Loyalty Marketing

A few months ago, Amazon.com made a disruptive splash in the world of home delivery with the announcement of its drone project. The new Amazon Dash mobile ordering device for AmazonFresh customers may not be as attention-grabbing as unmanned aircraft bringing goods to your door, but its potential to disrupt how consumers select and purchase items is much greater.

Boston – Email remarketing to online customers who visit e-commerce sites but do not make a purchase can significantly boost conversion and revenue rates for online retailers. According to a new report from the SeeWhy Conversion Academy analyzing 80 Demandware-based e-commerce sites, “The ROI of Email Remarketing for E-commerce and Brands,” on average, 97% of visitors to e-commerce sites don’t make a purchase.

Chicago – TableSavvy, a real-time, last-minute dining reservation system, is launching its first-ever mobile app for iPhone users. Chicagoland restaurants can post last-minute available tables through TableSavvy's online platform.

For a $5 service fee, spontaneous diners can reserve these last-minute tables and receive a 30% discount off their meal through booking reservations online or via the new app.

St. Louis - Panera Bread has unveiled a series of integrated technologies to enhance the customer experience at its restaurants. The new “Panera 2.0” initiative brings together new capabilities for digital ordering, payment, operations and consumption for patrons who choose to eat in as well as for those who order to go. In test for several years, the solution is now live in 14 of the chain’s locations and is slated to be deployed in nearly all locations over the next 36 months.

New York – Ann Inc. has signed a long-term renewal agreement with Alliance Data Systems Corp. to continue providing private label and co-branded credit card services. Alliance Data will continue to deliver marketing-driven private label and co-branded credit card programs that recognize and reward Ann Taylor and Loft card members.

Ann Taylor and Loft brands are marketed in approximately 1,025 stores across the U.S., Canada, and Puerto Rico through its Ann Taylor, Loft, Ann Taylor Factory and Loft Outlet stores, as well as globally online.

Sports Authority opened two locations in Puerto Rico — on in San Juan and the other in Carolina — early this week, bringing the total number of stores on the island to three. The stores are located in the Plaza Las Américas and Plaza Carolina shopping centers, respectively.

According to the company, both locations are equipped with improved store designs for effortless navigation and offer extensive product selections. The stores will feature specialty sport shops with products from brands including Nike, Under Armour, Puma, Adidas and Columbia.

New York -- Japanese online giant Rakuten has teamed up with First Bankcard to launch the Rakuten Rewards MasterCard Program, which provides cardholders with reward points for using their credit card to shop on Rakuten.com and elsewhere.

Rakuten.com, formerly Buy.com, is Rakuten's U.S. marketplace, offering consumers more than 17 million products at everyday low prices from a network of small and large business shop owners.

Reston, Va. – Clarabridge, Inc., a provider of intelligent customer experience management (CEM) solutions, is acquiring Market Metrix, an enterprise feedback management platform in the leisure and hospitality industries. Market Metrix will complement and extend Clarabridge’s analytics and measurement-focused CEM offerings with the addition of a robust, results-oriented feedback management platform.