New Ecommerce Tools: June 10, 2024

Every week we publish a rundown of new products from companies offering services to ecommerce and omnichannel merchants. This installment includes updates on virtual-universe stores, customized checkout, multichannel management, AI website builders, cross-channel commerce, omnichannel fulfillment, product images, and global sourcing.

Got an ecommerce product release? Email releases@practicalecommerce.com.

New Tools for Merchants: June 10

Ikea to open a virtual store on Roblox. Ikea is opening a virtual store called The Co-Worker Game on the Roblox on June 24. The virtual store will allow people to immerse themselves in the world of Ikea, with a limited number of paid roles available. This is Ikea’s first foray into mainstream gaming.

Ikea’s The Co-Worker Game

Shopify acquires Checkout Blocks for customized checkouts. Shopify has acquired Checkout Blocks, a company offering a no-code solution that lets Shopify merchants customize their checkout. Checkout Blocks enables Shopify Plus merchants to add fields to collect additional data or show new information to their shoppers, control how delivery and payment options are displayed, and design fully branded checkouts. Checkout Blocks is offering its starter plan for free for all Shopify Plus merchants.

Newegg launches SellingPilot, a multichannel marketplace management solution. Newegg Commerce, a marketplace specializing in consumer electronics, has launched SellingPilot, a marketplace management platform. SellingPilot connects with Amazon, Walmart, and others to manage product listings and orders. Using SellingPilot, merchants can (i) leverage AI tools to optimize product descriptions and keywords and streamline customer service, (ii) use email outreach and campaign creation for platforms such as TikTok, Facebook, and Instagram, and (iii) access timely competitive pricing data.

Bluehost WonderSuite unveils AI Website Creator. Bluehost, a WordPress hosting platform, has unveiled AI Website Creator, allowing WordPress users to leverage AI to create personalized websites with relevant content, images, and pages. Bluehost’s WonderSuite, with the AI Website Creator, is included with Bluehost’s WordPress hosting plans. It offers WordPress website building with intuitive AI onboarding (WonderStart), content and block creation (WonderTheme and WonderBlocks), ongoing AI assistance (WonderHelp), and ecommerce functionality to help small business owners sell more products (WonderCart).

Bluehost

Till Payments partners with BigCommerce on cross-channel commerce. Till Payments, a subsidiary of Nuvei, a Canada-based payment processor, has partnered with BigCommerce to deliver transaction processing capabilities for B2C and B2B brands. Till’s Online Checkout for BigCommerce enables merchants to accept payments, pre-authorize transactions, manage refunds, utilize 3DS2 authentication technology, accept multiple currencies, take payments with stored credit cards, and integrate an embedded checkout. BigCommerce’s multichannel merchants can use Till’s payments to unify in-store and online payment services.

Fintech Affirm expands payment offerings with “Pay in 2” and “Pay in 30” options. Affirm, a pay-over-time network, has announced two new payment options, Pay in 2 and Pay in 30. According to Affirm, the options deliver greater choice and flexibility to consumers utilizing Affirm’s app and provide affordability across a wider range of transactions.

eBay releases background enhancement tool for product images. eBay has launched an AI-powered background enhancement tool to help sellers produce product photos from everyday snapshots. The tool removes a background from an existing photo, leaving only the actual item for sale, and then places that item in an AI-generated backdrop selected by the seller. Background enhancement is available to iOS app users and will roll out to Android soon.

eBay’s AI-powered background enhancement tool.

“Alibaba Guaranteed” to simplify global sourcing for SMBs. Alibaba has launched Guaranteed to simplify global sourcing and provide a reliable supply chain for small and medium-sized enterprises in the U.S. Through Alibaba Guaranteed, buyers can source products at fixed prices with shipping fees included and guaranteed delivery dates. Alibaba will fulfill products sourced. Additionally, the platform handles finance and after-sales services, such as money back for order glitches and free local returns for defects.

Fulfillment platform OneRail acquires Orderbot for omnichannel fulfillment. OneRail, a last-mile delivery fulfillment service with a network of 12 million drivers across North America, has announced the acquisition of Vancouver-based Orderbot, an enterprise inventory and distributed order management platform. According to OneRail, the acquisition combines Orderbot’s inventory and order management capabilities with OneRail’s OmniPoint cloud-based last-mile operating system and delivery network, creating a comprehensive solution that streamlines fulfillment processes, reduces costs, and improves order accuracy.
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Mastercard partners with identity platform Trulioo to streamline onboarding. Trulioo, a global identity verification platform, has partnered with Mastercard to streamline consumers’ digital onboarding on apps and platforms. Trulioo will leverage Mastercard’s Identity solutions to power its Person Match and Risk Intelligence products, providing additional identity insights and risk scores through a customizable dashboard. Trulioo states this will diversify its suite beyond API-based products and enhance consumers’ onboarding processes. The collaboration also augments Mastercard’s Onboard Risk Check product by including Trulioo global business identity verification services.

Bloomreach partners with Valantic and Commercetools to form B2B Accelerator. Bloomreach, an ecommerce personalization platform, has announced an expansion of its partnership with digital consulting company Valantic and composable commerce platform Commercetools through the launch of B2B Accelerator. The Accelerator enables B2B brands to integrate a composable tech stack, including Bloomreach’s Discovery site search. According to Bloomreach, businesses on Accelerator will reduce time to market and time to value and mitigate risks associated with transitioning to composable commerce.

Bloomreach

New Ecommerce Tools: June 4, 2024

This week’s list of new ecommerce tools for merchants includes updates on drone deliveries, social media marketing, point-of-sale systems, conversational AI, fulfillment, brand-influencer partnerships, and multichannel management.

Got an ecommerce product release? Email releases@practicalecommerce.com.

New Tools for Merchants: June 4

Pinterest expands inclusion fund with Shopify to include small businesses. The Pinterest Inclusion Fund and Shopify’s Build Black and Build Native initiatives have joined forces to support small businesses, independent publishers, and boutique creator agencies from historically marginalized communities.

