Hands-on review: Best Buy's Twelpforce

by James Bickers — Editor, Networld Alliance

The electronics retailer is using Twitter to connect customers to an army of tech experts. How well does it work?

Study: Attractive store personnel could 'put off shoppers'

by James Bickers — Editor, Networld Alliance

August 16, 2009

While conventional wisdom suggests that you want attractive, well-groomed people staffing the aisles and counters of your retail establishment, a new study…

London retailer puts shoplifter photos on its web site

by James Bickers — Editor, Networld Alliance

August 16, 2009

Home Bargains, which operates 190 discount stores throughout the United Kingdom, is taking a rather drastic step in combating theft: it is uploading CCTV…

Breaking retail's addiction to discounting

When retailers emphasize price above all else, everybody loses. Author Kate Newlin offers some alternatives to "okay, available and cheap."

Luxury retailers need to personalize the online experience

by James Bickers — Editor, Networld Alliance

August 13, 2009

Shopping a luxury retailer is a singular experience — the setting, the products, the (hopefully) excellent service. But most of those things go away when…

Warner Bros. follows other studios' lead, pulls new releases from redbox

August 13, 2009

According to the L.A. Times, Warner Bros. has joined Universal Studios and 20th Century Fox in the fight against redbox. The Time Warner-owned studio announced…

Webinar to show how self-service can benefit retailers in tough times

August 13, 2009

Retail Customer Experience will host a free webinar this Tuesday at 2:00 PM eastern time, titled "Implementing self service to gain a competitive advantage in…

Thomas Pink, Warehouse merge channels with BT

by James Bickers — Editor, Networld Alliance

August 12, 2009

British luxury shirt maker Thomas Pink and high-street retailer Warehouse have implemented the BT Expedite multi-channel solution to link their online and…

Thinking beyond traditional retail packaging

How retailers are mixing packaging with interactive technology to connect with consumers.

Hilo Hattie goes live with MICROS-Retail POS/merchandising solution

by James Bickers — Editor, Networld Alliance

August 12, 2009

Hilo Hattie Fashion Centers, a Hawaiian retailer of apparel and merchandise, announced that it has completed roll-out of an end-to-end POS and merchandising…

Cisco Digital Signage Video Data Sheet

Cisco Digital Signage provides scalable, centralized management and publishing of high-quality content to networked, on-premise digital signage displays.

Deloitte reports consumer spending up for second straight month

by James Bickers — Editor, Networld Alliance

August 11, 2009

A year or two ago it would have seemed meager, but today it feels like reason for celebration: Consumer spending went up in July, the second straight month of…

Walmart emphasizing 'endcaps on steroids'

by James Bickers — Editor, Networld Alliance

August 11, 2009

Retailers are reclaiming their endcaps, traditionally used by brands to merchandise their products in thematic fashion. Recent months have seen a greater…

Coca-Cola vending machine marries self-service and digital signage

Anthony Phillips, global marketing manager for Coca-Cola, demonstrates the company's new vending machine technology. Video is courtesy Lions Daily News.

Taming the loyalty card beast

by James Bickers — Editor, Networld Alliance

New tools — both high-tech and low-tech — aim to liberate loyalty cards from the key chain.

Research: Most consumers will pay more for a good experience

by James Bickers — Editor, Networld Alliance

August 9, 2009

Research firm Strativity Group has released the findings of its "2009 Customer Experience Consumer Study."

Microsoft unveils retail store logo

by James Bickers — Editor, Networld Alliance

August 9, 2009

Late last month, Microsoft filed an application with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office to protect the image you see at the right. The class status for the…

Why good customer service is like billiards

Retail Doc Bob Phibbs explains why customer service staff need to scatter around the customer, like pool balls reacting to the cue.

Breaking down Arbitron's Out-of-Home Digital Video Display Study 2009

August 6, 2009

Yesterday, Arbitron released the 2009 version of its Out-of-Home Digital Video Display Study to the industry, with much attention coming from the finding that…

Best Buy turns Sunday circulars into interactive 3D demos

by James Bickers — Editor, Networld Alliance

August 6, 2009

Electronics retailer Best Buy has quietly unveiled a new interactive domain, www.BestBuyin3D.com, which turns the company's Sunday circulars into impressive…