Speaker Bio

Fi Bendall

Managing Director, Bendalls Group

Fi is a leading interactive and digital specialist, and managing director of Bendalls Group, www.bendalls.com.au. She is a founding member of social media collaborator group, www.getsocialadvice.com. Fi has over 20 years experience in the digital sector, commencing in the consumer electronics industry. She has developed key digital strategies for the BBC, Virgin, and led the international gaming portal, ATE Online.

Fi has led digital business strategies, mobile, social media, e-community strategies and advocacy programs for clients such as Microsoft, News Interactive, Tourism Tasmania, Coles, Origin Energy, RaboPlus, ANZ, MTV, and RAMS Home Loans. Fi has built a reputation as a highly regarded digital specialist and for being hyper-connected using this ability to bring business and social media influencers together.

Fi's Presentation Thoughts

We asked Fi the following questions about her upcoming presentation at Online Retailer. Here are her responses...

Please summarise the content of your session (in your own words):
This session will provide the context of social media to retailers with figures to understand what the opportunity of social and digital environments are for retailing going forward. Attendees will gain practical insights into building the business case and social strategy for e-retailing and m-retailing, and will have access to some of the best International case studies to learn from, and practical tips and tools. The session will conclude with a vision of where this mass communication channel is moving to for social commerce in retailing.

What can attendees expect to take away from your session?
1. Facts & Figures
2. Best practice
3. Future Vision
4. Answers to social media and social commerce
5. Useful tools and tips

The hottest thing in online retailing right now is:
The invention of reader devices like the iPad, mixed with augmented reality technology, will propel retailing into a whole new multi-channel approach for direct mail shopping catalogues to traditional bricks and mortar retailing. This isn't the future, this is NOW!

The biggest danger in online retailing is:
Australian retailers are being left behind and too slow to integrate multi-channel e-retailing into their business. Many Australian dollars are spent on overseas shopping sites, building habitual audiences that will be hard to win back.

Some of the best examples of online retail best practice are:
Fashion retailers top my list!
- Marks & Spencers UK www.marksandspencer.com/
- Top Shop UK www.topshop.com
- Shoes of Prey www.shoesofprey.com
- Net a Porter & Outnet www.net-a-porter.com & www.theoutnet.com
- Peters of Kensington www.petersofkensington.com.au
Otherwise:
- Amazon www.amazon.com
- Argos www.argos.co.uk
- Ezybuy www.ezybuy.com
- Pizza Hut www.pizzahut.com.au
- Deals Direct www.dealsdirect.com.au
These e-retailers have one thing in common, they make it easy !!