Pinterest Inclusion Fund.

Amazon expands drone deliveries following FAA approval. The U.S. Federal Aviation Administration has given Amazon Prime Air additional permissions to operate its drones beyond visual line of sight, enabling it to serve more customers via drone and scale its delivery operations. Later this year, drone deliveries will begin integrating into Amazon’s delivery network, meaning drones will deploy from facilities next to its same-day delivery sites.

Walmart expands its InHome delivery service. Walmart is expanding its InHome delivery service to an additional 10 million U.S. households, including those in California. Customers in San Bernardino, Riverside, and Ontario can now access the delivery convenience. In addition, Walmart is expanding the service to include customers in Boston, Detroit, Minneapolis, and Philadelphia, bringing the total scale of InHome to more than 50 markets covering over 45 million homes.

Klaviyo launches TikTok integration to boost ad efficiency. Klaviyo has announced an integration with TikTok, enabling businesses to sync their Klaviyo lists and segments to TikTok Audiences. The capability empowers brands to enhance their return on ad spend, deliver personalized advertisements, and build high-impact lookalike audiences to attract new buyers.

Klaviyo

Razorpay POS launches Q-Zap for queueless in-store shopping. Razorpay, an India-based payment platform, has introduced Q-Zap, a comprehensive suite designed to revolutionize in-store payments with Razorpay POS. Q-Zap features handheld devices to accept cards and Unified Payments Interface anywhere in stores, kiosks, and vending machines for self-checkout, plug-and-play integrations with over 80 billing partners, and customized backend integrations and front-end apps.

PayPal to build an advertising platform and accelerate consumer product innovation. PayPal has announced leadership appointments to create an advertising platform to help merchants sell more products and services. According to PayPal, the new advertising business will use customer insights to build a personalized platform to drive better performance for merchants while presenting consumers with compelling offers.

New Rakuten+ to connect brands with high-value shoppers. Rakuten, a Tokyo-based cash-back shopping platform, has announced Rakuten+, a membership program for designer brands to connect with engaged Rakuten members. Rakuten+ will offer brands access to its most loyal and active shoppers of designer fashion. These curated shoppers will earn at least 10% cash back on participating brands and retailers year-round, providing designer brands with an opportunity to grow their audiences.

Rakuten

Scurri acquires conversational AI platform HelloDone. Delivery management platform Scurri has announced the acquisition of HelloDone, a U.K.-based conversational AI platform for retailers and brands. HelloDone’s platform answers post-purchase customer queries on channels such as WhatsApp, Instagram, and Facebook Messenger. This enables retailers to automate responses via AI-powered chat for immediate resolutions at scale.

Baidu introduces tools for its mobile ecosystem. China-based online search giant Baidu has announced advances across its mobile products, including Search, Wenku, and the Baidu App — all integrated with large language models and Ernie agents. The revamped Wenku, an integrated platform for document archiving and content creation and sharing, provides over 100 multimodal AI features.

Logie launches AI tools for brand-influencer campaigns. Logie, an AI-powered platform for brand-influencer partnerships, has announced tools to create partnerships for Amazon Prime Day. According to Logie, its intelligent platform leverages AI to identify the most relevant influencers for each brand. This ensures brands align with creators who have the right audience, brand affinity, and content style to deliver impactful campaigns. Logie also empowers creators with access to brand collaborations within their niche.

Shopware and ChannelEngine launch Shopware Multichannel Connect. Shopware, an open-source ecommerce platform, and ChannelEngine, a marketplace integration and management platform, have launched Shopware Multichannel Connect, enabling Shopware merchants to sell across online marketplaces. Shopware Multichannel Connect automates sales on over 950 marketplaces (e.g., Amazon, Zalando, Bol, Otto, and eBay). The integration simplifies the management of product information, inventory, orders, and pricing from a central location.

Shopware

New Ecommerce Tools: May 29, 2024

Every week we publish a rundown of new products from companies offering services to ecommerce and omnichannel merchants. This installment includes updates on generative AI, product images, page speed optimization, automated marketing, digital payments, omnichannel management, and the metaverse.

Got an ecommerce product release? Email releases@practicalecommerce.com.

New Tools for Merchants: May 29

GoDaddy expands Generative AI Prompt Library capabilities. GoDaddy has expanded its Small Business GenAI Prompt Library. Business owners now have access to more than 185 prompts, with 43 new prompts added across five new categories. A clip-to-copy icon makes transferring an AI prompt from the library to a chatbot easier. GoDaddy has also expanded access to its GenAI Prompt Library in India, alongside a Spanish-language library in Mexico, Colombia, and Spain, as well as a Portuguese library in Brazil.

GoDaddy’s Small Business AI Prompt Library

Shopify applies for a patent on personalized AI-generated images for ads. Shopify has filed a patent application for “tuning AI-generated images.” This patent would seemingly expand on the company’s existing AI tools, allowing merchants to personalize AI-generated images used in advertising. Shopify’s system collects data from a merchant’s online storefront, such as product images and categories. The models train on large sets of “regularization images” of products in the same category. The system would then allow merchants to generate and edit photos of their products.

WP Rocket’s WordPress plugin can optimize LCP Core Web Vitals. WP Rocket, a WordPress page speed performance plugin, has released a new version to help publishers optimize for Largest Contentful Paint, a page speed metric that shows how quickly the main content of a web page is loaded. This latest version of WP Rocket contains Automatic LCP optimization for on-page elements from the main content so that they are served first, raising the LCP scores and providing a better user experience.

Walmart launches Realm with influencer-led virtual shops. The new Walmart Realm is a digital shopping experience with influencer-led virtual shops in immersive worlds. Three initial virtual shops highlight fashion, beauty, and home products selected by popular creator partners. The shops are (i) So Jelly, an underwater playground, (ii) Y’allternative, a gothic Western destination, and (iii) Go Chromatic, a futuristic metallic world. Walmart Realm also includes creators’ social content and three mini-games inspired by the featured products.

