Platforms & Apps

Ecommerce Product Releases: June 16, 2016

Here is a list of recent ecommerce-related product releases and updates. The items offer services to online merchants of all sizes.

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

Ecommerce Product Releases

Slidely.

Slidely.

Slidely partners with Getty Images on PROMO. Slidely, the social video creation platform, has partnered with Getty Images to launch PROMO, a solution for businesses, agencies, and marketers. Business can now create instant promotional videos for social platforms using compelling professional video. Getty Images is the exclusive content partner at launch, providing PROMO users access to nearly 2 million stock video clips. Plans start at $49 per month.

Newegg offers services on Indiegogo. Newegg, an online merchant for tech products, will be helping campaigners on crowdfunding platform Indiegogo with marketing, merchandising, social media, fulfillment, and other logistical support. The two companies will choose the campaigns that they feel have the best chance at success. Pricing for the service was not announced.

Namecheap offers .store TLDs. Namecheap, an ICANN-accredited domain name registrar and web hosting company, has partnered with Radix to offer .store top-level domains for $8.88 through June 22.

Snapchat launches Partners API. Snapchat announced the launch of the Snapchat Partners API, allowing Snapchat ads to be sold by third parties. Software will be developed by partners, including Amobee, TubeMogul, and Brand Networks. Snapchat’s 3V video will be rebranded as Snap Ads by creative partners such as Truffle Pig, Big Spaceship, and VaynerMedia (also an Ads Partner).

Instagram launches business tools. Instagram has unveiled new business tools to help retailers and other businesses connect with followers and analyze the impact. Businesses can create profiles to choose how they want their customers to get in touch with them. Insights on Instagram give businesses actionable information about who their followers are and which posts resonate better than others — all from within the mobile app. Businesses can all promote well-performing posts into ads right in the app.

Connexity’s Bizrate Insights launches new abandonment survey platform. Bizrate Insights, a division of Connexity (formerly Shopzilla) launched a new abandonment survey platform that recognizes when a consumer is about to leave a retail website and triggers an invitation that gives retailers an opportunity to save the sale. Beyond standard and custom site abandonment survey questions, Bizrate includes additional analytical and customer support services, such as tracking paths to purchase and carted items, and enabling fast customer resolution. Contact for pricing.

Webscale launches backend multi-cloud disaster recovery solution for ecommerce. Webscale Networks announced the launch of its multi-cloud disaster recovery solution, which offers backend disaster recovery services across cloud providers and regions. The initial release is focused on the needs of ecommerce merchants, enabling them to automatically failover during disaster scenarios to an alternate location with minimum downtime and data loss. The service is available with Pro and Enterprise plans. Plans start at $2,500 per month.

GS1 US Mobile scan solution delivers product identification. GS1 US Mobile Scan is a high-performance barcode offered in collaboration with Digimarc Corporation. It provides consumers with timely brand-authorized product information, including marketing, pricing, special offers and coupons, product attributes, instructional videos, rich media, and additional shopping assistance via their smartphones. Annual license fee is $50 per DWCode. Contact a certified solution partner for specific pricing details.

Twitter Promoted Tweet Carousel.

Twitter Promoted Tweet Carousel.

Twitter is testing promoted tweet carousel. Twitter is beginning to test a new promoted tweet carousel that allows advertisers to curate multiple tweets within a single swipeable ad unit to tell a rich and compelling story. Advertisers can tweet with videos, images, or text from their own Twitter account. Marketers can also combine content from niche creators with content from other people on Twitter who have granted the advertiser permission to use their tweet. The news comes just a week after Twitter acknowledges it has shifted away from adding a buy button. Promoted tweet carousel is available as a limited alpha to select managed accounts in select global markets.

Splitit launches Shopify plugin. Splitit (formerly PayItSimple), an installment payment service, has launched a Shopify plugin. Shopify merchants can integrate Splitit into checkout, allowing customers to split purchases into interest-free monthly payments on Visa or MasterCard. The launch follows similar plugins for WooCommerce and Magento. See website for pricing.

AmazonFresh launches grocery delivery in London. AmazonFresh has expanded its grocery service to London. The ecommerce giant has been slowly rolling out its grocery service since last fall and has tested one-hour deliveries of fresh and frozen foods. This has been in conjunction with Amazon Prime Pantry, which offers household goods and non-perishable foods. AmazonFresh membership fee, for London, will run about £84 ($121.85) a year.

Conversions On Demand releases “Offers” platform update. “Offers” tracks key attributes of individual shoppers to generate the most compelling incentive based on parameters such as location, shopping time, types of pages being browsed, types of devices, and visitor status. Contact for pricing.

FuturePay Extension for SAP Hybris Commerce achieves certified integration. FuturePay announced its buy-now-pay-later payment option has achieved certified integration with the SAP Hybris Commerce solution. Merchants with SAP Hybris Commerce can benefit by providing their customers with an instant financing option. Recently, FuturePay announced a partnership with Shopify and a new extension for Magento. Contact for pricing.

Demandware to help clients offer Apple Pay. Demandware, a provider of enterprise cloud commerce solutions, will be among the first commerce platforms to support Apple Pay. Adding Apple Pay as a checkout option will simplify customer transactions. Demandware clients will be able to offer customers the ability to make Apple Pay payments in Safari. Contact for pricing.

Mozu improves platform for B2B ecommerce. Mozu, a cloud commerce platform from Volusion, announced the launch of its latest service update, offering added ecommerce tools and services for B2B companies. With Mozu’s new price list feature, companies can incentivize their customers with special pricing, defining multiple price lists and assigning specific customers to each, enabling companies to give the best deals to the most loyal customers. Additional features include advance payment and administrative support features. Contact for pricing.

Hostway now offers managed Magento hosting. Hostway has introduced cloud-based managed Magento ecommerce solutions that combine Hostway’s full suite of application management services with the scalability and security of the cloud. Managed Magento Starter is $99.95 per month, for managing and maintaining one store. Managed Magento Advanced is $199.95 per month and adds support for multiple stores along with greater processing power, storage, and capacity. Both solutions can be scaled with additional resources as the customer’s traffic and activity grows. Hostway Magento plans start at $99.95 per month.

Facebook releases tools to help retailers with in-store sales. With the launch of store visits — a new metric in Facebook Ads Reporting — advertisers can now better understand their physical store traffic after running local awareness ads, complementing reporting for current ads, to provide a more complete picture. Another new tool, the offline conversions API, allows businesses to match transaction data from their customer database or point-of-sale system to Ads Reporting, helping them understand ad effectiveness in real time. Businesses can work with partners such as IBM, Index, Invoca, Lightspeed, LiveRamp, Marketo, and Square, or with Facebook directly.

YP teams up with Groupon. YP, the local-search resource, has announced an agreement with Groupon to provides deals from local businesses within the YP search experience. The feature will be available on Yp.com and the YP mobile app. The announcement follows a string of enhancements to the YP experience, including recent integrations with the Better Business Bureau, Uber, and Fandango.

Sig Ueland
Sig Ueland
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