The FODcast
The FODcast
Tim Roedel and James Hodges
Why E-Commerce Won’t Win on Best Practices Alone with Rob Hoekman
54 minutes Posted Feb 5, 2026 at 9:00 am.
Guest Intro And Background
What’s Exciting In Digital Commerce
Killing Buzzwords: Omnichannel And Journeys
Empathy Lab’s Origin And Role
Commerce Commoditised And Sea Of Sameness
Replatforming Cycles And 2026 Shift
Differentiation: Pre‑ And Post‑Purchase
Defining Phygital Beyond Gadgets
Ubiquitous Or Total Commerce Explained
Making Products Legible To Agents
Agent To Site, Brand Agents, And A2A
Data Products, Content Costs, And Utility
Social And Live Commerce: East vs West
TikTok’s Fit And Closing Thoughts
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Show notes
“We’re kind of drowning in a sea of sameness.” That’s how Rob Hoekman, Senior Director of Experience Consulting at Empathy Lab by EPAM describes the state of ecommerce today. On this week’s episode of The FODcast, our CEO Tim and Rob unpack how decades of optimisation and best practice have led to convergence - in platforms, patterns and experiences - and why differentiation is getting harder, not easier. They explore: How ecommerce capability has become commoditisedWhy replatforming now de...