Walmart Realm

Google invests $350 million in India’s ecommerce giant Flipkart. Google is investing nearly $350 million in Flipkart, the Bengaluru-based and Walmart-backed ecommerce marketplace. “Google’s proposed investment and its Cloud collaboration will help Flipkart expand its business and advance the modernization of its digital infrastructure to serve customers across the country,” Flipkart said in a statement. The funding round led by Walmart values Flipkart at $37 billion.

Wunderkind launches AI-powered Autonomous Marketing Platform. Wunderkind has launched its AI-powered Autonomous Marketing Platform and its first application, Studio, which brings self-service tools to the creative workflow for marketers. Wunderkind’s Autonomous Marketing Platform leverages AI to streamline the marketing build, reporting, and optimization process. The generative AI capabilities in Studio empower marketers to optimize messaging, based on Wunderkind’s observation across trillions of consumer interactions.

Fast Simon launches GenAI Hybrid Search for ecommerce search results. Fast Simon, a provider of AI-powered shopping optimization, has announced GenAI Hybrid Search, a tool to deliver accurate and relevant search results. GenAI Hybrid Search combines keyword and vector search with multimodal AI, which leverages various data types, including text and images, to give AI more context. According to Fast Simon, the combination reduces the incidence of “no results” and produces more relevant responses, even with long-tail queries or queries with similar semantic meanings but different keywords.

Fast Simon

Google launches generative AI tools for product images. Now on Product Studio from Google, merchants can generate product images that match a unique brand style. Upload an image with an aesthetic, add a prompt describing the scene, and within moments Product Studio will generate campaign-ready content. Product Studio can also create videos from just one photo. With just the click of a button, animate components of still product images to create short videos or playful product GIFs for social media.

OneStock raises $72 million for omnichannel order management. OneStock, a provider of order management systems, has announced a $72 million investment from Summit Partners. OneStock provides a platform to manage end-to-end order fulfillment and visibility, empowering retailers to offer a “buy anywhere, deliver anywhere, return anywhere” experience. The funding will be used for international expansion, particularly into the U.S. market. OneStock is an Adobe Gold Partner and an official integrated partner with Shopify.

eBay launches Recommerce Day for pre-loved shopping. On May 21, eBay ran its inaugural Recommerce Day, celebrating the release of its annual 2024 Recommerce Report, measuring eBay seller and buyer insights and motivations around pre-loved shopping. Recommerce Day featured a takeover of the eBay home page with opportunities to learn more about recommerce, find pre-loved deals, and participate in an eBay Live program featuring used items. Throughout the day, followers had opportunities to win pre-owned and refurbished prizes during the eBay livestream.

Visa partners with SKUx to ease digital payments for clients. Visa has partnered with digital payments provider SKUx to provide improved payment experiences to selective merchants and consumer packaged goods companies leveraging SKUx’s solutions. These solutions address various client needs, such as customer acquisition, loyalty programs, consumer care, and recovery. Visa clients can access the digital payments platform of SKUx and improve B2B and B2C payment flows for merchants.

SKUx

New Ecommerce Tools: May 21, 2024

This week’s list of new products from companies offering services to ecommerce and omnichannel merchants includes updates on tax compliance, accessibility, inventory, social media management, cross-channel order fulfillment, chargebacks, and direct-to-consumer management for perishable-goods brands.

Got an ecommerce product release? Email releases@practicalecommerce.com.

New Tools for Merchants: May 21

Avalara expands partnership with Shopify to enable global tax compliance for merchants. Avalara, a provider of cloud-based tax compliance automation, has expanded its partnership with Shopify by joining the Shopify Tax Platform. According to Avalara, through the expanded partnership, Shopify merchants of any size can easily manage and automate global tax compliance. By joining the Shopify Tax Partner Platform, Avalara can now serve all Shopify customers with their global tax compliance requirements, including sales tax, value-added tax, exemption certificate management, 1099 and W-9 issuance, property tax, and more.

Avalara

Zoovu releases tools for accessible ecommerce experiences. Zoovu, a developer of AI-powered ecommerce experiences, has released tools to create product discovery that comply with level AA of the Americans with Disabilities Act and the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines 2.1. The features include making it easier to provide live video and audio captions, 4.5-to-1 contrast ratios to ensure text is readable by those with color blindness, up to 200% text resizing, and simpler navigation with consistent menus and buttons.

eBay launches feature to simplify listing resale clothing. eBay has launched a “resell on eBay” feature to simplify the process of listing pre-owned clothing. The feature will be integrated into Certilogo’s Secure by Design digital ID, which can be accessed by scanning a smart label on connected products. eBay plans to extend the resell service to more brands using Certilogo digital ID and make it a default feature of its Secure by Design technology.

Ecommerce startup Purple Dot raises $10 million to reduce unsold inventory. Purple Dot, an ecommerce pre-order and waitlist platform, has announced the closure of a $10 million Series A funding round led by European venture capital firm OpenOcean. Purple Dot’s pre-commerce solution enables brands to sell earlier, helping them reduce inventory risk and store less. Purple Dot states the cash will enable it to continue building the platform and expand its reach to more brands and industries.

Purple Dot

Astound Digital and Shopify partner to boost outcomes for retail brands. Astound Digital, a producer of digital experiences for brands, has announced a strategic partnership with Shopify. The partnership will combine Astound’s knowledge of retail and Shopify’s unified commerce offering aimed at helping retailers break down silos between channels such as D2C, B2B, and point of sale. The partnership includes training and certification on Astound’s capability to support customers beyond online commerce.

