Marketing Tactics

By Rob Schmults, [email protected]

NEW YORK -- Brawny, All, Aquafresh and Listerine were among the consumer brands to take home the Product of the Year Award in their respective categories. Chosen by 50,000 consumers, Product of the Year USA will honor the nation's most innovative consumer packaged goods of 2013 at its fifth annual Awards Ceremony, taking place at the Edison Ballroom in New York City on Tuesday, Feb. 12.  Special guest host Wendy Williams will serve as Master of Ceremonies alongside Chicago's top improv comedians, Kate James and Greg Mills.

Total U.S. Shopper Traffic in Retail Stores and Malls for January 2013

Retailers pushed to extend the high level of holiday shopping and foot traffic by promoting post-holiday specials and markdowns on seasonal merchandise in January. However, as expected, shopper traffic continued to drop off significantly after the end of the holiday season. 

NEW YORK — American Express has launched a new venture with Twitter, that could lead to a whole new category of shopping.

MINNEAPOLIS — Target has teamed up with Justin Timberlake to offer a deluxe exclusive edition of the superstar’s highly anticipated third studio album, “The 20/20 Experience.” Featuring two bonus tracks, “Dress On” and “Body Count,” the Target exclusive album is available now for pre-order. The album will be in stores and on Target.com when the CD is released on March 19.

MONTREAL — Target has presented its Emerging Designer Award to Mélissa Nepton. Nepton was selected from a group of five finalists as the grand prize winner during the final competition hosted last night at Montreal Fashion Week. The Target Emerging Designer Award is part of the Designers Fund, a joint initiative of Groupe Sensation Mode and Fondation de la mode de Montréal.

Underwriters Laboratories’ UL Environment division introduced an updated version of its EcoLogo to designate the sustainability of toys.

The EcoLogo is the first environmental toy standard developed with input from the Toy Industry Association (TIA), according to UL. It establishes a points-based model for the evaluation of performance, and recognizes manufacturers for sustainability leadership and innovation with the addition of a Platinum level certification for the highest achievement.

CHICAGO — Most Valentine's Day celebrants plan to shop a week or less before the holiday, and many wait until Feb. 13 or 14 to make their final purchases, according to research by the NPD Group, a leading global information company.