Will consumers opt-in for the 'store of the future?'

by Cherryh Cansler — Publisher, FastCasual.com

Motorola Solutions recently launched a variety of solutions to help retailers deliver what it calls the "store of the future." Many of the company's solutions…

Understanding retail's 'third shelf'

by Doug Stephens — President, Retail Prophet Consulting

There have always been two "shelves" in retail. The first can be found in the retail store and is where the product is most often evaluated and ultimately…

Fifty shades of frustration: Why do women hate Best Buy?

It is the Saturday before Father's Day and I'm out shopping. I start to notice women rushing into other stores, but avoiding Best Buy. It is as if there is…

Price addiction: Why retailers are hooked on discounting

by Dale Furtwengler — President, Furtwengler & Associates, P.C.

It never ceases to amaze me how addicted people get to low prices. You probably think I'm talking about buyers, don't you? Well I'm not.

Social relevance as more than a pet project

by Bryan Pearson — President, LoyaltyOne

Today, when merchants consider social media, many think of a few key terms: Listen! Word of mouth! Viral marketing! But the most important consideration to…

How customer service builds brand loyalty

by Peggy Carlaw — VP, Impact Learning Systems

Karen Freeman, Patrick Spenner, and Anna Bird bring up Three Myths About What Customers Want in the HBR Blog Network. These myths are based on information from…

If you don't have a destination, you'll never get there

by Harvey Mackay — Author, Mackay Mitchell

Setting goals is simply the long-term version of keeping track of your time. Actually, a three-step process is involved:

To beat showrooming, change the showroom

by Chris Petersen — Owner, IMS

Almost every other retail headline is about the growing tide of online sales and the rise of mobile shopping. CEA just forecasted that more shoppers will shop…

Lessons learned from the Transit of Venus

by James Tenser — Principal, VSN Strategies

Recently I attended an event that will never be repeated in your or my lifetime. It was a viewing of the transit of the planet Venus across the face of the…

How stress impacts buyer behavior

by Dale Furtwengler — President, Furtwengler & Associates, P.C.

Behavioralists tell us that if you want to know the true nature of a person, observe them in stressful situations. How can we tell when buyers are stressed?

The seven reasons independent retailers go broke

by Bob Phibbs — CEO, The Retail Doctor

When I was first starting my retail consultancy business back in the 90?s, independent retailers dreaded the arrival of retail super chains like Walmart in…

To send or not to send that email? Here is the answer.

by Bryan Pearson — President, LoyaltyOne

When it comes to consumer tolerance, there is a very fine line between email acceptance and inbox madness. At what point do your digital communications cross…

What Amazon's move into luxury apparel really means

by Doug Stephens — President, Retail Prophet Consulting

Internet retail behemoth Amazon has turned a dangerous eye toward the luxury apparel market. Long regarded as more of a clearinghouse for commodity items…

Accelerating your company or store's performance

by Doug Fleener — President and Managing Partner, Dynamic Experiences Group, LLC

accelerate - to cause faster or greater activity, development, progress, advancement, etc., in: to accelerate economic growth.

Buyers behave irrationally

by Dale Furtwengler — President, Furtwengler & Associates, P.C.

Ruti Levy, in her Haaretz.com article "Building blocks of high prices," cited the fact that Israelis are paying 3 to 3.5 times what they would online for…

Brazil: Retail lessons from the land of beef

by Chris Petersen — Owner, IMS

While in much of the world economies and retail are still in recovery mode, Brazil is a bull of an economy. Brazil is bold, brazen and the land of where "beef…

Mobile POS in the age of omni-channel

by John Kenney — SVP, Business Development, Stella Nova Technologies

Five years from now, the least likely place a transaction will be completed is at the cash wrap. In the past, customers and retailers have experienced a single…

You had me at hello, but: What neuromarketing and Big Data miss

I'm a geek. I love big data and ferreting out patterns. Nothing fascinates me more than the burgeoning field of neuromarketing.

Can pricing build trust?

by Dale Furtwengler — President, Furtwengler & Associates, P.C.

As business owners, we instinctively know that trust is essential to our success. The day we lose our customers trust is the day we lose their business. Game…

Staying on your customer's friends list

by Bryan Pearson — President, LoyaltyOne

Many of us strive to be No. 1, but when it comes to social circles, the first task is to make it into the 150.