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.

Social Media
Facebook Lead Ads Lowered CPA, Boosted Results

November 14, 2021 • Armando Roggio

When your marketing plan requires newsletter signups, event registrations, and resource downloads, Facebook lead ads may be a powerful tool at an attractive cost-per-acquisition. I have been a fan of this ad form for some time, but recently I tested it for a software-as-a-service company.
Content Marketing
5 Content Marketing Ideas for December 2021

November 10, 2021 • Armando Roggio

Content marketing is a constant flow of planning and producing. And topics, even for search engine optimization, may be hard to find. So for December 2021 content, consider industry forecasts, helpful holiday how-to articles, New Year's resolutions, and a couple of uncommon holidays.
Google Ads
How Content Drives Low-cost Ad Conversions

November 5, 2021 • Armando Roggio

Content marketing is often associated with search engine optimization since the two disciplines can work hand in glove. But there can be a strong affinity between content marketing and advertising, too.
Marketing & Advertising
Is Affiliate Marketing the Next Big Thing?

November 1, 2021 • Armando Roggio

Ecommerce trends, the burgeoning creator economy, and marketing tech are invigorating affiliate promotion, boosting the effectiveness of an already powerful digital marketing channel. Affiliate marketing is not new. It has been around since the earliest days of the commercial internet.
Google Ads
4 Reasons to Use Dynamic Search Ads

October 27, 2021 • Armando Roggio

Dynamic search ads access your website content and deploy artificial intelligence to generate headlines, bids, and targeted search terms automatically. These easy-to-employ text ads are the Swiss Army knife of digital promotion: They work well in many situations.
Payments
Here’s Why PayPal Should Acquire Pinterest

October 25, 2021 • Armando Roggio

PayPal has denied published reports that it is interested in acquiring Pinterest. Nonetheless, if consummated, the transaction might be the first of many similar acquisitions as platforms seek vertical integration. In this post, I'll address why it makes sense for PayPal to buy Pinterest.
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.