数字化应用正在席卷全球。移动设备的普及和互联网访问量的增加对各行各业的企业都产生了巨大影响。零售商不能忽视这一新的现实。
据 eMarketer 预测，今年电子商务零售额将增长 15%，达到 6053 亿美元。
我们采访了尼尔森营销实效部门产品领导力副总裁尼凯什-帕特尔（Nikesh Patel），了解他对零售商分析能力和行业未来的看法。
问：你是如何进入这个行业的？
Nikesh: Seven years ago I was fortunate to transition from finalizing my degree to putting my passion for analytics to professional use with Nielsen.
在我职业生涯的早期，我加入了一个产品创新小组--为一家零售客户比较在通函和数字媒体策略上的花费，帮助他们了解效果并优化营销预算。
分析大数据并发现成功所需的关键因素，坚定了我对智能绩效评估的兴趣，自此我再也没有回头。
问：您担任现职多久了？
Nikesh: I started my current role—VP of Product Leadership in Nielsen’s Marketing Effectiveness business—this year, and have been primarily focused on the company’s multi-touch attribution product development efforts following Nielsen’s acquisition of Visual IQ last year.
迄今为止，我认为自己最大的亮点就是看到我们的创新成果在实际中发挥作用。看到我们的产品在实际环境中发挥作用，为客户带来栩栩如生的数据，尤其是当我们的分析帮助他们改善决策时，真是令人着迷。
例如，我最近参与了一家航空公司的一个项目，该航空公司的销售团队希望降低即将起飞航班的价格，以达到销售目标，而媒体团队则希望投资促销活动，以鼓励更多的预订。
为航空公司提供所需的分析，使其能够决定哪条航线最终能为企业带来最佳效益，这确实令人兴奋。
问：在技术发展方面，未来 12 个月有什么计划？
Nikesh: There are a couple of cool things we’re working on. The first involves using data to gain a more holistic view of the consumer. Today’s marketers need a 360-degree view of each consumer’s path to purchase in order to deliver the tailored and effective experiences. But stitching disparate data together can be complex when individuals aren’t assigned the same identifier (ID) across systems.
例如，一个购物者可能会在台式机上点击某品牌的重定向广告，在移动设备上访问其网站，并在平板电脑上使用商店的应用程序，最终在商店购物。在尼尔森，我们正在寻求协调消费者和互动数据的各种来源，以便更好地将个人旅程中的每个接触点联系起来，让营销人员更细致、更准确地了解他们的客户。
其次是零售业的未来。如今，品牌商、采购商和制造商都将零售商作为其销售产品的渠道，但这些群体很少开展合作。我们希望通过提供测量解决方案，将这些传统上谨慎的合作伙伴转变为现代盟友，使零售商能够向品牌商提供见解，从而共同优化业绩。
问：您认为零售业的未来是移动、在线、实体店还是三者的混合？
Nikesh: I think it will be a mixture of all three, as the characteristics of each platform are better suited for different aspects of the shopping experience. For example, mobile is more suited to the rising appetite for convenient and spontaneous shopping, while the desktop is better for comparing options and doing research for purchases that are more thought out.
与此同时，消费者仍然会去实体店购买高价值商品，他们希望在购买前亲眼看到、亲手触摸和亲身感受。现实情况是，购买的途径既有数字的，也有实体的，而且我认为这种情况不会很快改变。
问：您最近的一次网购经历给您留下了什么深刻印象？
Nikesh: I recently bought a dress online for my partner for her birthday. I didn’t know exactly what I was looking for, but after clicking on a few styles that I liked, the site began recommending me alternatives based on what I was searching for. I ended up buying one of the recommended dresses—although I may have discovered the item on my own, the personalization was genuinely helpful and improved my overall shopping experience.
问：业内谁给了你灵感，为什么？
Nikesh: I find Hubert Joly, current CEO of Best Buy, to be truly inspirational. Joly has been able to successfully level the playing field by creating shopping experiences that are uniquely suited to the brick-and-mortar environment, such as the Geek Squad.
问：您离不开什么技术？
Nikesh: It would be cliché to say my smartphone, so it would have to be my smart assistant. I have a Google Home that has essentially become a part of my daily routine: I ask it questions about the weather and traffic each morning, and use it to catch up on the news in the evening. I wouldn’t say I can’t live without it, but if you took it away, it would certainly impact my life.
