mark Schaefer (Kindle Store) * The Rebirth of Trusted Gatekeepers (Thinks Out Loud Episode 307) – Tim Peter & Associates * Will AI Kill Your Brand (Thinks Out Loud Episode 435) * a href="https://www.timpeter.com/?feed-stats-url=aHR0cHM6Ly93d3cudGltcGV0ZXIuY29tL2Jsb2cvd2hlbi1haS1nb29kLWF0LW1hcmtldGluZy10aGlua3Mtb3V0LWx...

    14 min
  2. JAN 30

    How Should You Think About Website SEO for AI? (Thinks Out Loud Episode 448)

    Google’s AI Overviews show up regularly for lots of search queries. Plenty of people also use ChatGPT, Perplexity, Claude, and others for “search” (albeit, with different behaviors than we’ve long seen on Google). This reality has plenty of people asking how to ensure their website and their content shows up in search results. What can you do to drive website SEO for AI? It’s a great question. It’s one that’s worth paying attention to. It’s also not necessarily the first question I would ask. What is the first question? Where should your focus be when it comes to AI and search? In short, how should you think about website SEO for AI? That’s what this episode of the Thinks Out Loud podcast is all about. Want to learn more? Here are the show notes for you. How Should You Think About Website SEO for AI? (Thinks Out Loud Episode 448) — Headlines and Show Notes Show Notes and Links * What’s the Point of Your Website in an Age of AI? (Thinks Out Loud Episode 447) * OpenAI launches Operator, an AI agent that can do tasks on the web – Ars Technica * Ethan Mollik on LinkedIn * when is the superbowl – Explore – Google Trends * Trending Now – Google Trends * Google AI Overviews Found In 74% Of Problem-Solving Queries * Google Shares Insight On SEO For AI Overviews * The Twiddler That Didn’t Twiddle – How To Track Clicks and Click Through Rate For Google’s AI Overviews (if you have a manual action) You might also enjoy this webinar I recently participated in with Miles Partnership that looked at "The Power of Generative AI and ChatGPT: What It Means for Tourism & Hospitality" here: Free Downloads

    20 min
  3. JAN 23

    What’s the Point of Your Website in an Age of AI? (Thinks Out Loud Episode 447)

    Do you still need a website in an age of AI? More broadly, what is the point of your business’s website in an age of AI? As AI becomes more prevalent, we’re hearing more people suggest that maybe your website isn’t important any longer. To put it mildly, that’s a load of crap. In some ways, your website becomes more important in an age of AI. Why is that? What do you need your website to do for your customers, your brand, and your business now more than ever? Most importantly, what is the point of your website in an age of AI? That’s what this episode of the Thinks Out Loud podcast is all about. Want to learn more? Here are the show notes for you. What’s the Point of Your Website in an Age of AI? (Thinks Out Loud Episode 447) — Headlines and Show Notes Show Notes and Links * U.S. Smartphone Penetration Surpassed 80 Percent in 2016 – Comscore,… – Comscore, Inc. * Demographics of Mobile Device Ownership and Adoption in the United States * Americans are using AI at fairly high rates. What does this mean for the economy? : Planet Money : NPR * Worldwide AI tool users 2030 | Statista * MrBeast * MrBeast – YouTube * 4 Reasons Why Google Metasearch in Maps Matters (Travel Tuesday) – Tim Peter & Associates * Why Google is the Beast That Scares Your Industry’s 800-lb. Gorilla (Thinks Out Loud Episode 238) * Google is Changing Search. How to Build Traffic and Revenue Beyond Google — Part 1 (Thinks Out Loud Episode 424) * The CORE Methodology: How to Build Traffic and Revenue Beyond Google — Part 2 (Thinks Out Loud Episode 425) – Tim Peter & Associates * a href="https://www.timpeter.com/?feed-stats-url=aHR0cHM6Ly93d3cudGltcGV0ZXIuY29tL2Jsb2cvYWktZGF5LWxpZmUtbWFya2V0aW5nLWRpZ2l0YWwtc3RyYXRlZ3ktY29uc3VsdGFudC10aGlua3Mtb3V0LWxvdWQtNDM0Lw%3D%3D&feed-stats-url-po...

