Loyalty Marketing

Sears is offering early access to Black Friday deals as a means to entice customers to join its free Shop Your Way membership-based loyalty program.

The retailer said its Shop Your Way members can begin Black Friday a week early at Sears.com when exclusive pricing on key items becomes available at 6 p.m. on Nov. 20. Then on Thanksgiving Day, Sears stores will open at 6 p.m. with more than 1,000 doorbuster deals continuing through 1 p.m. on Black Friday.

I recently had the opportunity to visit the funky Las Vegas headquarters of online footwear/apparel/accessories retailer Zappos.com. Zappos is generally regarded as one of the most customer-friendly retailers around, and after seeing how things work behind the scenes I can attest this reputation is well deserved. Here are five cool ways Zappos uses corporate culture and innovation to disrupt the customer experience and behind-the-scenes operations.  

London, U.K. -- Nearly three-quarters of online retailers (74%) miss out on sales by promoting irrelevant items to online shoppers. According to new research from OrderDynamics, as retailers prepare for the crucial holiday shopping season, many could be driving customers away by promoting irrelevant products, failing to build customer relationships through intelligent follow-up, and ignoring consumer preferences on end-to-end order tracking.  

Cincinnati –- Half of all consumers dislike the idea of all-day Thanksgiving store shopping hours, although younger consumers are more open to it.   According to a survey of 1,001 U.S. consumers by loyalty services provider Loyalty One, 50% say all-day shopping hours on Thanksgiving Day are a bad idea that detracts from the traditional celebration.  

Chicago -- The growing importance of the multichannel shopping experience is highlighted in a new study by A.T. Kearney. The report, "Connected Consumers Are Not Created Equal: A Global Perspective," is focused on better understanding today's connected consumers.  

Department store retailer Belk has enlisted a hot male model to serve as a non-traditional Santa Claus at the center of a multifaceted digital initiative.

Chicago -- Although consumers are changing how they shop for food and beverages, most prefer to make perishable purchases in tradition brick-and-mortar locations.