Justin Ruiss is the SVP of the Media Sector at BWG Global, a knowledge-sharing network hosting in-person and virtual industry events. In his role, he hosts Q&A forums with executives from various sectors, including social media, advertising, connected TV, streaming, and gaming. Before joining BWG Global, Justin was the Investor Relations Activations Developer at Cision and an Equity Analyst at The Benchmark Company.

Retail media, CTV advertising, and AI-powered search are evolving faster than many brands can adapt. Marketers are grappling with fragmented content strategies, fluctuating CPMs, and uncertainty around how to allocate budgets effectively across platforms. With performance expectations rising and consumer behaviors shifting, how can brands stay competitive without overspending?

According to media and eCommerce analyst Justin Ruiss, now is an ideal time to invest in CTV due to oversupply, lower CPMs, and advanced targeting capabilities. He recommends increasing production budgets to create modular, high-quality content that can be repurposed across channels like TikTok, Amazon, and streaming platforms. Brands can also adopt centralized content planning and leverage tools like Amazon Marketing Cloud to drive enhanced targeting and performance while planning for economic volatility and regulatory changes.

In this episode of TheDigital Deep Dive, Aaron Conant interviews Justin Ruiss, SVP of the Media Sector at BWG Global, about the future of digital media buying and AI in eCommerce. Justin explores CTV trends, the rise of agentic AI, and how brand guidelines shape content in gaming environments.

Kelly Goetsch is the Chief Operating Officer of Pipe17, which specializes in AI-powered composable order operations. Before joining Pipe17, he served as the Chief Strategy Officer at commercetools, where he played a pivotal role in scaling the company to over $100 million in annual recurring revenue. Kelly also co-founded MACH Alliance, a nonprofit industry organization advocating for Microservices, APIs, Cloud-native, and Headless (MACH) technologies.

Customers expect fast fulfillment and delivery across various selling channels, including social media and marketplaces. Traditional systems struggle to keep pace, leaving companies tangled in connectivity issues between their sales, inventory, and fulfillment networks. How can brands deliver seamless, cost-effective experiences while scaling across these fragmented digital touchpoints?

With experience in AI-driven order management, Kelly Goetsch advises brands to adopt a connectivity-first model. This requires integrating a flexible routing layer that connects selling channels, back-office systems, and fulfillment partners, enabling dynamic order flow based on cost, speed, and product needs. Kelly also recommends embracing emerging sales platforms like TikTok and leveraging AI tools to align with how customers discover products, noting that companies must modernize their operations or risk falling behind in today’s competitive landscape.

In today’s episode of The Digital Deep Dive, Aaron Conant speaks with Kelly Goetsch, COO of Pipe17, about reshaping order management for AI-driven shopping. Kelly explains how selling channels have evolved, marketing gaps in midsize brands, and how voice commerce has shaped emerging conversational shopping experiences.

Denis Dyli is the Founder and Principal of Uncap, a Shopify B2B eCommerce agency. He has led the company to become a Shopify Premier Partner, delivering over 350 eCommerce projects and replatforming more than 100 Shopify Plus stores. With over 15 years of experience in eCommerce development and strategy, Denis helps B2B and B2C sellers optimize their eCommerce platforms.

For DTC brands expanding into B2B, legacy platforms can create significant friction. Outdated technology, slow feature deployment, and mounting maintenance costs often hinder growth, especially when buyers expect seamless, digital-first experiences. How can companies modernize their B2B operations to stay competitive and meet evolving customer expectations?

According to digital commerce expert Denis Dyli, DTC brands with Shopify Plus stores can activate B2B capabilities by enabling features like custom pricing, net terms, and B2B storefront templates. He recommends updating themes to support new Shopify accounts and tailoring the logged-in buyer experience to streamline ordering. By leveraging native functionality and apps like Gorgias and Klaviyo, DTC brands can create polished, scalable B2B portals without a complete replatform.

In today’s episode of The Digital Deep Dive, Aaron Conant hosts Denis Dyli, the Founder and Principal of Upcap, to discuss the future of B2B eCommerce on Shopify. Denis talks about digital transformation in the B2B space, B2B companies that would benefit from Shopify’s capabilities, and the impact of tariffs on the digital commerce landscape.

Danny Silverman is the Founder and Digital Strategy and Growth Consultant at Silverstream Strategic Consulting. As a digital commerce executive, he has over two decades of experience in eCommerce, marketing, and general management consulting. Throughout his career, Danny has scaled a digital commerce agency 10x in three years, led marketing efforts for a global SaaS platform, and navigated Amazon’s landscape since 2006.

Recently, eCommerce teams have faced intense pressure from all sides, including organizational flattening, budget cuts, and mandatory AI integrations. Many leaders find themselves stuck in reactive mode, unable to assess strategy, structure, or performance. How can brands stay agile and make informed decisions without getting overwhelmed?

Brands face three common barriers: misaligned go-to-market strategies, outdated marketing tactics, and fragmented organizational design. To regain control and drive profitable growth, seasoned eCommerce strategist Danny Silverman recommends beginning with candid, cross-level interviews to identify hidden challenges before conducting deep data analyses to reveal underlying trends. For mid-sized brands especially, he stresses the importance of empowering decision-makers with budget control and executive sponsorships while leveraging AI tools for content creation and operational efficiency.

In this week’s episode of The Digital Deep Dive, Aaron Conant chats with Danny Silverman, Founder and Digital Strategy and Growth Consultant at Silverstream Strategic Consulting, about adapting organizational structures to an evolving digital landscape. Danny explains how Chief AI Officers are gaining traction amid AI integrations, how Amazon sellers can maintain profitability in a volatile economy, and how he diagnoses structural issues in an organization.