Mastercard and Salesforce announce an integration to transform transaction disputes. Mastercard and Salesforce have announced a new integration to speed up the resolution of transaction disputes and reduce associated costs. The partnership will integrate Salesforce’s Financial Services Cloud with Mastercard’s dispute resolution services, providing a powerful one-stop shop for intake, managing disputes, reporting, and preventing chargebacks. Mastercard’s services include Ethoca Alerts, which provides near real-time notifications when a financial institution raises a chargeback, and Ethoca Consumer Clarity, enabling purchase insights to issuer teams.

Highperformr secures $3.5 million to help B2B businesses amplify their social presence. Highperformr, a social AI platform for B2B businesses, has secured $3.5 million in seed funding and launched its product, Highperformr for Teams, designed to help B2B companies streamline their social media workflows. The funding round was led by Venture Highway, with participation from Neon, DeVC, and notable angel investors. The investment will be used to develop Highperformr’s native AI capabilities further and to build a distribution network.

Highperformr

Poshmark launches Promoted Closet marketing tool. Poshmark, a fashion resale marketplace with real-time social experiences, has launched Promoted Closet, a paid marketing tool to help sellers accelerate sales and drive engagement with their listings. Available in the U.S., Promoted Closet leverages machine learning to match shoppers’ search terms with promoted listings, ensuring relevancy and enhancing sellers’ ability to earn on Poshmark. Sellers can set a weekly budget and let it run, unlocking listing-level data reports, including impressions, clicks, and insights.

Gorgias raises $29 million for AI-powered customer experience for ecommerce. Gorgias, a customer experience platform for ecommerce brands, has announced $29 million in additional seed funding, led by SaaStr and Alven, with participation from Horsley Bridge, Amplify, Shopify, Sapphire, CRV, and Transpose Platform. Gorgias will utilize the funding to expand its suite of AI tools, including Automate for customer support. According to Gorgias, ecommerce brands can now exceed customer expectations with instant on-brand answers to customer questions.

CedCommerce launches MCF Connector, simplifying cross-channel order fulfillment. CedCommerce, a multichannel enabler, has launched MCF Connector to streamline cross-channel order fulfillment for non-Amazon sellers. Merchants can connect their Shopify, eBay, TikTok Shop, and custom platforms to MCF. This centralized platform allows for streamlined order and inventory management, eliminating the need to juggle multiple systems.

Grip launches Pulse, a next-generation order management system for perishable goods brands. Grip, a provider of perishable supply chain technology and fulfillment, has introduced Pulse, an order management system and multi-directional dashboard for ecommerce brands. Pulse offers features for D2C brands that ship frozen and refrigerated items, including real-time inventory management, batch number traceability, SKU-specific tracking, live carrier tracking data, and multi-directional updates with Shopify and other point-of-sale systems. Bands can monitor daily shipments, refrigerant usage, and inventory movement without custom middleware and spreadsheets.

Grip

New Ecommerce Tools: May 14, 2024

Every week we publish a rundown of new products from companies offering services to ecommerce and omnichannel merchants. This installment includes updates on shoppable video, digital payments, returns management, AI-powered pricing, generative AI ad tools, and advertising for marketplace merchants.

Got an ecommerce product release? Email releases@practicalecommerce.com.

New Tools for Merchants: May 14

BigCommerce launches B2B Edition Buyer Portal. BigCommerce has launched the open-source B2B Edition Buyer Portal, now available for single and multi-storefronts with localized buyer experiences, including language, content, pricing, and promotions. From a single backend, merchants can curate tailored purchasing experiences based on a buyer’s specific region, industry vertical, and unique buying processes, as well as integrated servicing experiences specific to sectors, including warranties, customer support, and product servicing.

BigCommerce

Meta launches enhanced generative AI features for advertisers. With Meta’s new AI features, advertisers can create full image variations inspired by original ad creatives with text overlay capabilities and a dozen popular font typeface options. Image expansion is now available on Reels and feeds across Instagram and Facebook. Also, the text generation feature creates variations for the ad headline in addition to the primary text.

Loop integrates returns management software with Salesforce Commerce Cloud. Loop, a returns and reverse logistics platform, now supports merchants on Salesforce Commerce Cloud, expanding its footprint beyond Shopify’s ecosystem. Merchants operating on Salesforce Commerce Cloud will gain access to Loop’s returns management software to promote item exchanges, synchronize order data, automate returns processes, leverage Loop’s analytics to ensure efficiency, and more.

Amazon Ads announces three streaming TV ad formats. Amazon Ads has unveiled an expanded suite of interactive and shoppable ad formats for Prime Video with remote-enabled capabilities for living-room devices. In the upcoming broadcast year, brands can use shoppable carousel ads to help viewers browse and shop multiple product variations on Amazon during ad breaks in shows and movies on Prime Video. Brands can also use interactive pause and trivia ads in Prime Video TV shows, movies, and live sports.

Amazon Ads

Digital payments platform Checkout.com launches Flow to optimize payments. Checkout.com, a global digital payments provider, has launched Flow, utilizing customizable building blocks to help businesses present the right payment methods to customers. Flow enables merchants to enter new markets by easily integrating new payment methods and improving security by staying up-to-date with PCI compliance, GDPR rules, and card scheme requirements. Flow also optimizes input fields to capture payment information in the correct format to reduce cart abandonment.

Google launches Performance Max for Marketplaces. Google Ads has launched Performance Max for Marketplaces to help merchants reach customers and drive product sales on marketplaces without needing a website or Google Merchant Center account. Available only on select marketplaces, Performance Max uses Google’s automation so that products can also be advertised across all Google Ads channels, including Search and Shopping.

Spresso launches BigCommerce app with AI-powered pricing. Spresso, a provider of AI-powered ecommerce tools, has launched its Pricing Intelligence app available through the BigCommerce marketplace. The integration enables BigCommerce merchants to activate Spresso’s pricing intelligence technology. Merchants can integrate AI-powered pricing with just a few clicks.

