No one denies the business impact of creating a better fusion between digital and physical channels. But who is driving this transformation?
A look at cross-channel news sites and thought-leaders
Sources have already collected the fastest growing omnichannel retailers or even the top women in omnichannel retail companies. Time to provide an overview of the advocates on the other side of the table; thought-leaders, industry professionals, consultants and media outlets, among others. (Featuring one truly peculiar candidate – do you recognize him?)
To set the record straight before hurting any feelings, this list is not a ‘ranking’, neither has a direct interdependence with follower count. It is based on some investigation online and especially in Social Media, with regard to the nature and relevance of the topics these influencers regularly cover. (We’ve only included people who primarily publish or share content in English.)
As well all know, internet expands faster than the universe itself and we’d love to continue adding new names to the collection to keep it up-to-date. Please feel free to suggest anyone we might have forgotten about.
Top omnichannel retail experts and consultants on Twitter
Aurelia Ammour
Co-Founder at iVentures Consulting; expert in digital transformation, e-commerce and omni-channel. Co-creator of eShopper Index.
Twitter: @aammour
Benjamin Rund
Working at Informatica Corporation, independent provider of data integration software. Tweeting about retail business technology.
Twitter: @benrund
Bill Mirabito
Representing Massachusetts-based B2C Partners, omnichannel retail e-commerce consultants.
Twitter: @bmirabito
Brendan Witcher
Principal analyst at Forrester Research, covering e-commerce, omnichannel, personalization and digital business strategy.
Twitter: @BrendanWitcher
Bryan Eisenberg
Founder and CMO of retail location optimization company IdealSpot. Keynote speaker and best selling author.
Twitter: @TheGrok
Carol Spieckerman
Retail speaker and strategist to global suppliers, brand marketers and solution providers. Her website features interesting interviews with thought leaders and industry professionals, too.
Twitter: @retailxpert
Chris Radmilovitch
Digital luxury and Pinterest expert, ‘fond of economics, marketing, e-commerce, social media, brand content’.
Twitter: @radmilovitch
Christine Bardwell
Ex-Ovum and IDC analyst. Omnichannel retail expert and independent consultant.
Twitter: @C_Bardwell
David Altman
Advisor focused on the intersection of transformation, digital technology and consumer goods.
Twitter: @davidaltman
Diane J. Brisebois
President & CEO of Retail Council of Canada. Passionate about retail and ‘this great industry’.
Twitter: @LoveRetail
Doug Fleener
Consultant helping retailers and other customer-focused companies improve their customer experience.
Twitter: @dougfleener
Ernst Kruize
Customer Interaction Expert, always trying to bridge the gap between on- and offline channels and all touch points.
Twitter: @ErnstKruize
Errol Denger
Director of Commerce Strategy at Adobe. Innovating omnichannel retail customer engagement by ‘experience driven commerce’.
Twitter: @ErrolDenger
Fernando Rivero
He says marketing is his love, internet is his passion, omnichannel is his vision – we couldn’t have put it better ourselves.
Twitter: @Fernando_Rivero
Gino Goossens
Director of omni-channel strategy & innovations and dedicated CrossFit athlete, all in one
Twitter: @allchannelscomm
Jason Michaels
Chief Strategy Officer at Wire Stone, digital marketing partner of leading global brands. Tweets about customer experience, wearables, digital novelties and so on.
Twitter: @50champ
John Hooper
Thoughts and tweets about customer service, marketing, omnichannel, sales and e-commerce.
Twitter: @DRMRYD
Josh Brammer
Creating innovative e-commerce solutions with an omnichannel edge with special attention to B2B retail.
Twitter: @ideasbyjosh
Karl Meier
Tweets from the front lines of data, omnichannel and retail.
Twitter: @Karl66078875
Kristi Soomer
Expert in strategy and brand coaching for online retailers at Retail Bliss with tweets about digital innovation, in-store and so on.
Twitter: @kristisoomer
Lisa Seacat DeLuca
Omnichannel tech strategist who is proud to be IBM’s ‘most prolific female inventor’ and mother of dragons (aka twin boys).
Twitter: @LisaSeacat
Manon Snijders
Marketing consultant and world traveller with expertise in Marketing, CRM, Omnichannel, Digital, Customer Experience.
Twitter: @ManonSnijders
Matthieu Bodin
Based in Hong Kong, working at a digital agency after 2 years in retail, with passion for omnichannel thinking and startups.
Twitter: @MaBoXiu
Mihai Dragan
E-commerce and omnichannel retail enthusiast.
Twitter: @MihaiDragan
Nicole Reyhle
Founder of RetailMinded Magazine, a ‘lifestyle publication’ covering both online and brick-and-mortar shopping. Co-founder of Independent Retailer Conference.
Twitter: @RetailMinded
Per Svanström
‘Jedi knight’ with a passion for omni-channel e-commerce and online marketing.
Twitter: @persvanstrom
Rich Kizer & Georganne Bender
Professional speakers, retail strategists, authors and consultants forming a power couple – who are actually married, ‘just not to each other’.
Twitter: @kizerandbender
Saba Shukat
Marketing in mobile advertising, loyalty, payments and digital with interest in Internet of Things, wearables, omnichannel and their connections to branding.
Twitter: @saba_shaukat
Travis Ebel
Internet and e-commerce professional focusing on the convergence of retail, tech, mcommerce, geotargeting etc. Interesting Paper.li collections.
Twitter: @travisebel
Top media outlets for omnichannel retail news and insights
Evigo
E-commerce news for omnichannel retailers
Twitter: @Evigocom
MultiChannel Merchant
News on e-commerce, operations & fulfillment, and marketing.
Twitter: @mcmerchant
OmniChannel Media
A technology media company that provides insights into the technologies leading this evolution.
Twitter: @OmniCMedia
Retailer Insight
Intel discusses customer-centric strategies to help retailers thrive, including digital signage and inventory management.
Twitter: @RetailerInsight
RetailNext
Tech company with in-store customer engagement & analytics solutions. Their blog features omnichannel-related content like infographics and guest posts.
Twitter: @RetailNext
Retail Online Integration
The retailer’s guide to cross-channel success
Twitter: @retailonlinemag
Retail Technology Review
Dedicated to the products and solutions needs of end users within the retail sector. Announcing multi-channel tech news as well.
Twitter: @RetailTecReview
Retail TouchPoints
Their Cross-Channel Strategies section offers readers a look at successful promotions, campaigns and programs applied by industry leaders.
Twitter: @RTouchPoints
RetailWire
Discussion forum and business tips in topics including omnichannel.
Twitter: @retailwire
Shop.org
US National Retail Federation’s division to connect retailers and industry pros who know and love the world of digital retail.
Twitter: @shoporg
+ 1: Omnichannel Octopus
May the Omnichannel Octopus tell the future of the retail world just like the late eight-legged Paul did during the soccer World Cup 2010?
Twitter: @omnichannelocto
A long-awaited list: ‘Top 40 List of Omnichannel Retail Influencers to Follow’ http://t.co/fEU0XbeqG1 pic.twitter.com/0pByHjZwLA
— WHISBI (@Whisbi) March 23, 2015
Great list, very useful! Our blog (https://mnlth.co/blog/) might also be of interest for those looking for trends in omnichannel retail and new technologies to get consumer insights.
Great insights about retail indeed, thanks for the suggestion, Iris!
Hi, Thanks for putting together this very resourceful list! You also might want to check out http://www.imsresultscount.com and @chrishpetersen as another useful and very insightful blog. We cover trends, hot topics, and news in all things retail, omnichannel, and customer experience.
Thanks, Crystal & keep up the good work!