4 Content-Related Tech Trends to Watch in 2025
As technology gets smarter, retail and CPG marketers are getting savvier on how to use the latest tools and capabilities. Progressive Grocer recently spoke with Randy Mercer, chief strategy officer at product content solution provider 1WorldSync, about content-centric tech trends that brands and grocers should keep tabs on as the calendar year clicks over.
From a big-picture perspective, Mercer said that there is a growing understanding of how different tech components – and people-driven functions – can work together in industries that have faced ongoing challenges and tight margins during the front half of the decade. “One of the biggest things is that they are working to connect their dots and we are helping them do it – that this is an ecosystem that we are all working on,” he observed.
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As for specific area of progress and possibilities, Mercer shared his take on four movements poised to make a difference in the broader ecosystem.
Smart Packaging
With shoppers increasingly adept at scanning QR codes, also known as 2D barcodes, and as these codes are expected to replace 12-digit UPC barcodes on labels as soon as 2027, manufacturers and retailers can unlock opportunities with smart packaging. “This is going to happen, and 2025 is the year that they will have to get ready,” Mercer said, also noting the amount of helpful information that can be linked in QR codes. “We also think about dynamic data that can be contributed in the form of expiration dates and all of those things that can enhance the supply chain and how we think about things like recalls.”
QR codes will be key in the much-talked-about seamless shopping experience driven by the stakeholders. “We see this convergence in the form of a consumer standing in a brick-and-mortar store and starting to Google something. The chance of them finding something wrong or outdated is high,” Mercer pointed out.
Better User-Generated Content Strategies
User-generated content (UGC) from shoppers who contribute reviews, ratings and other information and images often influences other consumers’ behaviors. According to 1WorldSync, 67% of shoppers say that various forms of UGC have persuaded them to purchase a product they didn’t think they needed or wanted, and 86% of frequent online grocery shoppers leave product reviews. This underscores the need for brands to prioritize a holistic rating and review management strategy, including through their own QR codes, to foster a community of reviewers. “You can complete the life cycle of the consumer’s experience all the way through post-purchase, and the brand knows something it didn’t know before,” he asserted.
Dynamic Retail Media
Retail media may be accelerating, but brands and retailers, including grocers with store brands, are looking for demonstrated returns on investments. In the year ahead, those who use retail media will be exploring how to get the most the mileage from those programs, deployed both online and in-store. “That is going to continue to grow as an investment,” Mercer projected, emphasizing the importance of having retail media connected to accurate and optimized information. As consumers continue to keep an eye on their budgets, there can be value in discounts discovered via retail media, he added.
Ubiquitous AI
Just a few years after many people first heard about ChatGPT, consumers and businesses are becoming comfortable with GenAI and what it can do for them. “We are starting to see a change in GenAI. Earlier on, people would say, ‘I don’t want that anywhere near me,’ but now it’s proving real. As people use it more in their personal lives, they are learning to trust it,” Mercer said. “There is an understanding that it will never replace humans, but it gets you down the road really fast and AI will continue to get more pervasive.” Among other insights, 1WorldSync found that 31% of shoppers have used AI services like ChatGPT or Google Gemini to learn about a product before buying it.
1WorldSync’s team explored these and other topics in the recently-released 2024 Product Content Benchmark Report.
