August 29, 2011
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Posted by
Jenny Mehan
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Last week we saw that back-to-school spending in the U.S. is projected to decrease slightly from 2010. In an effort to boost sales and distinguish themselves from their competitors, a number of brands are using creative and innovative ways to engage with their customers. This is a smart move considering that the meteoric rise in the use of social media, smartphones, and tablets continues to drastically change the shopping process.
In a recent survey by Deloitte, 64% of smartphone users planned to use them as part of the shopping process, primarily to get price information (61%) and to ...
August 19, 2011
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Jenny Mehan
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The cry of “school’s out for summer!!” was still echoing in the halls and the kids had barely started to enjoy the lazy hazy days of summer - and the stores were boldly displaying backpacks, binders, and pencils? It wasn’t your imagination; many retailers and advertisers moved up the start of their back to school campaigns in 2011. Merchants such as Staples, Target, and Toys “R” Us began advertising back to school specials the first week in July, and some retailers began promoting school supplies as early as mid-June.
The National Retail Federation reports that back to school and back to c...
August 2, 2011
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Posted by
Caroline Zenss
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As more and more retailers are exploring and deploying mobile shopping sites, I wanted to shed light on emerging patterns in mobile user experience.
Here are 10 tips to help you define a better experience through layouts, buttons and features that are well-suited for m-commerce. 1.Search.Display it at the top of your mobile home page and make sure it’s prominent. Mobile shoppers are more inclined to search directly for what they are looking for.
2. Mobile Home Page.Keep it short and clean. A fixed width navigation at the top helps welcoming your customers into your mobile site. The main...
July 25, 2011
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Posted by
Jenny Mehan
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Google has released new specifications for e-commerce sites that have their products listed on Google Product Search. The updates are being implemented to make it easier for shoppers to find the information they’re looking for and to send more shoppers to Google merchants.
The following conditions are now mandatory:
• Availability: The availability status of all items must be stated• Google Product Category: Product categories will have to be defined for “Apparel & Accessories”, “Media”, and “Software”• Images: A product image must be submitted• Apparel: Variants such as “Age Group”, ...
July 14, 2011
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Posted by
Antonella Pannizzo
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Koreans have a very busy lifestyle, so when Tesco grocery chain entered the Korean market they needed a way to make life easier for the busy Korean worker. The idea: “let the store come to the people”. Tesco created virtual stores in subway stations that mimic their displays in store. Using smartphones, commuters easily scan the QR code next to the product and add items to their cart. Once they complete their order, it will be delivered to their door. Tesco reports that online sales increased 130%, making them number one online and number two offline.
Tesco created the following video ...
July 6, 2011
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Posted by
Antonella Pannizzo
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Consumers now have a say in fashion production and design. Some brands are now offering consumers the chance to vote on what is produced or designed. By doing this, brands are engaging the shopper and creating demand for products before they are even produced. Large brands like Burberry have recognized the importance of giving their customers the opportunity to be involved in the design process. Burberry launched the Bespoke initiative that allows customers to design their own trench coats, by selecting the pattern and material so that they can create a unique item to their style and taste....
July 5, 2011
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Posted by
Jenny Mehan
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After months of rumor and speculation, Google has unveiled their new social networking service, Google+. This new venture addresses some of the issues and shortcomings of the failed Google Wave. At the moment, it’s only available for select users, but hopefully it will be ready for the general public in the near future. Google+ is going to “make sharing online more like sharing in real life”.
Here’s a quick look at some of the features that help to distinguish Google+ from Facebook.
CirclesCircles allows you to sort friends, family and coworkers into different groupings that ...
June 27, 2011
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Posted by
Antonella Pannizzo
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So just how big is mobile commerce? In a recent report from Forrester, it is estimated that mobile commerce will top $6 billion by the end of 2011, and grow at an annual rate of 39% through to 2016 to $31 billion. This means that by 2016, mobile commerce will still only account for 7% of overall online sales.
And according to a recent survey by eMarketer, the most popular reason for using a smartphone while shopping is to compare prices of products and services (purchasing ranked as least popular reason).
However, while mobile commerce may be a relatively small percentage of online sales...
June 24, 2011
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Posted by
Jenny Mehan
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2011 is looking to become the worst year for cyber attacks. Hacker groups have made declarations of open hostility towards governments, banks, and big corporations. The Brazilian government was the latest in a string of highly publicized international attacks. Other recent victims include Sony’s Playstation Network, the CIA, Fox TV, and the British police. Millions of email addresses were stolen earlier this week, when marketing email provider Epsilon was hacked.
Citigroup was a recent target when thieves used the customer web site to bypass traditional safeguards and impersonate actual cr...
June 16, 2011
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Posted by
Antonella Pannizzo
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Retail e-commerce spending has increased throughout the last few years. At the end of 2008 we saw a decrease in spending due to a declining economy that continued to fall throughout 2009. However, 2010 was a turning point when spending increased and sales grew. According to Internet Retailer, the sales of the Top 500 retailers grew 18% to $150 billion in 2010 from $127.1 billion in 2009. Furthermore, comScore released online spending estimates for Q1 2011, up 12% to $38 billion compared to a year ago. This quarter represented the sixth consecutive quarter of positive gains.
The online ch...
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