The Monocle team spent Q1 deep in conversation with ecommerce leaders ranging from the expo floors at NRF, eTail West, and Shoptalk to private dinners and partner meetups across the country.

During every interaction, we kept hearing the same themes being discussed: Personalization, retention, and discounting still rule the conversation, but the way brands are approaching them is evolving quickly.

Here are four questions we’re consistently discussing, and how they’re shaping the way we think about the rest of 2025.

1. Where is AI Personalization Headed in Ecommerce?

Personalization is quickly shifting toward conversations that are more nuanced and human. If it isn’t taking place in real-time and based on actual behavior, customers can tell and feel like they’re talking to a robot.

Brands have data on plenty of attributes unique to individual customers. For example, coffee brands know that a single customer prefers medium roast, in K-cup format, and has purchased it multiple times. What they’re struggling with is how to make use of that data on a 1:1 level without investing additional manual resources.

The question becomes, how do brands remove customers from segments called “Medium roast, K-cup, Multiple purchases, Cross-sell opportunity” and speak to them in a human tone and voice?

The solution isn’t just ecommerce personalization, it’s customer journey automation powered by smart, contextual inputs. And increasingly, it’s being delivered through AI-powered marketing tools that understand when and how to speak to each individual, not the average of a group.

2. What Retention Marketing Strategies can Improve Customer Lifetime Value in 2025?

Instead of pouring more dollars into top-of-funnel campaigns, ecommerce teams are investing in personalized retention strategies: smarter winback flows, preemptive churn offers, and fresh ways to increase lifetime value.

Empowering marketing teams to leverage AI to handle the day-to-day isn’t just about saving time. Humans simply don’t have the capacity to look as wide or deep as AI can to create custom segments or evaluate online shopping behavior. This allows marketers to focus on their overall strategy instead of getting caught in the technical weeds.

The most engaging brands we talked to see their customer retention strategy as a key growth engine, not just a place to send a few emails and hope customers repurchase. That shift is real, and it’s reshaping how growth teams think about email, SMS, and the role of AI in marketing automation.

3. How are Ecommerce Brands Using AI for Real Marketing Impact?

Having just returned from Shoptalk last week, we can say with confidence the AI presence was loud, but not just buzzy. It felt significantly more grounded this year.

Brands are still cautious that 9 out of 10 booths they walk past are bragging about something AI related. But the smart marketing teams are increasingly open to tools that use AI to actually make their jobs easier and allow them to be more productive.

From dynamic content to lifecycle messaging to customer segmentation, there’s interest in AI agents that save time, scale outputs, or deliver more personalized offers without adding headcount. Because let’s be honest, who has the budget for headcount these days?

4. Is There a Better Alternative to Blanket Promotions?

Nearly every conversation included some version of brands stuck in discount loops they can't easily exit.

The deep promotions that worked in 2021 became the new normal; however, they’re finding when trying to pull back, conversions drop fast. Fortunately, everyone knows this model isn’t sustainable. Unfortunately, no one knows where to turn for help.

What’s clear is that breaking the discount habit requires more than just cutting discount codes. It calls for strategic testing, better targeting, and AI-powered discounts that adjust to unique customers, not blanket 20% offs for everyone.

Shameless plug, Monocle was built to solve exactly this: AI-powered, 1:1 discounting to increase conversions and save you profit margin.

How is Monocle helping brands act on these trends in Q2–Q4?

These weren’t just surface-level conversations, we heard real tension points and real momentum from brands trying to evolve.

Our biggest takeaway is ecommerce teams want tools that help them move fast, stay profitable, and make customers feel seen. If you’re thinking the same way, reach out to us today, we’d love to talk with you.