Marketing Tactics

AVON, Ohio — Duck Tape brand duct tape is inviting consumers to design the next Duck Tape print for the chance to win $5,000 and have their design seen nationwide.

Designs drawn by hand or with digital editing software are welcome, and entries must be created using one of the Duck Tape design templates found on the Facebook contest tab to be considered.

Now you can have your cake and eat it with candy, too. Tastycake and Hershey's have teamed up to create Kandy Bar Kakes — part perfectly baked cake, part candy, made with quality ingredients.

Kandy Bar Kakes are available in 2.1-oz. single-serve sizes and 5-count multipacks in three varieties: s'mores, made with Hershey's Cocoa; peanut butter, made with Reese's peanut butter; and peppermint, made with York Peppermint flavor.

Bentonville, Ark. -- Walmart and Humana have teamed up again to help Medicare beneficiaries afford their prescriptions. With annual enrollment open until Dec. 7, 2012, for 2013 Medicare plans, the Humana-Walmart Preferred Rx Plan announced that it offers one monthly plan premium of $18.50 a month for beneficiaries in all 50 states and Washington, D.C., regardless of where they live.

New York -- Learn how Chico's FAS is staying ahead of the information evolution and providing personalized customer interactions at a Chain Store Age webinar on Thursday, Oct. 18 ( 2 p.m. ET, 11 a.m. PT). Bob Murray, architect of Chico's Store Technology, will discuss such top-of-mind imperatives as loyalty, mobile, and seamless digital connections with the customer in the omni-channel market space.

NAPERVILLE, Ill. — OfficeMax has launched a new line of pens under its TUL brand.

"Over the past eight years, TUL has become the preferred premium brand of writing instruments and desk accessories for many of our customers because of the great design, performance and value it provides," said Ronald Lalla, EVP and chief merchandising officer at OfficeMax. "Our new collection of TUL pens provides both consumers and business customers with multiple designs that deliver exceptional writing experiences time and time again."

New York -- More and more retailers are using digital technology to enhance the physical store experience and engage customers. In the latest example, Adidas has taken window shopping to a new level with an interactive digital window concept that connects with consumers’ smartphones, making it easy to shop at any time without an app or scanning various QR codes. Consumers shopping for the latest fashion items are using time during a six-week pilot test at the Adidas NEO Label store-front in Nürnberg, Germany.

FRAMINGHAM, Mass. — Staples is now offering its customers the chance to pre-order the latest computers and tablets optimized for Microsoft Windows 8 through its exclusive "8 Was Easy" program.

Customers can pre-order the computers and tablets online or in stores and receive free personalized training and free support. Consumers who purchase any Windows 8 PC regularly priced $699 and above will also receive free data transfer from their old computer.