Brent Peterson sits down with Chet Silverman, aka Mr. eTail, the Director of Sponsorships at eTail. With 25 years in the e-commerce conference space, Chet shares stories from the early dot-com crash days, how he convinced Google to exhibit before they were a household name, and why conferences remain the best way to connect with retail executives in a post-COVID world. He also breaks down the current AI startup boom and predicts where the technology is heading.

Chapters

• 00:00 - Meet Mr. eTail: Chet's origin story and joining eTail after the dot-com bust
• 01:05 - The evolution of e-commerce technology over 25 years
• 01:59 - Cold-calling Google and convincing them to sponsor eTail Boston
• 03:07 - The rise and fall of hot tech categories: CRM, mobile shopping, social commerce
• 03:56 - Watching companies grow up at eTail, from startups to acquisitions
• 05:12 - The AI explosion and why it will follow the mobile shopping pattern
• 06:15 - Why companies should sponsor eTail and how COVID changed B2B sales
• 07:23 - Quality vs. quantity: the 50/50 retailer-to-vendor ratio
• 07:56 - Strategic timing: Palm Springs in February, Boston in August
• 09:08 - eTail as a community and kicking off the e-commerce conference season

Key Takeaways

• eTail maintains a rare 50/50 ratio of retailers to solution providers
• COVID made conferences essential since decision-makers now work from home
• AI will eventually become a standard feature from every retail tech vendor, not a standalone category
• eTail actively supports startups by offering free passes to help them enter the ecosystem
• Palm Springs kicks off the e-commerce season; Boston is the last stop before holiday lockdown

Guest Info

Chet Silverman - Director of Sponsorships, eTail
Known as Mr. eTail | 25 years in e-commerce events

This has been produced in cooperation with Content Cucumber
https://www.contentcucumber.com/

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