Spresso

eBay launches “Ask Me About” series. eBay has announced the launch of a series called “Ask Me About,” replacing its “Monthly Chat with eBay Staff” program. According to eBay, the new series is designed to bring sellers closer to eBay’s operations and provide insider insights. The introductory episode will focus on product research, featuring the product research team with responses to questions submitted in the previous week.

Wix launches AI Portfolio Creator. Wix.com, a website builder, has announced the launch of AI Portfolio Creator, which enhances how users create and showcase an online professional portfolio. Users select the type of portfolio they would like to create and upload the desired work to showcase. Once selections are made and images are uploaded, the AI Creator quickly organizes and generates project options with clustered images, suggested titles and descriptions, and customizable layout options.

dotCMS and DSS Partners announce integration with Intershop Commerce Platform. dotCMS, a content management platform, and DSS Partners, a digital consultancy and system integrator, have launched a strategic integration between dotCMS and Intershop’s Commerce Platform. The integration eliminates the need to build a custom CMS integration in Intershop. Users can work within the Intershop platform while leveraging all the capabilities of dotCMS.

CedCommerce launches a free integration tool for European sellers in partnership with AliExpress. CedCommerce, a multichannel enabler, has announced a collaboration with AliExpress. This free integration tool provides a gateway for ecommerce sellers using platforms such as WooCommerce, Prestashop, and Adobe Commerce, enabling them to connect their stores with AliExpress, offer their product catalog, and sync and fulfill the orders from the ecommerce store itself. Using CedCommerce, sellers can maintain centralized control over inventory levels, list products in bulk in a single click, and simplify order processing and fulfillment.

CedCommerce

AI Tools to Convert Articles into Videos

Generative AI has made video creation available to businesses with little time or money, facilitating marketing on platforms such as YouTube, TikTok, and Instagram. I first addressed text-to-video tools last fall.

Here are three more tools that can quickly turn an article into a video.

Brainy Docs

Brainy Docs

Brainy Docs turns PDFs into summaries, presentations, and explainer-type videos. For my test, I downloaded my article last week, “Using ChatGPT’s Memory Feature,” as a PDF from Google Docs and uploaded it to the site. The tool:

• Created a script,
• Produced an audio narration from the script,
• Assembled a video with takeaways,
• Generated a PowerPoint presentation with screenshots.

Brainy Docs converts one monthly 20-page PDF to a video for free. Paid plans start at $9.99 per month for three PDFs totaling 60 pages.

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CopyCopter

CopyCopter

CopyCopter generates videos from text. Simply paste a document, select a voice, and pick an image type (stock photography or AI-generated). CopyCopter will create a script and video.

Then use the built-in video editor to replace images, customize the captions, or change the voice.

My test took just a few minutes, from pasting the text to receiving the video. CopyCopter’s automatically selected images were relevant and contextual. I edited very little. It’s a handy way to promote an article on video-driven social media.

CopyCopter creates one video for free with registered accounts. Paid plans start at $19 per month for five videos.

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DeepBrain

DeeBrain

DeepBrain creates videos featuring AI avatars. Select one avatar to narrate or two to dialogue in an interview style.

Paste your text and select an avatar(s) and voice(s). DeepBrain will create an editable script and images. Add captions and titles, and upload your own images as desired.

DeepBrain creates a 60-second video with a watermark for free. Paid plans start at $29 per month for five minutes of videos and no watermark.

New Ecommerce Tools: May 7, 2024

This installment of our weekly rundown of new products from companies offering services to ecommerce merchants includes updates on operations software, social commerce, post-purchase experiences, digital payments, business-to-business platforms, and the metaverse.

Got an ecommerce product release? Email releases@practicalecommerce.com.

New Tools for Merchants: May 7

Swap secures $9 million to launch its ecommerce operations platform. Swap, an ecommerce operations platform for direct-to-consumer brands, has announced a $9 million Series A round led by QED Investors, with participation from Cherry Ventures, 9900 Capital, 2100 Ventures, and Ed Hallen, co-founder of Klaviyo. With this capital, Swap will launch Swap Global to unlock new markets with delivery-duty-paid shipping, automated tax remittance, and express customs clearance. Swap will expand its marketing and sales teams while broadening its footprint in the U.K., Europe, and the U.S.

Swap

TikTok unveils new premium ad offerings. Despite its potential forced selloff in the U.S., TikTok announced (i) new placement options for its native Pulse ad campaigns and (ii) Pulse Custom Lineups with generative AI to curate trending content tailored to a brand’s particular needs. TikTok also added Paramount Global and the NHL to its roster of advertisers.

Amazon is reducing the low-inventory-level fee for FBA merchants. Starting May 15, FBA’s low-inventory fee will not apply to products that have sold less than 20 units in the past seven days. Low-inventory-level fees incurred due to excessive inbounding and processing times caused by Amazon or Amazon-managed services will be credited back to sellers by the 15th day of the following month. For Prime Day 2024, Amazon will provide a four-week exception on low-inventory fees for products included in Prime-exclusive Lightning Deals and Best Deals.

Walmart uses Roblox virtual world to sell physical goods. Walmart now sells physical goods inside Roblox, the gaming platform. In the Walmart Discovered virtual experience (launched in 2023), users can have real-life items shipped directly to their doorsteps. Users entering the experience will see a new storefront showcasing virtual twins of select physical items sold at Walmart stores. Players can then load an ecommerce window inside Roblox, imitating a shopping cart on Walmart’s website.

Walmart Discovered on Roblox

Meta introduces AI-powered tools for advertisers on Reels. To help match the creators and brands for campaigns, Meta has launched personalized, machine learning-powered creator recommendations for brands in Instagram’s Creator Marketplace. Meta uses AI-powered software to make Reel ads more engaging. Advertisers can now include external links to new products in Reminder ads to help turn viewers’ interest into purchases.

