Good morning, eComm legend.

Running an online store lately feels like trying to fix a printer mid-Zoom call. Things break, buttons don’t work, and nobody knows where that weird plugin came from (but it’s definitely haunted).

And apparently, we’re all in the same sinking kayak. A new report says most stores are being held together by luck and vibes. Checkout’s a mess. Updates feel like a full ritual. Integrations feel like blind dating apps with commitment issues.

We’re building tools to fix this—and we’re opening early access, for free. If you’re tired of duct tape fixes, want 100s of real-time funnel teardowns, and access our Growth Lab—join our waitlist. We’re building something for the ones who want to scale.

In today’s agenda:

1) New report: Duct tape commerce isn’t a growth strategy.

2) New Adobe AI agents = A/B test till you drop 🧪

3) Your Shopify just got a sales rep 💰

4) Amazon + Adobe = 💕

1) New report: Duct tape commerce isn’t a growth strategy.

A new report from Elastic Path just dropped and—spoiler—it’s a little bleak. 93% of businesses said their tech stack is the reason they’re not thriving online. If your checkout feels like a Nokia loading screen and your backend is held together by sheer willpower and a forgotten plugin from 2016, yeah, this is about you. (Also me, last year. Let’s not talk about it.)

Integration chaos mode: Half of the respondents said integrations make them want to scream into a void. APIs are a mess. Connecting platforms feels like assembling IKEA furniture with missing screws (and no manual). And 32% said their systems are so rigid they need custom dev work for basic updates. If you’re duct-taping Klaviyo, Shopify, and your cousin’s homegrown inventory tool together... you already know.

Fix it in pieces: You don’t need a total overhaul (unless you enjoy burning cash like it’s 2011 and you just discovered bottle service). Start here:

• Audit where it hurts—like manual tagging, clunky returns, or inventory checks done via vibes—and estimate the time or revenue they’re costing. Tools like Parabola (works great with Shopify) let you visualize workflows and surface bottlenecks without needing a PhD in spreadsheets

• Use Make.com or Zapier to automate repetitive stuff (like syncing orders to Google Sheets for your frazzled accountant). Yes, it works with Shopify, Woocommerce, and many, many more platforms.

• Try out headless checkout tools like Shogun Frontend or Swell for speed boosts without wrecking your stack

• Invest in AI SEO tools like Surfer or Clearscope instead of writing “cozy candle” fifty times and calling it a day

• Add Rebuy or Loop Subscriptions if retention is your weak spot (hint: it probably is)

It’s not just you: Most orgs agree they’re not doing digital commerce well. 95% said they need to level up, but many don’t have the budget for a full glow-up. That’s fine. You can still get wins by tweaking instead of rebuilding. Start small, pick the ugliest part of your stack (hi, shipping plugin that hasn’t worked since Thanksgiving), and replace that. Like exfoliating one pore at a time.

Sources: digitalcommerce360.com

2) New Adobe AI agents = A/B test till you drop 🧪

Adobe just dropped a squad of AI agents into Experience Cloud like it’s Mission Impossible, but with fewer explosions and more personalization. These aren’t your average Clippy-style assistants. They actually do things. Like analyze, predict, optimize and sometimes even make you look like you slept eight hours (lol, we know you didn’t).

Journey Optimizer glow-up: A new module in Adobe Journey Optimizer called Experimentation Accelerator now tests your campaigns like it’s training for a UFC title fight. This AI buddy scans all your past experiments (even the embarrassing ones that tanked CTR) and spits out what’s worth testing next. It’ll tell you to A/B test that cart abandonment email before you commit to a new hero image, and yes, it remembers when you sent three push notifications in an hour (never again).

Your tactical survival kit (if you are already using Experience Cloud):
Here’s what you should actually do with this stuff:

• Use Adobe Journey Optimizer to run experiments based on actual data, not gut vibes

• Let the Experimentation Agent reCommend tweaks (subject lines, CTAs, the works)

• In Adobe Target, test them with traffic splits that won’t wreck your whole funnel

• Feed the learnings into future campaigns (yes, it does that part too—magical)

• Rinse, repeat, brag on LinkedIn about your “data-driven agile marketing loop” (that’s what we’re calling it now)

Adobe’s not trying to be your new best friend—but if it helps you hit 15% higher conversion with one-click fixes and smarter campaign testing, maybe it can at least be your cool, emotionally unavailable marketing co-pilot.

Sources: adobe.com

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3) Your Shopify just got a sales rep 💰

You’re used to the click-fest of eCommerce—tap, scroll, abandon cart, repeat. Nowutalk AI drops in and gives your customers a voice-driven shopping buddy on Shopify. Like, actually talking. Not chatbot-on-latte-mode. It answers, reCommends, and even handles Karen-level objections. It’s giving “retail employee who actually knows what’s in stock,” minus the awkward eye contact.

The sneaky power move: It’s not just voice—it’s data. Every convo gets logged, parsed, and turned into real-time insights. No more guessing why everyone’s buying the same neon hoodie in March (trend-chasing? Impulse? Seasonal depression?). It learns as it talks. Which means over time, it gets scary good at selling (like your cousin who got way too good at Monopoly and now no one plays with him).

How to make it work (do this now, it’s free?!):

• Install from Shopify’s Marketplace (no coding, no drama, no emailing your “developer” who’s been MIA since 2022)

• Let it scan your catalog (it’s like letting a Roomba loose in a cereal aisle—efficient and slightly unsettling)

• Train it with top FAQs and objections (don’t overthink it—start with “Do you have this in black” and “Why is shipping $7”)

• Use the dashboard to track what people actually ask (spoiler: it’s never what your marketing says)

No cape, still helpful: This isn’t a magic bullet (or a chaos gremlin). It’s a tool. A weirdly smart, talkative, always-working tool. If you treat it like an intern who listens and reads analytics, you’ll get the most out of it. If not, well... well. 🤷‍♂️

Sources: nowutalk.ai

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* Executive Cheat Sheet

• Tech Stack: A tech stack is the combination of software tools, platforms, and technologies a company uses to build and run its digital services.

• Headless Checkout: Headless checkout separates the front-end shopping experience from the back-end processing, allowing for faster, more customized online checkouts.

• A/B Testing: A/B testing is a method of comparing two versions of something (like an email or webpage) to see which one performs better based on real user data.

• Customer Data Platform (CDP): A CDP is a system that collects and organizes customer data from various sources to create a unified customer profile for better marketing and personalization.