your monthly insights are here 🦊
Welcome back to May’s edition of Arktic Bytes!
We’ve just wrapped our Inside Digital & eCommerce 2026 survey, and the team has been busy diving into the data. We’re already uncovering some fascinating signals about what’s happening across AI, eCommerce and digital in the local market and we’re counting down the days to launch (3rd June!). I’d like to take this opportunity to thank the 107 leaders who took the time to participate.
In this edition, we unpack Starbucks’ latest Rewards program changes and what they signal for the future of loyalty, alongside a look at how loyalty is evolving beyond retailers, with brands now pushing harder to own the relationship.
We hope you enjoy this month's newsletter! 🦊
So what's been happening in the digital, data & eComm space?
⏱️ 72 hour social horizon: Publicis-TikTok research shows brands are on a hamster wheel chasing short-lived trends. New research shows TikTok trends in Australia now have a median lifespan of just three days, with over half disappearing within a week. Instead of trying to react in real time, brands are being pushed to rethink their approach. The opportunity is less about chasing every trend, and more about building around cultural relevance, co-creation and participation. The brands that win won’t be the fastest and the loudest, but choose to engage around cultural trends that have greater longevity and momentum.
🤖 New research from the IAB shows that while AI is re-shaping shopper journeys, a trust gap remains, meaning shoppers still value important parts of the more traditional digital path to purchase . Nearly 40% of US shoppers already use AI when shopping, with 64% discovering new products through those sessions. But only 46% fully trust the recommendations, meaning most still validate elsewhere before buying. AI is proving its value in discovery and consideration, but not yet at the point of conversion. The opportunity is clear, but so is the gap. Visibility is increasing, but trust, accuracy and data quality will ultimately determine what gets chosen - meaning retailers can breathe a slight sigh of relief.
🌯 Uber delivery partnership drives Guzman y Gomez sales growth. Guzman y Gomez reported 19.5% growth, with delivery playing a key role in their growth, driven by a focused partnership with Uber Eats. Rather than spreading across platforms, they’ve prioritised consistency and integration. Delivery is now a core part of the experience. Being everywhere matters less than executing well in the right place, though profitability remains the tension in a pay to play model.
🔒 Privacy watchdog crack down as Big Tech collects up to 72M data points on a child; Targeted ads, third-party tracking in firing line as rules hit banks, retailers, AI platforms . Australia is moving into enforcement on age restrictions, with fines of up to $49.5 million on the table. New privacy rules will also extend to retail and AI platforms, tightening how child data is collected and used. The implication is broader accountability across the ecosystem, with less reliance on third-party targeting and a growing emphasis on trust.
🧠 New research from Jaywing shows Amazon capturing around 42% brand visibility in AI-powered retail search across categories like Electronics and Home & Living, outperforming JB H-Fi and Harvey Norman, highlighting the growing advantage of scale in AI-driven discovery. But local players still hold ground in grocery with Woolworths and Coles combining for ~45% share of visibility. AI visibility is now being influenced by a broader mix of signals - reviews, forums, social and publisher content - and is highly selective, often surfacing only a handful of brands per query. With nearly 70% of searches showing transactional intent, and traditional search declining, visibility in these answers is becoming a battleground for retailers.
A few interesting moves out of the UK from Tesco this month, signalling how quickly the retailer is reshaping both in-store experience and digital shopping behaviour…
🛒 Tesco’s rich data shows quick commerce shoppers are focussed on category not brand when shopping. In a recent episode of the Unpacking the Digital Shelf podcast, the Head of Retail Media for Tesco revealed that the quick commerce shopper journey is distinct from the planned shop and provides a real opportunity for brands to drive trial. For faster missions like one-hour delivery, Tesco is seeing up to 50% new-to-brand purchases, with many shoppers searching by category to fulfil their need in the moment, trading convenience for brand preference. This challenges brands to think about role of channel beyond scale. Emerging channels like quick commerce might not be highly profitable or deliver volume, but if they drive new acquisition to the brand, then they fulfil a very valuable and different role in the channel mix.
🛒 Tesco is the first UK supermarket to ditch traditional barcodes on food | Metro News. Tesco is trialling 2D barcodes that unlock richer product information through a single scan. They turn packaging into a gateway to deeper content and engagement, beyond what fits on pack. The digital shelf now extends into store, where the quality of what sits behind the code, being the product data, will influence how products are understood, compared and selected.
🍽️ 'Changing the way we shop': Tesco launches AI-powered meal planner trial - Inside Retail Australia. Tesco is trialling an AI assistant that builds meals and generates baskets based on need states like recipes or dietary preferences. It leans into more mission-led shopping, driving exploration and new-to-basket behaviour. Visibility will depend less on search and more on how well products show up in the moment of decision.
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✍️ our latest insights
Starbucks accelerates rewards & elevates status in loyalty program re-vamp
For years, Starbucks has been the benchmark for what a successful loyalty program looks like. When brands start thinking about loyalty, Starbucks is usually the example they reference. A program that doesn’t just reward customers, but actively shapes behaviour, driving frequency, habit and long-term value.
Loyalty isn’t just for retailers - brands want a slice of the pie
When most people think about loyalty, they picture supermarket points, coffee rewards or airline miles and small perks that add up over time like $10 off your shop, your 7th coffee free, or patiently waiting for those frequent flyer points to pay off.
🔎 inside digital & ecommerce report 2026
If you’ve been following along, you’ll know we’ve been running our annual Inside Digital & eCommerce survey with Six Degrees Executive.
A huge thank you to our partners Six Degrees Executive and our sponsors Bloomreach, Amperity, and Salsify for making this year’s report possible.
The 2026 report launches on the 3rd of June. This year’s study focuses on retail and brands (consumer and industrial) and we’ll be bringing all of the insights through a series of videos, articles and more.
Make sure you’re following me on LinkedIn to stay across the launch and key takeaways as they drop.
If you’d like to get early access, you can pre-register to download the report below.
📈 chart of the month
New research from Ipsos shows growing tension between trust and monetisation in AI search. While AI is increasingly influencing purchase decisions and driving high-converting traffic, many consumers remain sceptical of how results are presented.
63% of US adults say ads in AI search results would make them trust those results less.
There is already a trust gap when it comes to AI, and introducing ads risks widening it further. At the same time, these platforms are becoming more influential in driving purchase decisions, creating a tension between commercialisation and credibility as they move closer to transaction.
🔗 what we’re reading
✍🏼 From smarter shelves to retail theatre: five in-store tech bets that are actually changing shops | Retail Gazette
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Whether it’s defining or clarifying strategy, upskilling through training, or inspiring new ideas through thought leadership, we meet you where you are and support you in making things happen.
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