Armando Roggio

Articles by: Armando Roggio

Armando Roggio

Armando Roggio is the longtime senior contributor to Practical Ecommerce. He's a global ecommerce authority and a practicing merchant, developer, and journalist.

Since 2008 he's written over 1,300 articles for Practical Ecommerce addressing all matters of ecommerce and presented dozens of webinars.

His previous positions include director of ecommerce for a regional retail chain and marketing publications manager at Micron Technology, a publicly-traded computer-chip manufacturer. He holds a B.A. in English Writing and Journalism from The University of Pittsburgh.

Contact Armando via email or LinkedIn. Follow his ecommerce tweets at @ecommerceboy.

Email & Text Marketing
Digital Creators Need Email Marketing

October 20, 2021 • Armando Roggio

A list of engaged email subscribers is among the best promotional tools for creators who sell digital products. For many of those creators, it could also be a path toward earning a living. The creator economy has a problem.
Payments
Stablecoin, CBDCs Could Improve Ecommerce

October 18, 2021 • Armando Roggio

Digital currencies have the potential to expand ecommerce, lower transaction fees, eliminate chargebacks, and prevent fraud. So far, however, volatility and its fear have stopped most merchants and brands from accepting cryptocurrencies. But this could be changing.
Payments
Are Stablecoin and CBDCs the Future of Digital Currency?

October 14, 2021 • Armando Roggio

Stablecoin and central bank digital currences may offer the benefits of buying and selling with cryptocurrencies without the worrisome price swings. Blockchain-driven transactions could benefit the ecommerce industry.
Google Ads
Google Ads Promotion Extensions Can Boost Holiday Sales

October 12, 2021 • Armando Roggio

The Google Ads promotion extension attaches a clickable discount offer to search ads and could boost sales for some merchants this Christmas season. Click-through rates and conversion rates vary greatly from one business or one ad to the next. Thus one cannot say definitively that using a promotion extension would drive more traffic or sales.
Shipping & Fulfillment
Is Last-mile Delivery Ripe for Disruption?

October 11, 2021 • Armando Roggio

Competition, profit-taking, and emerging technologies may contribute to rapid and disruptive changes in last-mile package delivery worldwide. For online sellers, the "last mile" describes the final leg of a product's journey to a customer.
Business
5 Content Marketing Ideas for November 2021

October 5, 2021 • Armando Roggio

Comparisons, top 10 lists, customer stories, an old mystery, and Thanksgiving leftovers are all topics that could influence your company's content marketing in November 2021. Content marketing is the act of creating, publishing, and promoting content with the express purpose of attracting, engaging, and retaining customers.
Social Media
Facebook Could Dominate Ecommerce

October 4, 2021 • Armando Roggio

Facebook is among the top social media networks in the world. It is also a leading advertising and communication platform. And it could soon dominate ecommerce.
Amazon & Marketplaces
Should Merchants Launch Their Own Marketplaces?

September 30, 2021 • Armando Roggio

For manufacturers, distributors, and enterprise retailers, owning a marketplace could be a competitive advantage and a key to business growth.
B2B
The Emergence of B2B Raw Material Marketplaces

September 26, 2021 • Armando Roggio

Business-to-business marketplaces are among ecommerce's leading growth trends, yet many industries remain under-served, especially for raw materials.
Business
DTC Brands, Amid Disruptions, Should Seek New Sales Channels

September 23, 2021 • Armando Roggio

Starting a digital direct-to-consumer brand has never been easier. But growing that brand into a successful business may have become more difficult.
Business
Will Supportive Spending Impact Ecommerce?

September 20, 2021 • Armando Roggio

The pandemic changed how shoppers think about life generally and the products they use specifically, according to reports from Google, Accenture, and others. This includes picking brands and products for ethical reasons instead of economic ones.
Business
What Makes a Good Ecommerce Brand?

September 16, 2021 • Armando Roggio

Helen Vaid is CEO of Foundry, a business aggregator that buys and grows commerce brands. She believes the explosion of products and seemingly unlimited consumer choice mean brands must do more than merely sell goods and services.
Business
Will the Creator Economy Embrace Ecommerce?

September 9, 2021 • Armando Roggio

As the so-called creator economy evolves and expands, ecommerce could become a significant revenue channel, helping to create new business models and drive the development of new commerce platforms. The terms "creator" and "creator economy" are a little ambiguous.
Marketing & Advertising
Privacy Changes to Streaming Ads Are Coming

September 6, 2021 • Armando Roggio

Connected television, a rising star in the targeted, programmatic advertising industry, will soon be impacted by new privacy measures. Connected television is often called CTV or OTT. The latter stands for "over the top" and is reminiscent of cable boxes or Roku devices that sat over the top of televisions.
Content Marketing
5 Content Marketing Ideas for October 2021