ParcelLab integrates with Shopify for post-purchase experience. ParcelLab, a global post-purchase customer experience platform, is now live on Shopify. ParcelLab’s Order Tracking App for Shopify, alongside the ParcelLab Engage product suite, gives Shopify merchants instant integration with automatic data exchange to create an embedded tracking page with order data (including split shipments and returns info) while injecting personalized content for customer segments. Shopify merchants can link store data with ParcelLab, accessing its post-purchase experience functionality to enhance engagement.

Mastercard and PrestaShop partner with Click to Pay online payments. Ecommerce platform PrestaShop has partnered with Mastercard to introduce Click to Pay, designed to simplify the online payment experience for consumers across Europe. Click to Pay enables consumers to use payment cards without manually entering card details or remembering passwords. All information is securely centralized in a single profile, facilitating easier management of payment methods.

PrestaShop

Chase releases new digital products for small businesses. Chase now offers a digital invoicing product for small business clients. The product is available for Chase Business Complete Banking customers at no additional cost. Further, Chase has introduced Customer Insights, a business intelligence platform that provides actionable insights to help owners reach customers and make strategic decisions. The platform is available for customers who use Chase to accept credit card payments.

OroCommerce unveils a brand-aligned platform for B2B ecommerce. OroCommerce, a B2B ecommerce platform, has announced a strategic rebranding, coinciding with the major 6.0 update to the commerce platform. This move unifies the suite of capabilities under the OroCommerce brand, offering a streamlined experience for manufacturers, distributors, and wholesalers. Previously, Oro Inc. marketed its commercial offerings as OroCommerce, OroCRM, and OroMarketplace. The platform now features a new storefront configurator, AI-powered product recommendations, sales enablement tools, enhanced search control, and more.

ChannelEngine enhances its Amazon capabilities with the acquisition of Retail Data Partners. ChannelEngine, a marketplace integration and management software provider, has acquired Retail Data Partners, an Amazon vendor suite developer. With the acquisition, ChannelEngine can manage Amazon vendors and sellers through one platform, providing process automation and deeper insights and using features such as dispute recovery for immediate impact. ChannelEngine is strengthening its first-party selling model functionality, enabling customers to have a scalable hybrid selling strategy on marketplaces.

Brite offers instant payments to Shopware merchants in Europe. Brite Payments has partnered with ecommerce platform Shopware to offer open banking-based instant payments to European businesses. Shopware merchants can now activate Pay by Bank (account-to-account payments), which enables customers to pay instantly from their bank account. The payments will go through the Brite Instant Payments Network. Shopware is one of Europe’s largest open-source ecommerce platforms, with more than 45,000 merchants.

Shopware

Using ChatGPT’s Memory Feature

OpenAI announced its memory feature in February 2024 and made it publicly available last month. The feature stores users’ chat history to personalize responses to them and improve for others.

The memory feature is enabled by default. To turn it off, click your profile name (in the lower left on a desktop browser) and then “Settings” > “Personalization” > “Memory.”

Clicking “Manage” in the “Settings” tab will show the saved chats and an option to remove them from ChatGPT’s memory.

Users can include “do not save this chat in memory” in any prompt.  Users can also create “temporary chats” that won’t appear in histories or be used by ChatGPT to improve its models, although it may retain them for up to 30 days. Temporary chats do, however, follow users’ custom instructions.

To create a temporary chat, click “ChatGPT 4” (for premium accounts) or “ChatGPT 3.5” in the top left and enable “Temporary chat.”

Temporary chats are handy for dialoguing with ChatGPT using private or third-party information, such as for clients.

To create a temporary chat, click “ChatGPT 4” or “ChatGPT 3.5” in the top left and enable “Temporary chat.”

Using Memory

ChatGPT’s memory feature is independent of an existing saved chat. Deleting a chat won’t erase its associated memory.

I prompted ChatGPT to offer ways to use its memory feature for marketing. Here’s its response, which I’ve summarized:

• Content marketing. Create editorial calendars of topics and authors and track audience preferences, such as blog posts, infographics, or videos.

• Customer personas. Memorize different personas and suggest personalized messaging or campaigns for each group.

• Social media management. Ensure consistent branding and messaging across social channels by remembering campaigns and messaging.

• Customer feedback. Recall customer interactions and advise on messaging and support to avoid similar instances.

• Analytics and reporting. Store data on marketing goals (e.g., increasing traffic, boosting conversions) and recommend adjustments in campaigns or spending.

• Productivity. For teams, remembering preferences and settings.

13 Website Usability Testing Tools

Usability testing tools can help an online business identify customer pain points. By capturing customer behavior and providing immediate feedback, these tools can help make the right changes to improve the user experience.

Here is a list of usability tools for testing a website. Tools are available to gather testers, create and run tests, monitor behavior, and collect and analyze feedback for moderated and unmoderated testing. Several offer free plans.

UXtweak

UXtweak

UXtweak is a testing platform that provides access to site visitors’ preferences, decisions, and biases. Use the Prototype Testing tool to test designs. Use the Website Testing or Mobile Testing tools to assess your website’s usability quickly. Compare a website with competitors through Competitive Testing. Access the User Panel to see respondents and target their demographics and preferences. Use the Survey tool to ask users what problems they face and receive additional feedback. Explore user bias through Five Second and Preference tests. Price: Starter plan is free. Paid plans start at $59 per month.

–

Hotjar

Hotjar

Hotjar provides heatmaps showing where users click, move, and scroll on a site. Watch complete recordings of each visit, including clicks, mouse movements, u-turns, and rage clicks. Incoming Feedback provides a real-time suggestion box for a site. Use a targeted survey to validate ideas and better understand users. Automate the recruitment, scheduling, and hosting of moderated user interviews. Price: Free for up to 35 daily sessions. Paid plans start at $31 per month.

–

Maze

Maze

Maze is an all-in-one platform for testing concepts, prototypes, content, and customer satisfaction. Create custom AI-powered tests to learn about users and their preferences. Run usability tests on prototypes or designs across the development cycle. Use surveys, interview studies, card sorting, prototype testing, website testing, and tree testing. Run usability tests on live websites and collect in-product feedback that fuels confident product decisions. Price: Free for up to five seats. Paid plans start at $99 per month.

