Loyalty Marketing

KEASBEY, N.J. — ShopRite is piloting a program that takes shoppers beyond the traditional checkout lines and self-checkout lanes and enables them to check out from their smartphones.

New York -- Even as online shopping continues to grow, more U.S. shoppers are planning to make purchases from physical stores in 2014, according to a survey by Accenture. In the “seamless retailing” study, 21% of U.S. shoppers said they plan to increase their in-store purchasing, up from just 9% in last year’s study.

Houston - Shell has launched “How I FRN,” a contest that invites consumers to submit a photograph or video via Instagram or Twitter that represents the individual's experience with the Shell Fuel Rewards Network (FRN) loyalty program.

Jacksonville, Fla. - Shoppers are increasing eating out by actually eating in as they take advantage of ready-to-eat foods and meal solution offerings from grocery stores, quick-serve restaurants, food delivery and take away. A new study from AMG Strategic Advisors, “The Why? Behind the Buy,” shows that Millennials are most likely to use prepared food for meal solutions, but overall, 77% of total U.S. shoppers reported eating out in the past month.

Seattle – The price of subscribing the Amazon Prime preferred shipping program will reportedly increase. According to the Huffington Post, Tom Szkutak, CFO of Amazon, said on a Jan. 30 investors call that the company is considering raising the current $79 yearly fee for Amazon Prime, which includes free two-day shipping, by $20 to $40 in the U.S.

New York – Facebook had a notable influence on holiday shoppers, especially those using mobile devices. According to a new study from Millward Brown Digital, 83% of 500 consumers surveyed who follow a retailer or consumer product on Facebook found their posts to be somewhat to very valuable when preparing for holiday shopping.

Chicago -- Shoppers seek out time-saving tools where both technology and innovation are embraced to better serve the consumer. According to the 16th annual Mystery Shopping Study from The E-tailing Group, efficiency most often accompanies search where retailers almost universally (89%) have in place navigational dropdowns for a quick read of the assortment, while 90% of those retailers embellish these locations with favorite products or pre-defined offers.