Marketing Tactics

To celebrate the start of the men’s and women’s college basketball tournament, appliance and electronics retailer Hhgregg is kicking off its March into Hhgregg event,”which will award more than $50,000 in prizes from LG Electronics.

From now through April 7, Hhgregg shoppers can enter daily online, via smartphone, on Facebook and in-store. Winners will be selected instantly, weekly, and one grand prize winner will be selected on April 8.

Ottawa, Canada - Target dropped prices on its monitored assortment by more than 20% during the days leading up to its confirmation of the data breach that compromised the security of 70 million customers’ personal information during the pre-holiday shopping season. According to data from 360pi analyzing approximately 830 products across eight categories, including TVs, tablets, digital cameras and more, Target dropped its prices by 18% between Dec. 14 and Dec. 17.

Atlanta – Close to half (45.1%) of brands reported that ‘measuring ROI and results’ is their greatest challenge when using the Twitter platform for marketing, followed by ‘building an audience’ (42.1%) and ‘engagement’ (36.8%). According to a new survey from Social Media Marketing University (SMU), 65% of brands say that Twitter is an effective marketing tool, while 30.6% are undecided. Other notable findings include: • 96.2% of brands using Twitter as a marketing tool report having challenges using the platform to achieve specific goals.

Kearney, Neb. –- The impact of an extra week in the fourth quarter of fiscal 2012 helped drive down net income and sales at The Buckle during the fourth quarter of fiscal 2013. On a year-over-year basis, net income dropped 3% to $59.4 million from $61.3 million, while net sales declined 6% to $339 million from $360.6 million. Same-store sales for the quarter decreased 2.8%.

Seattle – Starbucks Coffee Company is amending its exclusive agreement to provide Keurig Green Mountain Inc. with super-premium coffee pods. The companies have updated their agreement to continue to expand Starbucks’ range of K-Cup pack offerings and to promote expanded consumer choice. In exchange for eliminating the super-premium coffee exclusivity terms of the existing agreement, Starbucks will receive improved business terms, including significantly expanded Starbucks K-Cup pack and variety types.

Sephora has launched Beauty Board, a social shopping platform designed to engage clients through beauty images. Users will be able to post, share, browse and shop Sephora's photo gallery directly on Sephora.com, the mobile site, iPhone and Android apps.

Users will also be able to upload photos, tag the products they use and give helpful tips on how they achieved the look.

After a 15% fourth-quarter same-store sales decline, Aeropostale is looking to accelerate the pace of previously announced store closures, further reduce an already limited store expansion program and has secured new financial flexibility from a private equity firm.

Multi-platinum R&B recording artist Keyshia Cole and leading footwear designer and marketer Steve Madden are at it again. Cole and Madden announced their second partnership with products to be released this month including a variety of heeled and platform styles, ranging from pumps to gladiators to ankle booties. The shoes will feature new prints and colors, along with the platform and cut-out details that are said to showcase the fusion of Steve Madden's and Keyshia Cole's style.

San Francisco -- Williams-Sonoma reported a better-than-expected profit of $133.8 million in the fourth quarter, up slightly from $133.7 million in the year-ago period. The company also announced it is lifting its dividend 2 cents, or 6%, to 33 cents a share.

San Francisco -- Sephora has launched a new social shopping platform, called Beauty Board, to engage customers through beauty images and allow them to post, share, browse and shop the company’s photo gallery directly on its web site, mobile site, iPhone and Android apps. Shoppers will be able to upload photos, tag the products they use, and give helpful tips on how they achieved the look.