–

Dovetail

Dovetail

Dovetail is a tool that gathers scattered customer feedback into a searchable location for analysis and AI-summarized insights. Find patterns in large data sets. Thematic classification will identify, cluster, and label common themes across sources. Channels proactively identify patterns before they’re problems. Price: Basic plan is free. Paid plans start at $29 per month.

–

Optimal Workshop

Optimal Workshop

Optimal Workshop provides multiple testing methods to support research workflow with specialized tools for card sorting, tree testing, first-click testing, surveys, and user interviews. Use tree testing on content structures, categories, and labels before hitting the visual design phase. Make sense of qualitative research with the affinity map, or slice and dice your data to discover patterns with the theme builder. Use first-click testing and online surveys to capture impressions, opinions, and feedback. Find and recruit quality participants with instant, in-app access, or use the custom recruitment service. Price: Plans start at $208 per month.

–

Lookback

Lookback

Lookback is a research platform for usability testing and interviewing. Collect feedback from customers on a product, website, or prototype. Watch and record participant touches on mobile screens during sessions. Capture live notes during sessions and invite teams to join. Invite stakeholders to observe and chat with each other in a live virtual room. Combine interviews, usability studies, and unmoderated step-by-step tasks within the same project. Price: Plans start at $25 per month.

–

UserZoom

UserZoom

UserZoom is a UX testing tool from UserTesting. Choose from various usability tests for research, including video-based tests, click tests, tree tests, and card sorts. Combine multiple methods in one study to get more thorough results. A machine-learning-powered distribution engine helps you find the right audiences using 200 demographic filters for any test. Automatically send study invites and reminders to participants or invite teams to collaborate during moderated sessions from a virtual observation room. Accelerate analysis with automated transcripts, synced playback, timestamped notes, and auto-generated charts and heatmaps. Contact for pricing.

–

Lyssna

Lyssna

Lyssna (formerly UsabilityHub) provides tools to conduct usability tests, recruit participants, and analyze data to help make human-centered decisions. In addition to the five-second test it pioneered, the platform features interviews, surveys, first-click testing, preference testing, card sorting, and tree testing. Use analysis tools to interpret data, including result filtering, text analysis, navigation analysis, click and heat maps, agreement and similarity matrices, and flow analysis. Price: Free for up to three seats. Paid plans start at $75 per month.

–

Trymata

Trymata

Trymata (formerly TryMyUI) is a platform for usability testing, including user interface, user experience, research, remote testing, and more. Conduct UI and UX testing in desktop, tablet, and mobile environments. Use specialized testers to cater to ecommerce usability and UI/UX testing needs. Run UX testing scenarios and get insights from experts. Monitor live and real-time testing sessions. Explore users’ navigations, mouse movements, and written and spoken feedback to uncover their thoughts when interacting with digital products. Price: Plans start at $399 per month.

–

Userbrain

Userbrain

Userbrain is an easy-to-use user testing platform for websites, apps, and prototypes. Set up a test with templates, or create a test with tasks, questions, ratings, and more. Recruit testers from 120,000  qualified testers, target their demographics, and screen for prior experiences, habits, or preferences. Invite users. Speed up test analysis with automatic transcripts and AI insights. Get the correct information to the right people with automated test reports and clips. Price: Plans start at $79 per month.

–

Loop11

Loop11

Loop11 is an application that runs usability studies. Determine tasks to test on a website, recruit participants, and launch a study. Run moderated or unmoderated testing, A/B testing, prototype testing, mobile and tablet UX testing, UX benchmarking, true intent studies, and more. Loop11 provides real-time data, providing an understanding of the usability of a website and where to improve or make changes. Track users’ click and navigation patterns, visualize user engagement and interaction through heatmaps, capture interactions through session recordings, and gain deeper insights using AI. Price: Plans start at $179 per month.

–

Useberry

Useberry

Useberry is a platform for usability research, including user feedback, actionable insights, and user-centered decisions. Choose testing methods that suit research requirements, including five-second tests, single tasks, first clicks, card sorting, tree testing, preference tests, open analytics, and online surveys. Identify task completions with flexible options. Pinpoint a website’s usability issues, explore users’ perspectives, and make the proper adjustments. Analyze user behavior and identify patterns in how visitors engage with a website. Get more precise insights from UX research studies by seamlessly integrating randomization across multiple testing scenarios. Price: Free for up to 10 responses per month. Paid plans start at $67 per month.

–

Userlytics

Userlytics

Userlytics is a testing platform that creates and conducts studies, recruits users, and analyzes results. Choose from various study types and qualitative and quantitative activities to gather insights. Access a panel of 2 million global participants, specify demographic criteria, or bring your own users. Conduct the study using testing tools provided by Userlytics, such as time on task, net promoter score, card sorting, tree testing, and more. Use Userlytics’ analytics dashboards, which include highlight reels, transcriptions, AI UX Analysis, and Sentiment Analysis, to gain insights into the user experience. Contact for pricing.

13 Website Usability Testing Tools

Usability testing tools can help an online business identify customer pain points. By capturing customer behavior and providing immediate feedback, these tools can help make the right changes to improve the user experience.

Here is a list of usability tools for testing a website. Tools are available to gather testers, create and run tests, monitor behavior, and collect and analyze feedback for moderated and unmoderated testing. Several offer free plans.

UXtweak

UXtweak

UXtweak is a testing platform that provides access to site visitors’ preferences, decisions, and biases. Use the Prototype Testing tool to test designs. Use the Website Testing or Mobile Testing tools to assess your website’s usability quickly. Compare a website with competitors through Competitive Testing. Access the User Panel to see respondents and target their demographics and preferences. Use the Survey tool to ask users what problems they face and receive additional feedback. Explore user bias through Five Second and Preference tests. Price: Starter plan is free. Paid plans start at $59 per month.

