Digital Marketing

Walmart continues its superhero streak and courting comic book fans onto its website via social media — this time the superhero in question is Marvel’s billionaire badboy and Iron Man alter ego Tony Stark. 

The discount retailer posted a photo of Iron Man 3 to its Facebook page Monday, April 29, emblazoned with a burst bearing the Walmart logo and urging fans to ‘Preorder Now,’ even though the film did not release in theaters until Friday, May 3. 

OMAHA, Neb. — Sergeant's Pet Care Products, an Omaha, Neb.-based manufacturer of pet products, engaged shoppers while promoting good oral hygiene for pets with its national Sentry Petrodex Superstar Smiles photo contest, sponsored by the company’s Sentry Petrodex dental brand.

Three-year-old yellow Labrador Retriever Flash took the top prize.

LOS ANGELES, Calif. — The Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf, a leading specialty coffee and tea retailer, is leveraging wireless technology to retain existing customers and encourage new ones to come into their stores. 

The company will test wireless charging with Power Matters Alliance at select Los Angeles locations and plans to deploy wireless charging with PMA in dozens of California stores this quarter, with the aim of expanding nationally and internationally shortly thereafter.

EDISON, N.J. — Bare Necessities, an online specialty retailer of women's and men's branded and designer intimate apparel and lingerie, has launched an interactive look book showcasing Wacoal’s intimates to entice tech-savvy shoppers with smartphones and tablets. 

According to Rick Chavie, VP of OmniCommerce at hybris Software in Atlanta, there are a few steps brands can take to make the most of Facebook Home.

"Give customers an incentive to activate push notifications through to Facebook," Chavie said. "You may not be able to get people to check your brand app regularly, but you indirectly feed it through Facebook Home."

Another way is to focus on time-of-day placement based on extrapolation of when customers tend to use your own app.

NEW YORK — Target isn’t letting any grass grow under its feet when it comes to the suddenly hot category of home goods and home furnishings. The discounter has installed a giant, two-story dollhouse — some 21 ft. high and occupying some 1,500 sq. ft. of space — smack in the middle of Vanderbuilt Hall in New York City’s Grand Central Station. 

Social media giant Facebook is generating lots of buzz with the debut of its app launcher, Facebook Home, which turns existing Android smartphones into a Facebook-centric mobile device. (App launchers are applications that allow users to customize the home screen on their personal devices and add various other functionalities to it.)

SAN DIEGO — Online fresh flowers retailer ProFlowers is launching a ProFlowers-branded store on eBay, extending its online reach.

The new ProFlowers eBay storefront features a broad assortment of fresh flowers, plants and product bundles including vases and chocolates, much like its existing online e-commerce site. Its eBay store also prominently features a “Deal of the Week” specially priced bouquet and vase.