    25 min
  4. JAN 16

    When Will AI Get Good at Marketing? (Thinks Out Loud Episode 446)

    Artificial intelligence is part of marketing today. But, to hear most people tell it, it’s a frustrating part. AI is either the thing that will put all marketers out of work or it’s a useless collection of vaporware, continually overpromising and underdelivering. While it’s impossible for both of these to be true at the same moment, it’s clear that we’re facing a question: When will AI get good at marketing? When will it live up to the hype — or its potential — and deliver meaningful results for our businesses? The reason why AI isn’t ready yet probably isn’t what you think it is. So what is? What is preventing AI from producing the results we want to see? And, ultimately, when will AI get good at marketing? That’s what this episode of the Thinks Out Loud podcast is all about. Want to learn more? Here are the show notes for you. When Will AI Get Good at Marketing? (Thinks Out Loud Episode 446) — Headlines and Show Notes Show Notes and Links * AI Is Not the Future. You Are (Thinks Out Loud Episode 443) * Diversifying Your Marketing Mix When There’s Too Much to Do (Thinks Out Loud Episode 430) * AI is the Bear: Learning to Be a Better Marketer in the Age of AI (Thinks Out Loud Episode 422) * Will AI Kill Your Brand (Thinks Out Loud Episode 435) * An AI Day in the Life of a Marketing and Digital Strategy Consultant (Thinks Out Loud Episode 434) * Is AI Destined to Make Marketing — and Music — Worse? (Thinks Out Loud Episode 432) * Press release: The Nobel Prize in Chemistry 2024 – NobelPrize.org * Press release: The Nobel Prize in Physics 2024 – NobelPrize.org * Researchers use AI to design proteins that block snake venom toxins – Ars Technica * Switched-On Bach – Wikipedia * Hit Men: Power Brokers and Fast M...

    19 min
  5. JAN 9

    Predicting the Future of Your Business (Thinks Out Loud Episode 445)

    “It’s tough to make predictions, especially about the future.” These words from one of the 20th century’s most sagacious philosophers, Yogi Berra, take hold of my mind every new year as I think about the days and weeks and months ahead. Far be it from me to reject Yogi’s wise words, but I’m not sure he’s right. Oh, don’t get me wrong the wrong. The future’s not always easy to see. But we can work to make it what we want. I generally think that instead of predicting the future for your business, you should take steps to create a future that works for you. How can you do that? How can you make a future for your business that exceeds any prediction? And how can you plan for a bold future no matter what happens over the next few years? That’s what this episode of Thinks Out Loud is all about. Want to learn more? Here are the show notes for you. Predicting the Future of Your Business (Thinks Out Loud Episode 445) — Headlines and Show Notes Show Notes and Links * The Only Way to Succeed Next Year (Thinks Out Loud Episode 444) * AI Is Not the Future. You Are (Thinks Out Loud Episode 443) * Is AI a Gatekeeper? Or is it a Key? (Thinks Out Loud Episode 437) * Will AI Kill Your Brand (Thinks Out Loud Episode 435) * Four Big Threats (Plus a Bonus Threat!) To Google’s Dominance Next Year (Thinks Out Loud Episode 436) * An AI Day in the Life of a Marketing and Digital Strategy Consultant (Thinks Out Loud Episode 434) * Diversifying Your Marketing Mix When There’s Too Much to Do (Thinks Out Loud Episode 430) * How to Put Big Tech and AI — the Biggest Threat and Biggest Enablers of Your Business — to Work (Episode 428) * Why AI Makes Customer Experience Even More Important for Your Business (Thinks Out Loud Episode 427) * We Owe It To Our Customers to Make Their Lives Better (Thinks Out Loud Episode 361)

    21 min
  6. JAN 2

    Revisiting Is Google Doomed in 2025? (Thinks Out Loud Episode 440)

    Your business likely depends on Google, whether you like it or not. The whole reason I’m so focused on the role of gatekeepers — and how you can bypass them for marketing and customer acquisition — is because of their dominance in the marketplace. And no company is more dominant than Google. Most businesses get at least a plurality of their traffic and usually a significant chunk of their revenues downstream of Google. That could include traditional web search. It could include local search. It could include metasearch, product search, YouTube recommendations, and a host of other channels within Google’s ecosystem, all adding up to traffic and revenue for you. That’s why anything that hurts Google can hurt your business. And, right now, Google faces more challenges than they have in years. Those include competition from AI startups like ChatGPT and Perplexity, antitrust and other civil litigation in the US and Europe, pressure from users more interested in social, and, of course, its traditional competitors for mindshare like Amazon, Apple, and Facebook. It’s easy to assume then that Google is doomed in 2025. I’m not so sure, though. What does worry me is whether their responses to these pressures works in your business’s best interests. In other words, even if they manage to continue their dominance in the market, you still could find yourself with lower traffic, reduced revenues, higher costs, or all of the above. That’s… no bueno. So, whether or not Google is doomed, what should you do as you move into 2025? That’s what this episode of Thinks Out Loud is all about. Want to learn more? Here are the show notes for you. Revisiting Is Google Doomed in 2025? (Thinks Out Loud) — Headlines and Show Notes Show Notes and Links * Is the new ChatGPT Search a significant threat to Google? * The Future of Computing? Big Tech Earnings and the State of Digital Q3 2024 (Thinks Out Loud Episode 439) * Four Big Threats (Plus a Bonus Threat!) To Google’s Dominance Next Year (Thinks Out Loud Episode 436) * Trump says Google has ‘a lot of power’ and he would do ‘something’ about it — but stops short of favoring a break-up * Trump’s admin puts new light on Google’s potential breakup * JD Vance Live at RemedyFest – YouTube

