Marketing Tactics

Denver – An estimated 28% of consumers plan to do most of their holiday shopping at mass retailers, compared to 26% who will frequent online retailers. According to an ongoing shopper behavior study conducted by The Integer Group and M/A/R/C Research, free shipping continues to be the most popular offer for holiday shoppers, with 58% of shoppers reporting they expect to take advantage of it this holiday season.   

Winn-Dixie is partnering with the Hershey Co. to outfit stores with a “Candy Experience” section: a new concept that has replaced the traditional candy aisle in a Winn-Dixie in Baton Rouge, La.  

Tests show that the new candy section, best described as a “store within a store,” can lift confection category sales for retailers by strong double digits. The candy experience sits at the front of the store, a dramatically different location from an aisle where consumers must hunt around for the candy shelves.

Minneapolis — Best Buy Co. Inc. is partnering with shopping app provider Ibotta Inc. to drive Black Friday sales at Best Buy stores and on its website. Ibotta will provide Best Buy shoppers an exclusive cash back offer when they purchase more than $100 in-store or online at Best Buy.   

Some of the biggest names in the retail industry have partnered with a new online shopping and fundraising platform called iMyne, which aims to make it easy for consumers to earn money and give to their favorite causes after shopping online.

Like other rewards sites, imyne.com gives shoppers the option of earning cash back. But it also allows them to send their cash back to charitable causes. Top retailers such as Nordstrom, Neiman Marcus, Target, Sears, Home Depot, Gap, Best Buy, Saks, Zappos and more have all signed up as retail partners.

BJ's Wholesale Club has introduced a Mastercard program that ups the ante in the wholesale club credit card category. The My BJ's Perks MasterCard will offer members 10 cents off per gallon of BJ's gas every day, up to 5% back on purchases in-club and at BJs.com, 2% back on eating out and non-BJ's gas purchases, and 1% back on purchases made everywhere else MasterCard is accepted.  

New York — BJ's Wholesale Club’s Mastercard program ups the ante in the wholesale club credit card category. The new My BJ's Perks MasterCard will offer members 10 cents off per gallon of BJ's gas, up to 5% back on purchases in-club and at BJs.com, 2% back on eating out and non-BJ's gas purchases, and 1% back on purchases made everywhere else MasterCard is accepted.    

Zappos.com says it will celebrate Thanksgiving and Black Friday weekend by donating 10 meals per order placed on Zappos.com in partnership with Feeding America, the leading domestic hunger-relief charity.

The company says the objective of its Fast, Free Giving effort is to give back this holiday season and for consumers to put their dollars behind more than just holiday gifts: to help those most in need, too.

New York — Most Americans won’t shop on either Black Friday or Cyber Monday this year. According to a new Bankrate.com survey of 1,000 consumers, only 28% of Americans plan to shop in a store on Black Friday.