Case Study: Third-Party Retail Sector.

The most innovative e-commerce businesses are now driven by machine learning, personalisation and more frequent use of buy buttons on social media to create the rise of the third-party retail sector. One of the drivers of growth in this space is the ability to personalise at scale for the generation who expects a quick and tailored shopping experience.

With Generation Z coming of age in recent years, fashion businesses have had to catch up quick in order to communicate a streamlined retail experience for this tech savvy demographic. A generation who grew up in a highly sophisticated media and computer environment with an ability to filter irrelevant content has meant brands have had to rely on machine learning to communicate directly to each consumer to offer this tailored editorial experience.

CONSUMERS NOW LIVE IN A CONSTANT STATE OF BROWSING

Brands are now embracing both machine learning apps and shoppable content platforms to enable the customer to purchase at the point of discovery. Tech forces have now made content truly shoppable through Facebook and Twitter with ecommerce and buy buttons. Snapchat board member and Cosmopolitan editor-in-chief Joanna Coles says it's inevitable that the sharing site will morph into an e-commerce platform in the future.

I expect editorial e-commerce to grow further as we see Generation Z become in a position to be a core target audience for brands. However this will only be achievable if social media platforms merge the line further between tailored editorial content and e-commerce.