Grocery chain requires self-checkout

by Cherryh Cansler — Publisher, FastCasual.com

A grocery chain focused on self-service is expanding throughout California, Arizona and Nevada. Apparently, the Fresh & Easy Neighborhood Market, a…

'Extreme Couponing' should give retailers, brands and tech providers nightmares

by James Bickers — Editor, Networld Alliance

I'm normally loathe to go anywhere near reality television — and has there ever been a more dishonest or inaccurate label for a genre than that one? — but I…

How to sell luxury products without discounting

by Bob Phibbs — CEO, The Retail Doctor

Do you have a luxury product to sell? I'm not talking a good or better version of something you could find at some dollar store. I'm talking the best.Selling…

Buying customer loyalty: Does it ever work?

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

Can we really buy customer loyalty? If not, what are we really buying?To answer these questions we need to define loyalty. Loyal customers:

Luxury Isn't Social

by Doug Stephens — President, Retail Prophet Consulting

I've read a number of articles recently commenting on the conspicuous lack of social marketing in the luxury sector. While it's also true that participation in…

Charming Shoppers in all Sizes

by Lisa Biank Fasig — Director, JZMcBride and Associates

Lost in the recent news about Charming Shoppes closing 10 percent of its stores is whether this decision will have any bearing on its loyalty…

Could Amazon's Cloud Drive be an iTunes killer?

by James Bickers — Editor, Networld Alliance

I've been an avid customer of Amazon's MP3 download service ever since it launched a few short years ago, but there's always been one major shortcoming that…

Is it Time to Drop the 'e' from e-Commerce?

by Jason Goldberg — VP Marketing, MTI

Most e-commerce executives are focused on online sales, even though their actual contribution to the organization is far broader. In order to maximize the…

Experiment on customers to get more from your self-service pilot

In our house, spring means two things: Chicago Cubs baseball and the school Science Fair. As I was helping my son sort out whether or not a cheese sandwich…

What great looks like

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

Over the last few weeks I've had the opportunity to work with some great retailers. Of course I'm biased, but I also see the very things that make them great.

Discounting in the off season: Good strategy or slippery slope?

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

In one of my earlier blogs I dealt with the folly of discounting during peak selling season. I guess it was inevitable that I was asked, "What about the off…

Check out this Checkout: RFID-enabled kiosks deliver more than just a cool factor

Now more than ever, retailers are focusing on the customer experience at the point-of-sale in order to provide the best service possible to increasingly…

Tayloring for Everyone

by Lisa Biank Fasig — Director, JZMcBride and Associates

Holy pencil skirt! It looks like Ann Taylor might actually be too small for its "Julie"-cut trousers.

Netflix, Amazon, redbox don't need to lose sleep over this new competitor

by James Bickers — Editor, Networld Alliance

This week, a very strange service is coming out of beta, a service that is taking on entertainment giants like Netflix and redbox with a business model that…

Giving to Tell About It

by Lisa Biank Fasig — Director, JZMcBride and Associates

If a company makes a charitable donation and there aren't any news outlets to report it, does the contribution still count?I was again forced to ask this…

Apple praised for its role in helping the people of Japan

by James Bickers — Editor, Networld Alliance

Kevin Rose, the founder of Digg and a technology angel investor, published on his blog an email he received from an Apple employee in Japan. It tells a story…

Marketing and 'the wrong hero'

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

Marketing messages must be great stories ... about the true hero.I wish I could remember the source of this elegant language for the person certainly deserves…

Honor What Customers Care About

by Jeanne Bliss — Founder, CustomerBliss

CustomInk is a $70 million T-shirt shop that prints custom T-shirts for family reunions and group and business events. Because actual people at CustomInk…

A sweet rewards program

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

I'm not a big fan of traditional loyalty programs although I do belong to multiple grocery and drugstore programs. And that's exactly why I'm not a fan. If…

Starbucks 40th Anniversary

by Jim Joseph — President, Lippe Taylor

When Starbucks announced its new logo earlier this year, they said that it was just the start of something big. We got all a twitter about it, but I for one…