    29 min
  7. 12/26/2024

    Revisiting Is AI a Gatekeeper? Or is it a Key? (Thinks Out Loud)

    One of the big themes behind Thinks Out Loud over the course of its 400-plus episodes is how you can bypass gatekeepers and still grow your business. The emergence of artificial intelligence in marketing and customer acquisition introduces an entirely new way to approach that goal. Or does it? Does artificial intelligence provide you a tool kit that allows you to bypass Big Tech? Or does it allow Big Tech to place more gates between you and your customers? In this episode of the Thinks Out Loud podcast, our company founder and president, Tim Peter, takes a look at the role artificial intelligence might play in helping you bypass gatekeepers. He also looks at how AI helps Big Tech maintain its market dominance. And, finally, this episode posits some ideas for how you can start connecting directly with your customers no matter what happens down the road. Want to learn more? Here are the show notes for you. Revisiting Is AI a Gatekeeper? Or is it a Key? (Thinks Out Loud) — Headlines and Show Notes Show Notes and Links * OpenAI – Wikipedia * Anthropic – Wikipedia * Perplexity AI – Wikipedia * When you give a Claude a mouse * Google and Kairos sign nuclear reactor deal with aim to power AI – Ars Technica * Microsoft deal propels Three Mile Island restart, with key permits still needed | Reuters * The Rapid Adoption of Generative AI PDF link * The Value of AI in Today’s Classrooms * Google is Changing Search. How to Build Traffic and Revenue Beyond Google — Part 1 (Thinks Out Loud Episode 424) * The CORE Methodology: How to Build Traffic and Revenue Beyond Google — Part 2 (Thinks Out Loud Episode 425) * Revisiting Why Digital Gatekeepers Kill ...

    23 min
  8. 12/19/2024

    The Only Way to Succeed Next Year (Thinks Out Loud Episode 444)

    As far as I’m concerned, there’s only one way to succeed next year. And, truth be told, it goes beyond success just in your business. I don’t mean to say that business success isn’t important. Of course it is. But, business success often follows from success throughout your life. Most successful people seem like they’re accomplished in many areas… because they are. They’re not focused solely on being their best selves only at work or only at a given hobby. It’s the idea of being your best self that’s at the heart of this conversation I want to have this time around. What does “being your best self” look like in practice? What can you do to achieve it? And how does it apply not only in business, but across many areas of your life? That’s what this episode of Thinks Out Loud is all about. Want to learn more? Here are the show notes for you. The Only Way to Succeed Next Year (Thinks Out Loud Episode 444) — Headlines and Show Notes Show Notes and Links * Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi – Wikipedia * 8 Traits of Flow According to Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi * AI Is Not the Future. You Are (Thinks Out Loud Episode 443) * wheel of life – Google Search * Navigating Life’s Spheres: Your Guide to the Balance Wheel | Love Light & Inspiration * The Vor Game – Wikipedia * "Touch Grass" (Thinks Out Loud Episode 358) * Revisiting "What Are We Doing Here?" * How Are You Holding Up? (Thinks Out Loud Episode 316) * Lessons Learned: The TPA Anniversary Show (Thinks Out Loud Episode 420) * a href="https://www.timpeter.com/?

    26 min

Ratings & Reviews

5
out of 5
5 Ratings

About

Thinks Out Loud, a weekly production of Tim Peter & Associates, looks at the e-commerce and digital trends that influence your business strategy. Hosted by Tim Peter, each episode explores the rapidly shifting digital marketplace and uncovers tips to help you put those trends to work to improve your brand and business. Thinks Out Loud also looks at how mobile and social shape your customers' activities online and how you can develop the right marketing and customer experience strategies to drive growth for your organization.

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