Dive Brief:

• Macy’s has expanded its relationship with brand commerce agency Madras Global for creative automation across its e-commerce platform, according to a news release provided to Marketing Dive. Portions of this work had been previously handled by Madras' sister company 2adpro since 2011. 
• Madras will work with Macy’s internal teams to provide high-volume digital advertising and marketing services, including retouching, email and site content for the full Macy’s and Macys.com portfolio. A key focus of the deal is helping the retailer create and manage more than 9 million product images that run annually across the website, promotions and landing pages.
• Macy’s will have access to Madras’ strategic and creative teams and the company’s platform, called JDX, to allow for dynamic workflow and asset management collaboration. “Our always on approach to marketing with the goal of creating customized and relevant connections with our customers will be further enabled by the scalability and speed of delivery that Madras brings to the table," said Chuck Hansen, group vice-president, marketing operations for Macy’s, in a statement.  

Dive Insight:

Automation across marketing functions continues to grow, with creative one important area of focus, as the Macy's news shows. That the retailer is expanding an existing relationship points to how some bricks-and-mortar are increasing their focus on e-commerce as more consumers browse and purchase online by scaling up strategies that were previously in place. With net sales dropping for Macy's, the retailer Macy’s has been working to grow its e-commerce business and adding tech-focused in-store features to attract younger shoppers. The company also plans to have mobile checkout at all of its stores by the end of the year.

In the digital realm, being able to push out relevant emails and other marketing content as quickly as possible and at scale can help brands drive performance by controlling costs while being more responsive to consumers needs. Global marketing automation spend is projected to reach $25.1 billion by 2023, up from $11.4 billion in 2017, according to Forrester. Fifty-five percent of CMOs are planning to increase spending on marketing technology over the next year. 

Macy's sizable content collection includes social media, where the retailer recenlty redesigned its Instagram feed, launched a page dedicated to men’s fashion and expanded its Style Crew influencer network, which now numbers more than 300. The expanded partnership with Madras will help Macy’s manage its expansive content needs so that it can quickly create and execute scalable digital strategies and content.