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Facebook Like Button Helps Solve Retailer’s Dilemma (Fast Company)
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Posted: 03/17/2011
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To help solve the problem of overstocked inventory, San Francisco-based children’s clothing retailer Tea Collection put Facebook’s “Like” button into action. Customers saved big when they voted for their favorite items that were set to be discontinued and then enjoyed a hefty discount from $59 to $10 on the winning dress. The dress was an immediate sell out. While the company took a loss on it, marketing director Jeff Reichelderfer explained that the campaign more than made up for the losses with purchases that customers made on other items. Tea Collection, which sells its line in boutiques and department stores across the country as well as online, has since hosted two more competitions to help move inventory and further engage its customers.
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Industry:
Marketing, Design, & Interactive Communications,
Retail & Products
Topic:
Content Strategy,
E-Commerce,
Experience & Interaction,
Marketing Communications
Region:
Global,
North America
Audience:
Business to Consumer,
Peer Groups & Communities
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Stamped And Delivered: Send Gifts And Goods Using E-Mail Addresses (BBC Business News)
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Posted: 11/11/2010
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In an age where security and privacy top the list of priorities for most, a new method of sending mail is likely to garner attention. In order to acquire goods through sites like eBay, individuals are required to provide their physical address to a stranger. Now, there are several companies offering services that depend on e-mail addresses alone to deliver the goods. While most of the companies are primarily U.S.-based, gift-giving site Parcel Genie delivers across 40 countries. To send packages, all the sender needs is a username from Twitter, Facebook or LinkedIn. Going beyond gift-giving, the U.K.’s Send Social enables users to send and receive any type of package with a special label only partner delivery companies are capable of reading. "The only piece of information you see is the information you already know - that might be a Facebook name, a Twitter id or e-mail address," says Jonathan Grubin, head of Send Social. One such partner, Bybox, operates a network of locker boxes around the UK, and deliver box-to-box, rather than door-to-door.
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Industry:
Retail & Products
Topic:
E-Commerce,
Experience & Interaction,
Technology Implementation
Region:
North America,
Europe
Audience:
Business to Consumer,
Peer Groups & Communities
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Combining Brick With Clicks Proves Profitable Among Retailers (Internet Evolution)
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Posted: 10/14/2010
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Bricks-plus-clicks is an emergent marketing strategy that combines online sales with storefront initiatives to boost sales. National brands including Gap and Nordstrom are using the tactic with success. For instance, Gap recently launched a “Universality” initiative in both Canada and the UK for consumers to simultaneously shop Gap, Old Navy and Banana Republic merchandise in a “three-in-one” online store. The universality platform brings brands together online with global navigation and a universal shopping cart while the “bricks” includes new fulfillment centers to save shoppers the expense and hassle of import duties and fees and delays at customs. Showing solid sales improvements, Nordstrom is 11 months in to a fluid inventory plan that uses the Internet to connect its traditional-store inventory to its online sales site to make sure that merchandise is never overlooked on store shelves. The company’s new website also incorporates popular social media features.
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Industry:
Marketing, Design, & Interactive Communications,
Retail & Products
Topic:
Content Strategy,
E-Commerce,
Experience & Interaction
Region:
Global,
North America,
Europe
Audience:
Business to Consumer
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Procter & Gamble Seeks E-Commerce Innovation (Internet Retailer)
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Posted: 07/08/2010
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Consumer favorites manufactured by Procter & Gamble are now even more available. P&G’s new retail web site offers 52 products (with more coming) for consumer purchase, including Tide detergent, Oral-B toothbrushes, and Gillette razors. Though P&G made $76.7 billion in sales in 2009, increasing those sales is not the Web site’s main goal. According to the manufacturer, the site will provide a “living learning lab for developing e-commerce innovation.” Data gathered about P&G’s online consumers will provide a better understanding of various shopping behaviors and preferences. “As big and influential as Procter & Gamble is, there is no doubt this is a sign of a broad trend with consumer goods manufacturers,” says Jim Okamura, senior partner with consulting firm J.C. Williams Group.
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Industry:
Marketing, Design, & Interactive Communications,
Retail & Products,
Technology, Consulting, & Professional Services
Topic:
Content Strategy,
E-Commerce,
Experience & Interaction,
Marketing Communications,
Technology Implementation
Region:
North America
Audience:
Business to Consumer
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Discover Technology’s Next Big Star At South By Southwest Interactive Festival (CNET News)
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Posted: 04/29/2010
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The competition is on to see who emerges as SXSWi's (South by Southwest Interactive Festival) biggest technology star. This year’s hottest ticket? The rivalry brewing between Gowalla and Foursquare, competing “geolocation” mobile applications which let users "check in" from their smartphones, share locations, and compete to earn Gowalla virtual goods and Foursquare "badges". With round-the-clock parties, panels, meet-and-greets and apps like Foodspotting, which uses GPS to help users locate specific menu items at local restaurants, the festival is poised to take over the entire city. Other geolocation start-ups want in on the action: Sunday night’s "Geobash" is co-hosted by SimpleGeo, HotPotato and Yowza, Loopt is launching a revamped, events-based iPhone app and Powered’s iPhone app "Snark It" earns users “liquidity” points to use toward free drinks.
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Industry:
Marketing, Design, & Interactive Communications,
Technology, Consulting, & Professional Services
Topic:
Creative & Design,
E-Commerce,
Experience & Interaction,
Technology Implementation
Region:
Global,
North America
Audience:
Business to Consumer,
Peer Groups & Communities
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