Does Starbucks’ new free Wi-Fi offer really raise the loyalty bar?

by Sharon Goldman — Senior Director, COLLOQUY

No one who loves Starbucks doesn’t love the fact that they’re now offering free Wi-Fi in its over 6500 locations, right?  My question is: How much will this…

Why Your Best Managers Have To Drink

by Bob Phibbs — CEO, The Retail Doctor

Driver personalities are the natural leaders.  When they are second-guessed, their motives and methods questioned and they are not allowed to shine, or made to…

Flying Blind

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

How FTD lost a customer for life

by James Bickers — Editor, Networld Alliance

My heart sank yesterday morning when I went to check my Facebook feed and saw this message from a friend:

The Mayor of Starbucks, or just your average coffee addict

by Sharon Goldman — Senior Director, COLLOQUY

Drink a lot of Starbucks? Now you can become the “Mayor” of Starbucks in your town, thanks to the popular Foursquare application — and as a loyal customer…

Dollars and Sentiments. The Real R.O.I. on Social Marketing

by Doug Stephens — President, Retail Prophet Consulting

With the rush to social marketing, some companies are falling prey to a few common pitfalls that are ultimately derailing their success.  In this article…

Discounting During Peak Season

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

Curves: Lessons in Creating a Community

by Annamaria Turano — Executive Director, MCAworks

One summer, not too long ago, I joined a 2nd gym as I was out of town most weekends.  A charming low-frills outpost of Curves. 

June Quote

by Mike Wittenstein — Customer Experience and Service Designer, Storyminers

Behind every great customer experience is a great employee experience.

The Value of Employee Experience

by Mike Wittenstein — Customer Experience and Service Designer, Storyminers

Now is the time to focus on all aspects of your employee experience. 

Fuel perks plus retail equals savvy loyalty play

by Sharon Goldman — Senior Director, COLLOQUY

With an economy that is recovering slowly and still keeping millions of Americans unemployed and in a recession-based, purse-strings-tightening mode, it’s…

Want to Increase Demand?

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

Rite Aid uses health/wellness loyalty benefits to stand out

by Sharon Goldman — Senior Director, COLLOQUY

Since I began writing the COLLOQUY cover stories in August, 2009 (have you seen the most recent, Transformers?) I’ve realized that there is a certain point…

Zappos takes the high road once again, bites a $1.6 million bullet

by James Bickers — Editor, Networld Alliance

For some companies, a mistake is an opportunity to shirk responsibilities and start passing blame around (*cough* BP *cough* Transocean), but for others, it is…

The War for Market Share

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

...watch the Verizon and AT&T ads. For years Verizon has been hammering AT&T with its coverage map, almost with impunity.  Finally, AT&T is…

Should You Recruit Gay Men To Sell Your Merch? Maybe

by Bob Phibbs — CEO, The Retail Doctor

The Expressive is the spark-plug to your crew. They are the one that adds color, excitement and fun. Is that a gay thing? No, Bob Phibbs says it is an…

Premium Prices: How High Can You Go?

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

Privacy Is Dead... And It Could Be Great

by Doug Stephens — President, Retail Prophet Consulting

Facebook recent announcement about its intentions to collect and store personal data has privacy advocates up in arms.  But could the move actually vastly…

The difference between customer experience and customer service

by James Bickers — Editor, Networld Alliance

"Customer experience" remains a nebulous term for many people, akin to when Supreme Court Justice Potter Stewart admitted that he couldn't define what made…

Let's Call Customer Service Counters What They Are: Damage Control

by Bob Phibbs — CEO, The Retail Doctor

Customer service to me happens prior to the sale. Damage control is what happens after. Frequently it is run by people dis-empowered to do anything but cut…