Transforming your customers' necessary errands into something they want to do

by Micah Solomon — president, four aces inc

In anticipation of a recent overseas retail banking event where I was keynote speaker, I had the pleasure of interviewing Umpqua Bank Regional VP Michele…

Webinar: The Connected Store - Integrating the customer experience with technology

New technology has given retailers the ability to connect people with specific information to build value for both the seller and the buyer. This new level of…

Selling what's in stock. Or not.

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

A salesperson recently asked me if selling only what's in stock is good service. When I asked for details, she elaborated.

Retail Orphan Initiative celebrates 5-year anniversary

November 5, 2013

The Retail Orphan Initiative has announced that it is celebrating its fifth anniversary. Inspired by the late Paul Singer, former SVP and CIO for SuperValu and…

Market share, pricing and profitability 'strategies'

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

A September 11, 2013 Reuters article, "iPhone 5c: Apple picks profit over market share yet again," provides an opportunity to make a distinction between market…

Online retailer could benefit from some 'inside-the-box' thinking

One shopper presents a virtual case study on how not to deliver good customer service.

First 'Obamacare retail store' opens

November 4, 2013

Its actual name is Access Health CT, but shoppers in New Britain, Conn., are calling it something else: An "Obamacare retail store."

What AT&T's redesign can teach you about your stores

Especially for electronics and technology retailers, the human touch is becoming more important than ever.

New York's SuperPier slowly coming into focus

October 31, 2013

The website The Business of Fashion writes today about SuperPier, an experimental retail and event location planned to open in New York's Westside in 2015.

J. Jill tests new store design in four markets

October 31, 2013

Today, specialty retailer J.Jill unveiled a redesigned store concept in four markets across the United States. The store design is a pure expression of…

Survey: 85% of consumers return to a retailer when notified of a discount

October 31, 2013

Nearly 90 percent of Americans repeatedly buy products retailers have on promotion, according to a new survey conducted by Synqera, a global technology startup…

ForeSee introduces new multichannel customer experience capabilities

October 31, 2013

ForeSee today introduced the ForeSee cx360 SM platform, a multichannel customer experience analytics platform providing cutting-edge capabilities that help…

Halloween real-time store audits: The good, the bad, and the scary

Consumer spending on Halloween is predicted to reach $6.9 billion this year, an increase of more than 54 percent since 2005.

Social Commerce: The New Internet Frontier

People have been recommending products to friends through social media for years, but social commerce will give users the opportunity to make direct, one-click…

Survey: Good customer service drives customer loyalty this holiday season

October 30, 2013

PriceGrabber, a distributed e-commerce platform and shopping site, just released additional results of its Winter Holiday Shopping Survey, revealing that 6…

MyLowe's smartphone app a DIY tool for loyalty

by Bryan Pearson — President, LoyaltyOne

Call it a tool of engagement. The MyLowe’s smartphone app is making relationship-building a DIY project.

The one sentence you should never, ever speak in customer service

by Micah Solomon — president, four aces inc

When a customer contacts you to complain about your service or product, or needs your help in addressing a service-related breakdown — what I refer to as…

Retailers should expect more last-minute shoppers this holiday

October 29, 2013

ShopperTrak, a provider of shopper analytics, predicts that four of the 10 busiest shopping days will occur between Dec. 20 and Dec. 24, and advises retailers…

Neiman Marcus recognized by Luxury Institute

October 23, 2013

As part of its first installment of the Luxury Multichannel Engagement Index (LMEI) survey, the New York-based Luxury Institute asked consumers from households…

NRF applauds Congressional attention on patent trolls

October 23, 2013

The National Retail Federation today issued the following statement from Senior Vice President for Government Relations David French on the introduction of a…