Why you need to put yourself in your customers’ shoes…or pants…or jackets

Denise DeSisto, VP, marketing automation and product innovation at Customer Portfolios, says every retailer's goal must be to keep customers at the center of a…

Kagan: The retailer role in smart home growth

by Jeff KAGAN — Wireless Analyst, Telecom Industry Analyst

Jeff Kagan explains why smart home growth is picking up steam and how it presents an opportunity for retailers, if they handle it correctly and position…

Planning an in-store technology? 4 steps to prototype it like a pro

Shopping is interactive, with 53 percent of consumers saying they'd pay more for valuable experiences. Half of in-store shoppers today say they're more likely…

Making retail work for every generation

With millennials making up approximately 30 percent of the population, retailers strive to tailor efforts to reel in this group, yet often overlook the…

Amazon's Whole Foods deal proves the 'retail mullet' is the future of grocery

ForeSee's Eric Feinberg provides his take on Amazon's multi-billion dollar acquisition of Whole Foods. As he writes, surprisingly not much has been said about…

Why we need to talk about the retail evolution, not the retail apocalypse

In the end, the retail evolution is all about the customer. Being tech-savvy, shoppers want their shopping experience to reflect their daily life: a mix of…

Amazon's Whole Foods Market acquisition points to a changing role for physical stores; millennials hold the key

by Elliot Maras — Editor, Kiosk Marketplace & Vending Times

Amazon's acquisition of Whole Foods Market is yet another sign – the biggest to date – that retail is being redefined by multiple shopping channels.

4 insights you can unlock by mapping the customer journey

By uncovering the path your customers follow when they engage with your brand, you'll gain four valuable insights that can help you build a stronger, more…

A generational perspective: How our past defines future buying behaviors

Everyone's trying to figure out what drives consumers to purchase. But to understand how they shop, you need to know what makes them tick.

7 tips to combat the Amazon effect (hint: it's the hair of the dog that bit you)

Consumers overwhelmingly want more technology in brick-and-mortar stores. And with more consumers willing to show up and shop at stores that have it — beefing…

Kiosks help keep brick and mortar stores relevant as e-commerce expands

Interactive kiosks offer retailers a tool for allowing customers to join the e-commerce experience with in-store purchasing by allowing shop to shop for both…

Rolling out the robots: The next tech transformation

The main benefit of robots is often described as automating repetitive tasks. Robots are perfectly suited to such tasks, they can check over and over without…

Can any traditional retailer survive the "Battle of the Bots"?

by Chris Petersen — Owner, IMS

Chris H. Petersen says going up against Amazon is like taking a knife to a light saber battle. Why? Because the whole is greater than the sum of the parts.

Multichannel is not enough: Creating a true omnichannel customer experience

It's critical businesses not assume today's online purchasing experience is the same as what consumers experienced years ago. As companies seek to bring the…

How to craft a seamless omnichannel experience

by Judy Mottl — Editor: RetailCustomerExperience.com & DigitalSignageToday.com, Connect Media

Experts offer tips, advice and insight to help retailers develop an engaging and rewarding customer experience between online and offline.

How do you describe the CRM evolution? With these 4 c's

By John Oechsle, CEO, Swiftpage

What AI can teach you about your customers

When most businesses think of artificial intelligence, chances are they think about chatbots, logistics, or really any machine learning algorithm that improves…

Chatbot success 101: Why a single customer view is a must

The need for retailers to have a single customer view to ensure a consistent positive experience, across all the channels via which they interact with…

8-second race: How retailers can connect with fast-moving customers

the window of opportunity for retail marketers to know, reach, convert and engage their customers has dropped to just eight seconds. The key to reaching them…

Last mile: The amazing race to solve the delivery dilemma

by Chris Petersen — Owner, IMS

Omnichannel drives new expectations that every retailer must address.