Product discovery used to happen almost exclusively in-store, as consumers trolled aisles for inspiration. But as digital commerce has exploded, consumers in categories like CPG that don’t follow a traditional purchase “funnel,” are now becoming just as likely – or even more likely – to discover new products outside the store or store.com. And this is a HUGE opportunity for brands.

Smart brands are enabling this distributed discovery by leveraging traditional influencer marketing, social platforms (essentially delivering augmented influencer at scale), and other methods of putting the consumer at the center of the product discovery experience.. In addition to supporting “always on” omnishopping behaviors, the real promise of consumer-centric “meCommerce” is to foster direct brand-consumer relationships, while still keeping the retailer in the critical fulfillment position.

In this session, we’ll explore these shifts and opportunities in the Pet category, and share data (and inspiration!) around consumer discovery and commerce behaviors beyond the store.