Marketing Tactics

New payment method not for the modest
Apple Pay’s got nothing on this new body part-based method of conducting commerce.

The world of payments has become very dynamic in recent years which explains why a trade show called Money 20/20 in only its third year of existence is able to attract more than 7,500 attendees. Everyone from scruffy start-up types touting the virtues of bitcoin, to government regulators, well known retailers and major credit card issuers were on hand at the recent show in Las Vegas to gain insight into the rapidly evolving space.
It’s ‘Digital Monday’ at Meijer
Meijer is taking a different approach to Cyber Monday this year.

Instead of online sales, the retailer says it will focus on offering discounts through its digital couponing site: mPerks. For Cyber Monday, the retailer is offering a coupon for 20% off a single item through mPerks on in-store purchases today only.

RadioShack rolls dice with online redesign

Few retailers have as much at stake this holiday season as RadioShack which explains why the company made the high risk move of relaunching its Web site just days before the busiest shopping weekend of the year.

The struggling retailer said the redesign of RadioShack.com offers an easier user experience and comes just in time for the holiday season and kicks off a week of free shipping offers on promotionally priced goods.
Dick’s looks to score with hoops tourney

Basketball season is just now getting underway but next spring when top high school teams square off at a tournament in New York Dick’s Sporting Goods will be there as title sponsor of the event.

For the second consecutive year, Dicks will serve as title sponsor of the event to be held April 2-4, 2015 and televised on ESPN networks.
Employers tolerating Cyber Monday distraction

Cyber Monday may just as well be an official holiday considering findings of a new study that show how little work actually gets done.
Macy’s launching online video ads on Facebook

New York - Macy's continues its aggressive social media push with the launch of online video ads on Facebook starting on Thanksgiving evening. The ads are part of the retailer’s Black Friday weekend campaign. The ads will feature cartoon character SpongeBob SquarePants, who will also appear in the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day parade. They will target women age 21 and over.
Positive sign: Holiday desktop online spending up 11% in first 23 days of November

Reston, Va. - For the holiday season-to-date, $17.5 billion has been spent online using desktop computers, an 11% increase versus the corresponding days last year, according to comScore. Friday, November 21 has been the heaviest online spending day of the season to date at $914 million in desktop spending. Two other individual shopping days (Wednesday, Nov. 12 and Wednesday, Nov. 19) have also surpassed the $900 million threshold.
Twitter in pilot to deliver discounts via Tweets; offers redeemable in stores

New York - Twitter keeps on coming up with new ways to let advertisers connect with consumers—and now it’s moving into the brick-and-mortar space. In its first On Tuesday, the social media giant launched a pilot for a new feature called Twitter Offers, which enables brands and companies to create card-linked promotions and share them directly with Twitter users. The user can redeem the discount simply by paying with the synced card in the retailer’s physical store or online shop.
Sports Authority rolls out updated format in Las Vegas area

Englewood, Col. - Sports Authority continues to roll out its enhanced store environment in both existing stores and new locations nationwide. Most recently, the retailer completed the remodel of an existing store and also opened two new units in the Las Vegas area.
Survey: Nordstrom, Amazon most engaged brands on Pinterest

New York - Nordstrom was the most engaged retail brand on Pinterest, followed by Amazon, according to Curalate, which collected more than 180,000 Pins and analyzed nearly five million interactions associated with the Top 100 brands from November 1st to November 21. Rounding out the top five: Urban Outfitters, American Eagle Outfitters and Zulily.
Five Last-Minute Holiday Tips for Online Merchants

By Christopher Birkholm As the official kick-off of the holiday season approaches, your core online holiday campaigns are all wrapped up and ready for holiday shoppers. This year, it is expected that online consumer spending will rise 16% over last year to approximately $60 billion, according to the comScore forecast. Desktop commerce is expected to jump nearly 14% while mobile commerce could see an increase of nearly 25%.
Fred’s turns red in Q3, will close 47 stores

Memphis, Tenn. – Fred’s Inc. swung to a net loss of $10.4 million in the third quarter of fiscal 2014, compared to net income of $7.3 million in the same quarter a year earlier. Costs associated with closing five underperforming stores in the third quarter, and an anticipated 47 stores in the fourth quarter, contributed to the loss, which exceeded Wall Street projections.