Jon Harding is the Senior Vice President and Global Chief Information Officer at Conair LLC, a multibillion-dollar consumer products company. In his role, he has driven major initiatives, including implementing a global SAP system and other eCommerce platforms. Before joining Conair, Jon held senior leadership IT roles at Kellogg Company, where he spearheaded enterprise system transformations across Europe and the US. In 2023, he was recognized as the New York CIO of the Year in the enterprise category.

Enterprise IT leaders are often expected to maintain flawless systems while simultaneously driving innovation. As digital tools evolve, companies must adopt new technologies while avoiding disruption and risk. How can organizations balance innovation with stability and strategic alignment?

When managing IT transformation at the enterprise level, veteran technology executive Jon Harding recommends aligning tech initiatives with clear business outcomes rather than chasing the latest trends. This requires initiating early cross-functional collaboration in tech planning, focusing on change management, stakeholder buy-in, and long-term thinking. To integrate AI efficiently, Jon suggests prioritizing high-ROI use cases like customer support automation and content creation while maintaining governance and budget control.

In this week’s episode of The Digital Deep Dive, Aaron Conant talks with Jon Harding, the Senior Vice President and Global CIO at Conair, about enterprise-level tech stack innovation and digital transformation. Jon shares change management strategies, vendor selection considerations, and the future of enterprise advisory work.

Hannah Blackburn is the Co-founder and Director of The Hawkers Club, a company that helps vendors and sellers solve their most pressing challenges and navigate eCommerce marketplaces, including Amazon and Target. In her role, Hannah advises online sellers and vendors on how to directly position their brands and value offerings as Amazon partners to increase profitability and revenue.

Before co-founding The Hawkers Club, she joined Amazon as a brand specialist with an initial focus on vendor excellence and marketing before transitioning to stock management and profitability. Since she’s written the business logic powering some of the algorithms that run Amazon, Hannah knows how you can systematically make profitable decisions that Amazon’s algorithms reward.

Recent sweeping changes to how Amazon Vendor Central calculates and processes chargebacks, shortages, and overbilling have left many brands scrambling to adjust their internal processes and preserve cash flow. What do these updates entail, and how can vendors stay ahead of the curve?

Former Amazon insider Hannah Blackburn explains that overbilling calculations have shifted from “distributor shipment” to “Amazon payables,” potentially reducing double billing and improving predictability if brands adapt quickly. Brands must now track and forecast co-op charges based on expected payments rather than shipments. Additionally, Amazon no longer accepts bulk aged shortages, so brands should track aging internally and file disputes for shortages immediately. Hannah maintains that staying proactive prevents long-term revenue loss under Amazon’s new conditions.

In this episode of the Digital Deep Dive, Aaron Conant welcomes Hannah Blackburn, the Co-founder and Director of The Hawkers Club, back to the show to discuss Amazon’s evolving Vendor Central policies. Hannah talks about rising packaging chargebacks, updated dispute workflows, and how to protect future chargeback recoveries.

Charlie Cole is the President of XGEN AI, a composable AI platform for eCommerce. As a seasoned eCommerce executive, he has over two decades of experience leading digital transformations for global brands. Before XGEN AI, Charlie served as the CEO at Tribute Technology and FTD and held leadership positions at Samsonite and TUMI, where he drove significant digital growth.

Online commerce search has long frustrated both brands and consumers. Whether it's typing in a detailed query and getting zero results or sifting through hundreds of irrelevant products, traditional search engines can’t keep up with consumers’ evolving shopping habits. As search behavior evolves and expectations rise, how can brands deliver a shopping experience that feels intuitive, personal, and helpful?

According to digital executive and eCommerce operator Charlie Cole, generative AI presents unique opportunities for search personalization. These tools can understand natural language, learn from user behavior, and surface relevant results — even for complex, descriptive queries. Charlie urges companies to invest in technologies that apply AI image recognition, contextual search, and predictive merchandising. By focusing on genuine customer needs and creating frictionless, conversational experiences, brands can drive loyalty and revenue.

In the latest episode of The Digital Deep Dive, Aaron Conant speaks with Charlie Cole, the President of XGEN AI, about revolutionizing eCommerce search with generative AI. Charlie discusses the future of search marketing, how to capitalize on industry events like Shoptalk, and how XGEN AI’s platform powers innovative search solutions.

Eric Sheinkop is the CEO of The Desire Company, a platform that connects brands with industry experts to create high-quality, conversion-focused video content. With a background in entertainment marketing, Eric co-founded Music Dealers, a pioneering music licensing platform that partnered with global brands like Coca-Cola, McDonald’s, and Disney. He is also an author, speaker, and thought leader in content strategy, recognized in Billboard’s 30 Under 30 and Crain’s Tech 50 list.

In today’s fast-moving digital landscape, brands face the challenge of creating high-quality, scalable content that converts. While influencer marketing and UGC once seemed like the answer, new FTC regulations and diminishing returns have left brands searching for a more effective approach. How can businesses generate content that builds trust and drives sales — without constantly reinventing the wheel?

According to brand partnerships and content strategy thought leader Eric Sheinkop, expert-driven content — featuring real professionals who use the brand’s product in their field — builds consumer trust and confidence at the point of sale. By investing in evergreen, professionally produced videos optimized for various digital platforms, brands can increase conversion rates, reduce returns, and enhance the customer experience. Eric also emphasizes the importance of aligning content strategy with new FTC regulations to ensure compliance and credibility while maximizing digital marketing efforts.

Tune in to this week’s episode of The Digital Deep Dive as Aaron Conant chats with Eric Sheinkop, CEO of The Desire Company, about the next evolution of digital content. Eric shares how AI-driven shopping assistants can reshape brand loyalty, how to create cohesive, story-driven content, and the new FTC regulations on influencer and UGC content.