September 1, 2021 • Armando Roggio

In October 2021, your content marketing could feature product-focused tutorials, storytelling, and annual observances, such as a little holiday called Halloween. Content is an integral part of ecommerce marketing.
Email & Text Marketing
5 Ways Apple’s Email Privacy Impacts Marketing

August 30, 2021 • Armando Roggio

As early as September 2021, Apple's mobile email apps may hide a recipient's internet protocol address, making it difficult or impossible to measure open rates and track user behavior.
Business
‘Five Forces’ That Make or Break Consumer Brands

August 26, 2021 • Armando Roggio

Creating a consumer brand involves identifying competitive advantages, gaps, and unmet needs. But how is that done? One solution is Michael E. Porter's five competitive forces.
Marketing & Advertising
How to Start a Successful Podcast for Ecommerce

August 22, 2021 • Armando Roggio

A podcast can help with customer acquisition and retention. It can provide reusable content. And it's one of the simplest ways to launch content marketing. As with any marketing effort, podcasting is a process to be planned and executed, starting with clear objectives.
Social Media
Shopper Privacy Could Boost Contextual Ad Targeting

August 19, 2021 • Armando Roggio

Consumer privacy concerns could prompt advertisers to find alternatives to tracking-and-behavior-based ads, giving contextual targeting a boost. Contextual targeting is not new, although it's becoming more sophisticated. It is based on a tried and true concept: Place your ad next to relevant content.
Marketing & Advertising
Lifecycle Marketing in Practice

August 16, 2021 • Armando Roggio

Lifecycle marketing connects a business and its customers, providing the proper communications at the proper time. Done well, it helps retain buyers and provide a better overall shopping experience. Instead of thinking about lifecycle marketing as email or text messages, view it as a relationship.
Conversion
Is Your Supply Chain Vulnerable?

August 12, 2021 • Armando Roggio

The combination of pandemic lockdowns and rising freight prices has forced some companies to focus on supply chain vulnerabilities. Many commerce businesses have experienced some form of supply chain disruption in the past 18 months.
Conversion
CommerceCo Recap: Winning the Digital Shelf

August 9, 2021 • Armando Roggio

Consumers with access to physical stores, ecommerce sites, online marketplaces, apps, and social selling seek consistent and frictionless shopping experiences. This makes it tough for brands to maintain product messaging. Call it the dilemma of the digital shelf.
Content Marketing
5 Content Marketing Ideas for September 2021

August 5, 2021 • Armando Roggio

In September 2021, content marketers can offer courses, suggest gifts, celebrate holidays such as Grandparents’ Day and the Mid-Autumn Festival, or provide how-to help. Content marketing is the act of creating,
Marketing & Advertising
Win More Customers with the SOSTAC Model

August 1, 2021 • Armando Roggio

Developed more than 25 years ago, the SOSTAC framework can help marketers better understand their business, their customers, and the actions needed to grow sales and profits. Digital advertising can seem easy. But a business that grows in complexity and scale often becomes more challenging to market.
Inventory
Getting Investors to Buy Your Inventory

July 28, 2021 • Armando Roggio

When it comes to funding inventory, retail businesses can be creative, using loans, credit cards, supplier terms, and even advances from family. Whatever the method, however, raising the money can be a challenge.
Product Pages
The Full-funnel Product Detail Page

July 26, 2021 • Armando Roggio

Once found only at the bottom of a sales funnel, the ecommerce product detail page is evolving to address the entire buyer journey, from awareness to sale. Consider a free, basic theme on Shopify called "Simple." Its product detail pages are sales-focused, with eight sections.
Business
6 Things to Do before Selling an Ecommerce Business

July 22, 2021 • Armando Roggio

When it comes time to sell your ecommerce business, you may find you are not fully prepared for prospective buyers or your business isn't the smooth running machine you thought. The individuals considering your company may be looking for a new source of income or an addition to a portfolio of related businesses. These prospective buyers need assurances and info, to evaluate the potential.
Social Media
What’s the Future of Social Media Advertising?

July 19, 2021 • Armando Roggio

Many businesses recognize the need for social media advertising. But describing social media ads is a bit like counting raindrops in a thunderstorm. The trends are many, fast-moving, and often gone in a flash. At least one industry practitioner believes social advertising is growing in acceptance despite tracking concerns.
Google Ads
Need More from Pay-per-click Ads? Try Planning

July 15, 2021 • Armando Roggio

Pay-per-click advertising is essential for many ecommerce and omnichannel retailers. Google, Facebook, and other ad platforms have made it easy to set up a campaign. PPC success, however, often depends on careful planning and preparation, not rushing out to place ads.
Business
How to Track Profit from Products, Customers

July 12, 2021 • Armando Roggio

Unit economics provides ecommerce and omnichannel retailers with foundational intelligence that can identify break-even points and long-term sustainability. As the name implies, unit economics focuses on the value a single "unit" represents for the business. This unit can either be a product or a customer. Each of these reveals different, actionable information.