Budgets/Spending/Market Size

San Francisco – Marketers and consumers are both discovering mobile apps in a big way.

According to the second Mobile App Advertising Trends Report from marketing technology provider Kenshoo, marketers increased their investment in mobile apps 293% in June 2015, compared to the same period a year earlier.

This increased investment followed a 346% increase consumer mobile app installs and 32% increase in click-to-install rate.

New York -- Dollar General is giving major financial support to a cause that may appeal to many value-oriented shoppers.

The Dollar General Literacy Foundation announced that it has awarded over $4 million to approximately 870 schools, nonprofits and literacy organizations to enhance and support youth literacy and education across the 43 states Dollar General serves.

Armonk, N.Y. – Although email has reached the point it is often considered a “legacy” technology, email marketing efforts still provide substantial ROI.

New York -- The administration of Gov. Andrew Cuomo approved a wage increase that will gradually raise the minimum wage for fast-food workers in New York to $15 an hour. And now Cuomo wants the hike to be even broader.

Speaking Thursday at a labor rally in New York City, Cuomo proposed a $15 minimum statewide wage for all industries, with the increase to be enacted over time. It would give the Empire State the highest statewide minimum wage in the country. New York’s minimum wage is now $8.75 an hour.

Research Triangle, N.C. -- Christmas keeps getting earlier with each passing year, but the main challenge for online merchants stays the same.

Nearly 60% of online retailers plan to start their holiday promotions in September or sooner, and 34% of the retailers said fulfilling orders on time is their biggest challenge during the holidays, followed by adjusting to competitor activity (27%) and converting mobile traffic (19%).

Austin, Texas – Many smaller retailers only consider meeting the upcoming Oct. 1 deadline for EMV compliance as a small concern.

Despite the fact retailers face a shift in payment card fraud liability if they do not have EMV-compliant POS systems in place by Oct. 1, a new study from Software Advice finds that only 22% of small-to-midsized business (SMB) retailers are prepared to meet the deadline. However, the percentage of SMB retailers who are EMV-compliant has doubled from 11% in 2014 to 22% today.

Early and optimistic are two words that sum up retailers’ attitudes toward the 2015 holiday season, according to new retailer survey conducted by ChannelAdvisor.

ChannelAdvisor surveyed more than 200 e-commerce decision-makers at U.S. and U.K retailers to gain insight into holiday promotional activities and the outlook for sales. One key finding is that retailers are an optimistic lot with 80% expecting sales to be higher this year that last year.

San Jose, Calif. -- The back-to-school season traditionally gives retailers a much-needed boost, bringing traffic into stores in August. How did things turn out this year?

Not so great it turns out, according to RetailNext Inc., which provides retail analytics for brick-and-mortar stores. The firm’s, monthly Retail Performance Pulse revealed a 7.3% year-over-year decrease in sales on a 9.9% decline in traffic at physical stores for the retail month of August (Aug. 2 through Aug. 29 on the retail 4-5-4 calendar).

Gap Inc.’s sales slump continued in August across all its brands with one notable exception.

Austin, Texas – Labor Day is supposed to be a day of rest, but consumers are planning to work at shopping for the upcoming Labor Day holiday Sept. 7.

According to a recent RetailMeNot-Kelton survey, two in three (67%) people planning to spend money this Labor Day will spend an average of $144.

In addition, 13% anticipate their Labor Day spend will exceed $200. While 67% of consumers do actually plan to relax at home, one in three intend to visit the mall.