March 2022 Summaries

As ecommerce businesses launch large-scale promotions, they often face challenges such as unstable websites and frustrating customer experiences. To overcome these obstacles, brands can adopt a structured approach to content management using headless API-first platforms like Contentful, which enables them to create and manage digital experiences across multiple channels with ease. With Contentful's Launch app, businesses can orchestrate product releases and ensure relevant content is published at the same time, reducing stress and improving customer satisfaction. Additionally, Contentful provides governance and quality assurance advantages by integrating sensitive data into a single hub, making it easier for teams to collaborate and mitigate risk. By partnering with tools like BigCommerce and Candyspace, ecommerce businesses can navigate omnichannel selling and deliver seamless experiences across multiple channels.

This guide walks through building a blog using the popular JavaScript framework Next.js and the content management system Contentful, creating a Star Wars-themed cookbook filled with recipes handed down from family members and friends. The project begins by setting up a new Next.js project, connecting it to a Contentful account, and deploying it with Vercel. It then adds a webhook to trigger updates in Contentful when changes are made to the content, enabling readers to interact through comments using Disqus. Social sharing capabilities are also added, as well as open graph tags for proper metadata display on social media platforms. The blog can be sorted by category tag, and users can search for posts by category. Finally, the project is styled with CSS, including font and icon libraries, and a load more button is implemented to control pagination.

The concept of customer satisfaction has been evolving since the 1940s, and successful companies prioritize it by adopting strategies that deliver curated content and a content platform to extend customer satisfaction. Ecommerce brands recognize that making customers happy requires providing the right content at the right time on the most appropriate channel, which is where a content management solution comes in. The buyer's journey involves three stages: awareness, consideration, and decision, where content plays a crucial role in reaching customers, informing them about their problem, and addressing their concerns. Content drives conversion in commerce, but improper content management can lead to frustrating experiences. Ecommerce platforms often lack the consistency, flexibility, and experimentation that brands need, leading companies to introduce a content solution or add one to their stack to unify, organize, and deliver content that brings value to customers. With 44% of respondents preferring easy-to-use mobile apps or websites, content platforms support clear navigation, paving the way for more satisfactory user experiences. They also offer agility in creating, editing, and publishing new content, enabling teams to respond to customer feedback and changing marketplace trends quickly.

Traditional content management systems (CMSes) often lump content and code together, making it difficult for non-tech users to edit their websites without causing issues. The author argues that this approach limits user control and can lead to broken sites and urgent phone calls. In contrast, Contentful's platform empowers both developers and editors by structuring content in tiny building blocks, providing a set of scalable APIs that deliver structured JSON, and offering features like customizable field types and rich text editing. This approach enables users to create reusable and platform-agnostic content, making it easy to reuse and manage across different channels and devices. With Contentful's flexible architecture, developers can choose their preferred technology, while editors can focus on creating high-quality content without needing developer support.

The author is tasked with creating an automated spreadsheet to track player point totals during the NCAA men's and women's college basketball tournaments, but finds it a tedious job due to the large number of games, teams, and players involved. To make things easier, they decide to build an app using React and Contentful, which provides an API for accessing player data. The app allows participants to draft their all-star team, and the author uses the Contentful App Framework to create a user-friendly UI and manage the draft process efficiently. They also explore the benefits of building custom apps in Contentful, including added validation, integration with third-party services, and enabling business processes such as publishing content that triggers various activities. The author notes that while not every project requires a custom app, it can be beneficial for projects where editors need powerful tools to excel at their craft.

Pets Deli, a European D2C pet food market leader, saw its online conversion rates increase by 51% on Black Friday 2021 thanks to personalization efforts with Ninetailed. The company used Ninetailed's API-first solution to create real-time omnichannel personalization experiences that optimized the customer journey without performance trade-offs. With a unified customer profile and real-time delivery, Pets Deli was able to offer unique and tailored experiences to each of its website visitors, increasing conversions and driving more sales. The integration with Contentful enabled seamless delivery of personalized content, hero visuals, and pricing strategies to customers in real-time. Ninetailed's flexibility, easy integration, and exceptional customer service made it a powerful force for Pets Deli's ecommerce success.

Bright IT is celebrating three years of partnership with Contentful, a content management solution that stands out from other software companies due to its clear vision and structured approach to feature development. Unlike traditional vendors, Contentful prioritizes its clients' needs while maintaining a focus on its core competencies. The platform offers a user-friendly experience for both business users and developers, with features such as modular content entries, API-first design, and GraphQL querying language. Bright IT appreciates the reliable partner aspect of working with Contentful, which is supported by excellent roadmap planning and collaborative communication style. While no software is perfect, Contentful's strengths make it a powerful tool for building digital experiences.