Researchers from University of Minnesota, New York University, University of Pennsylvania, BI Norwegian Business School, University of Michigan, National Bureau of Economic Research, and University of North Carolina published a new paper in the Journal of Marketing that examines how advances in machine learning (ML) and blockchain can address inherent frictions in omnichannel marketing and raises many questions for practice and research. The study, forthcoming in the Journal of Marketing, is titled "Informational Challenges in Omnichannel Marketing Remedies and Future Research" and is authored by Koen Pauwels, Haitao (Tony) Cui, Catherine Tucker, Raghu Iyengar, S. Sriram, Anindya Ghose, Sriraman Venkataraman, and Hanna Halaburda. In this new study in the Journal of Marketing, researchers define omnichannel marketing as the "synergistic management of all customer touch points and channels both internal and external to the firm that ensures that the customer experience across channels and firm-side marketing activity, including marketing-mix and marketing communication (owned, paid, and earned), is optimized." Often viewed as the panacea for one-to-one marketing, omnichannel experiences data, marketing attribution, and consumer privacy frictions. The research team demonstrates that advances in machine learning (ML) and blockchain can address these frictions.

Automation has become one of the most critical factors for successful businesses these days. By saving time and reducing costs, it helps increase operational efficiency and productivity and helps companies focus on their core competencies. But how are businesses utilizing automation for better results and sustainable growth? Take a look at how they do it so that you can follow their suit and grow your business. Every business has various tasks on its daily plate that are necessary for making the organization run smoothly.

Adobe has released it Digital Trends report for 2018, specifically looking into the changing landscape of online retail, as well as the way digital users are reshaping the space. Despite predictions of doom and gloom for bricks-and-mortar, the strength of online sales doesn't mean that physical stores are obsolete. In fact, a 2017 US Census report found that 90 per cent of all retail purchases in America were made in physical stores. Furthermore, 43 per cent of Millennials prefer to research brands and products online before shopping in-store. This reinforces how critical it is that retailers deliver an exceptional and joined-up cohesive experience along the entire shopping journey.

This post is part of our Cognitive College series where the industry's brightest minds explore different ways cognitive will revolutionize the way that we work and engage with customers. For decades, when one thought of the future, they thought of intelligent, thinking machines, be it Robby the Robot from Lost in Space, supercar KITT from Knight Rider, or the human-appearing Cylons from Battlestar Galactica. Today, if one mentions the words "artificial intelligence," many will think of IBM's Watson beating its human counterpart in a game of Jeopardy!. But where are the day-to-day thinking machines we assumed were right around the corner and promised to us from our Jetsons-viewing childhood? Unbeknownst to many of us, artificial intelligence (AI) is already all around us and interwoven into the fabric of our human lives – yet we don't recognize its presence because machine intelligence has not yet taken on the human form we had fantasized it would become.

Thank you for subscribing to the monthly THINK Marketing newsletter. This post is part of our Cognitive College series where the industry's brightest minds explore different ways cognitive will revolutionize the way that we work and engage with customers. For decades, when one thought of the future, they thought of intelligent, thinking machines, be it Robby the Robot from Lost in Space, supercar KITT from Knight Rider, or the human-appearing Cylons from Battlestar Galactica. Today, if one mentions the words "artificial intelligence," many will think of IBM's Watson beating its human counterpart in a game of Jeopardy!. But where are the day-to-day thinking machines we assumed were right around the corner and promised to us from our Jetsons-viewing childhood?