Are your stores connecting with today's connected Moms?

by Lynn Switanowski — President, Creative Business Consulting Group

With Mother's Day just around the corner, we can't help but think about all the wonderful moms out there who are customers in our favorite retail stores. For…

Does love scale?

by Doug Stephens — President, Retail Prophet Consulting

Wal-Mart recently announced its purchase of social media firm Kosmix to help it better manage and capitalize on its social and mobile marketing efforts. What…

GM's subprime auto loans: Great sales tool, or history repeating itself?

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

General Motors, recognizing that many potential buyers' credit is less than stellar these days and that funding sources aren't readily available, has entered…

Getting customers in your store ... by putting them in the window

by Laurel Tielis — Author and Professional Speaker, Laurel Tielis & Associates

If you've been looking for an easy and inexpensive way to bring in more business, check this out. Taking advantage of people's propensity to sit — at their…

Report: Falling home prices, rising energy costs weigh on consumer purchasing power

April 19, 2011

The Deloitte Consumer Spending Index tumbled in March due to a drop in real home prices and a decline in real wages driven by rising energy prices. The Index…

At Retail: Looking Good, Buying More

by Laurel Tielis — Author and Professional Speaker, Laurel Tielis & Associates

Oscar Wilde phrased it beautifully in "The Picture of Dorian Gray." He wrote, "It is only shallow people who do not judge by appearances." Right or wrong, most…

Imitating your competitor's prices? Here's why that's a bad idea.

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

How do you decide what price to charge? How well is that working?As I sat down to write this post the lyrics of an old Johnny Lee song, "Lookin' for Love,…

Scan This! QR Codes Are History

by Doug Stephens — President, Retail Prophet Consulting

Google recently announced that it is ending both its development and support of QR (Quick Response) codes. QR or 2-D barcodes as they are sometimes called…

Five steps to a shopper-centric proof-of-concept

For a retailer to adopt a shopper-centric approach, it takes more than data, shopper insight and a memo.

Walmart purchases startup Kosmix

April 18, 2011

According to NASDAQ.com, Walmart will acquire Kosmix Corp. to accelerate the company's social and mobile commerce offerings. Terms of the deal were not…

Start a Customer Service War

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

I'm sure you saw that Walmart just launched a new ad campaign that promises "Low Prices. Every Day. On Everything." No doubt the big box stores are going to be…

Your merchandise is NOT like fine wine

by Lynn Switanowski — President, Creative Business Consulting Group

Like most retailers, you probably have a consistent strategy in place for pricing products when they come in. But do you have the same consistent strategy in…

Danger: Strong Economy Ahead

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

Is the recovering economy a blessing, or a potential minefield for retailers?Most business owners are breathing a sigh of relief; they're emerging alive and…

Report: Consumer price transparency threatens localized retail prices

April 14, 2011

According to Benzinga.com, RSR Research, an analyst firm providing market intelligence on retail technology trends, released its latest report, "Optimizing…

Rise of the thrift store shopper provides steady growth in resale industry

by Kim Williams — Reporter, NetWorld Alliance

Are shoppers willing to sacrifice customer experience, service for bargains?

NRF: March retail sales indicate confident, but cautious, consumer

April 12, 2011

According to the National Retail Federation, retail sales in March increased across the board for the ninth straight month. For March, retail industry sales…

Research: Half of Americans with mobile phones using them to shop

Users are comparing prices, reading reviews, downloading coupons and making purchases on their phones.

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…

Webinar discusses integration of contact center, social and web interactions

April 6, 2011

According to a recent Harris Research poll, 85 percent of consumers said they would be willing to pay anywhere from 5 to 25 percent more than regular price if…

NRF: Spending on food, gifts and apparel expected to increase this Easter

April 6, 2011

Not since 1943 have Americans seen an Easter fall this late in the calendar, but it seems the delayed holiday won't impact consumers' eagerness to spend on…