Blogs

"I hate coupons!"

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

This from a woman who's been clipping coupons most of her life. What raised this angry cry?

The best way to feel a brand is to hear it

by Mark Murray — Director, The Store Channel

As we're all shopping (or perhaps "auditing") stores filled with the sounds of the season, it's a good time to talk sound. Believe me when I tell you - sound…

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RIM's only road back: Building an iPhone killer

by Aaron Shapiro — CEO, HUGE

Once upon a time, Research in Motion was the world's leading smartphone company. Armies of executives were loyal to their "crackberries." It had a stock price…

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Does Wall Street go Krogering?

by Lisa Biank Fasig — Director, JZMcBride and Associates

Are stock analysts loyal Kroger customers? Perhaps they would be if they could be.

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What customers really remember from the holidays

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

Long after the holiday and the online deals and big box sales, it's the shopping experiences that most customers remember.

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Is your marketing magnetic?

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

An interesting fact about magnets is that they can either attract or repel other magnets depending upon their polarity. Marketing also has the ability to…

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Klout vs. Clout: Both are important to your business

by Kimberly Nasief — President, Measure Consumer Perspectives

I'd like to tell you a story about a friend of mine — and a business that did her wrong.

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25 things your employees should never do during the holidays

by Bob Phibbs — CEO, The Retail Doctor

The holidays are almost here so I've revised my list of blunt reminders for both staff and owners of specialty retailers. Unless you stop them from happening…

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ShopWith.It may be a hit this holiday shopping season

by Annamaria Turano — Executive Director, MCAworks

A new, free social media app launched today, Dec 1st, taking shopping-and-socializing to a new level in the digital world. The ShopWith.It app promises to be…

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Are you overlooking what your customers are looking over?

by Harry Friedman

Most retailers spend a great deal of time making their stores visually appealing. Whether your merchandising style projects an opulent, prestigious image, or a…

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Price-matching guarantees

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

Target's third quarter profits are up 3.7 percent according to Andria Cheng in her MarketWatch article, Target profit rises better-than-expected, in the Wall…

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If you build it, they will come. Really.

by Paul Flanigan — Founder, The Preset Group

When Mark Zuckerberg was developing Facebook, he knew it would resonate with people who wanted an alternative to MySpace. He knew that a great platform for…

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Bathrooms: More than meets the eye

by Kimberly Nasief — President, Measure Consumer Perspectives

I recently saw an article online — "How the Restroom Symbolizes Your Whole Operation" — about sustainability and hygiene in the workplace, but it started me…

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Do you believe customers are an asset, or a cost center?

by Jeanne Bliss — Founder, CustomerBliss

With only one retail location, Zane's Cycles of Connecticut is one of the three largest bike shops in the United States. They sell $15 million each year in…

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What if your cash register could count people and not just cash?

by Mike Wittenstein — Customer Experience and Service Designer, Storyminers

Since the invention of the cash register by James Ritty in 1879, shopkeepers have been using the device to count cash. With the interconnectivity that today's…

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Black Friday to Cyber Monday: How low can the extreme shopping go?

by Jeff Weidauer — Vice President, Marketing & Strategy, Vestcom International, Inc.

Just about every news story this Monday morning contained statistics relating to the health—or lack thereof—of the economy based on how much we shopped over…

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Wanted: Impulse-buy killer

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

I entered my favorite office supply store looking for paper for my inkjet printer. As good fortune would have it they had it on sale — buy 2 reams get 1 free.

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Best Buys are after five in Fox Point

by Lisa Biank Fasig — Director, JZMcBride and Associates

Disenchanted employees of Target, Best Buy and other retailers who are facing the prospect of working Thanksgiving evening — and we mean all evening — should…

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