Marketing Tactics

T-Mobile’s digital loyalty program just got more valuable.   The company’s “T-Mobile Tuesdays” app delivers free gifts and dis-counts to its users each week. Through its partnership with Excentus, the wireless provider now features a 25-cent-per-gallon “Fuel Rewards” discount code within its weekly rewards rotation.   

Gainesville retail pioneer Butler Enterprises announced the signing of P.F. Chang’s as a restaurant anchor at its Butler Town Center, now under development.   "It's an excellent fit for P.F. Chang's and we're really looking forward to sharing our farm-to-wok food philosophy with the entire Gainesville community," said P.F. Chang’s CMO Dwayne Chambers.  

Walmart has added another online asset to its battle against Amazon.   The chain announced it has acquired Moosejaw, an outdoor retailer know for its social media marketing expertise and strong online following among younger consumers, for approximately $51 million.    The acquisition, which closed on Feb. 13, is Walmart’s second acquisition in less than two months. In late December, the chain’s Jet.com unit acquired online footwear retailer ShoeBuy.    

Burlington has been announced as the replacement for Sears at PREIT’s Magnolia Mall in Florence, South Carolina. Earlier this month, Dick’s Sporting Goods and Von Maur were introduced as new tenants of Sears spaces that had been recaptured by the Philadelphia-based developer.  

Remember the memory-erasing Neuralyzer in "Men in Black"? Or more recently, "Ex Machina," the Oscar-winning story of a humanoid robot that uses emotional persuasion to outsmart humans and escape from the secluded home of its creator?  

Driving conversion in a digital landscape requires a new level of engagement.   Pacific Sunwear of California has found a way to reconnect with its digital shoppers, as well as improve its click performance, drive conversion, and thus, sales. Using Rakuten Marketing Search, a solution available through Kenshoo’s advertising platform, the retailer is refining its strategic marketing approach, focusing on consumer engagement (click performance) and automating its ad spend management processes.  

Another corporate ranking, another first place finish by Amazon.   The online giant came out on top in Harris Poll’s annual corporate reputation rankings report. The poll measures the reputations of the 100 most visible companies in the United States as perceived by the general public.        

Consumers in recent years have shown a seemingly insatiable appetite for special offers and discounts. During the holiday season, retailers generated billions of dollars by rolling-out high-profile promotional strategies – but was this activity actually profitable?   For many retailers, the holiday season lead to significant profit erosion. According to DynamicAction’s Retail Index, 44% of all orders last year were sold on promotion. At the same time, however, retailers saw a 24% reduction in margins.   

A cloud computing/e-commerce giant heads up Fast Company’s annual ranking of the 10 most innovative companies in retail. Amazon not only topped the retail sector category, it also came in number one in the overall World’s 50 Most Innovative Companies listing. (Rounding out the top five: Google, Uber, Apple and Snap.)

One independent grocer is making a move to compete with larger chains.