–

Hotjar

Hotjar

Hotjar provides heatmaps showing where users click, move, and scroll on a site. Watch complete recordings of each visit, including clicks, mouse movements, u-turns, and rage clicks. Incoming Feedback provides a real-time suggestion box for a site. Use a targeted survey to validate ideas and better understand users. Automate the recruitment, scheduling, and hosting of moderated user interviews. Price: Free for up to 35 daily sessions. Paid plans start at $31 per month.

–

Maze

Maze

Maze is an all-in-one platform for testing concepts, prototypes, content, and customer satisfaction. Create custom AI-powered tests to learn about users and their preferences. Run usability tests on prototypes or designs across the development cycle. Use surveys, interview studies, card sorting, prototype testing, website testing, and tree testing. Run usability tests on live websites and collect in-product feedback that fuels confident product decisions. Price: Free for up to five seats. Paid plans start at $99 per month.

–

Dovetail

Dovetail

Dovetail is a tool that gathers scattered customer feedback into a searchable location for analysis and AI-summarized insights. Find patterns in large data sets. Thematic classification will identify, cluster, and label common themes across sources. Channels proactively identify patterns before they’re problems. Price: Basic plan is free. Paid plans start at $29 per month.

–

Optimal Workshop

Optimal Workshop

Optimal Workshop provides multiple testing methods to support research workflow with specialized tools for card sorting, tree testing, first-click testing, surveys, and user interviews. Use tree testing on content structures, categories, and labels before hitting the visual design phase. Make sense of qualitative research with the affinity map, or slice and dice your data to discover patterns with the theme builder. Use first-click testing and online surveys to capture impressions, opinions, and feedback. Find and recruit quality participants with instant, in-app access, or use the custom recruitment service. Price: Plans start at $208 per month.

–

Lookback

Lookback

Lookback is a research platform for usability testing and interviewing. Collect feedback from customers on a product, website, or prototype. Watch and record participant touches on mobile screens during sessions. Capture live notes during sessions and invite teams to join. Invite stakeholders to observe and chat with each other in a live virtual room. Combine interviews, usability studies, and unmoderated step-by-step tasks within the same project. Price: Plans start at $25 per month.

–

UserZoom

UserZoom

UserZoom is a UX testing tool from UserTesting. Choose from various usability tests for research, including video-based tests, click tests, tree tests, and card sorts. Combine multiple methods in one study to get more thorough results. A machine-learning-powered distribution engine helps you find the right audiences using 200 demographic filters for any test. Automatically send study invites and reminders to participants or invite teams to collaborate during moderated sessions from a virtual observation room. Accelerate analysis with automated transcripts, synced playback, timestamped notes, and auto-generated charts and heatmaps. Contact for pricing.

–

Lyssna

Lyssna

Lyssna (formerly UsabilityHub) provides tools to conduct usability tests, recruit participants, and analyze data to help make human-centered decisions. In addition to the five-second test it pioneered, the platform features interviews, surveys, first-click testing, preference testing, card sorting, and tree testing. Use analysis tools to interpret data, including result filtering, text analysis, navigation analysis, click and heat maps, agreement and similarity matrices, and flow analysis. Price: Free for up to three seats. Paid plans start at $75 per month.

–

Trymata

Trymata

Trymata (formerly TryMyUI) is a platform for usability testing, including user interface, user experience, research, remote testing, and more. Conduct UI and UX testing in desktop, tablet, and mobile environments. Use specialized testers to cater to ecommerce usability and UI/UX testing needs. Run UX testing scenarios and get insights from experts. Monitor live and real-time testing sessions. Explore users’ navigations, mouse movements, and written and spoken feedback to uncover their thoughts when interacting with digital products. Price: Plans start at $399 per month.

–

Userbrain

Userbrain

Userbrain is an easy-to-use user testing platform for websites, apps, and prototypes. Set up a test with templates, or create a test with tasks, questions, ratings, and more. Recruit testers from 120,000  qualified testers, target their demographics, and screen for prior experiences, habits, or preferences. Invite users. Speed up test analysis with automatic transcripts and AI insights. Get the correct information to the right people with automated test reports and clips. Price: Plans start at $79 per month.

–

Loop11

Loop11

Loop11 is an application that runs usability studies. Determine tasks to test on a website, recruit participants, and launch a study. Run moderated or unmoderated testing, A/B testing, prototype testing, mobile and tablet UX testing, UX benchmarking, true intent studies, and more. Loop11 provides real-time data, providing an understanding of the usability of a website and where to improve or make changes. Track users’ click and navigation patterns, visualize user engagement and interaction through heatmaps, capture interactions through session recordings, and gain deeper insights using AI. Price: Plans start at $179 per month.

–

Useberry

Useberry

Useberry is a platform for usability research, including user feedback, actionable insights, and user-centered decisions. Choose testing methods that suit research requirements, including five-second tests, single tasks, first clicks, card sorting, tree testing, preference tests, open analytics, and online surveys. Identify task completions with flexible options. Pinpoint a website’s usability issues, explore users’ perspectives, and make the proper adjustments. Analyze user behavior and identify patterns in how visitors engage with a website. Get more precise insights from UX research studies by seamlessly integrating randomization across multiple testing scenarios. Price: Free for up to 10 responses per month. Paid plans start at $67 per month.

–

Userlytics

Userlytics

Userlytics is a testing platform that creates and conducts studies, recruits users, and analyzes results. Choose from various study types and qualitative and quantitative activities to gather insights. Access a panel of 2 million global participants, specify demographic criteria, or bring your own users. Conduct the study using testing tools provided by Userlytics, such as time on task, net promoter score, card sorting, tree testing, and more. Use Userlytics’ analytics dashboards, which include highlight reels, transcriptions, AI UX Analysis, and Sentiment Analysis, to gain insights into the user experience. Contact for pricing.