Consumer Analytics

New York -- Customer analytics is a key component to retail success; CSA talked with Buxton's Bill Stinneford at NRF's Big Show in New York City about tech trends and the importance of understanding exactly who your customer is.  

Watch video here.

New York -- U.S. retailers seeking to grow business with online shoppers across country borders should look to Canada, according to a report by Borderfree, a provider of international cross-border ecommerce solutions.

The retail industry’s data security efforts were upgraded week when the Retail Industry Leaders Association named the former Texas chief information security officer to lead the trade group’s new intelligence sharing organization.

RILA said Brian Engle would serve as executive director of the Retail Cyber Intelligence Sharing Center (R-CISC) and be responsible for managing the organization’s daily affairs.

San Francisco -- Shopper traffic in January dropped 7% year-over-year as harsh winter storms amplified the shift of shopping to online and mobile, according to Euclid’s monthly retail benchmarks report which analyzes shopper activity and behavior during the month of January. In-store engagement improved more than expected during the low traffic, post-holiday month, but it is unclear how much the longer visits benefitted sales.

Wakefield, Mass. — More than 80% of retailers plan to increase their customer experience spending in 2015, according to a survey conducted by Econsultancy for SDL, a provider of global customer experience. The report also reveals that while North American retailer brands appreciate the need for technology integration, with 97% citing integration of customer experience technology as “important” or “essential” to their growth, only 40% describe their relevant systems as integrated and cross-functional.

The newly created position of chief member officer at Sam’s Club has been filled by veteran marketer Tracey Brown who has been given a wide range of member marketing, acquisition, engagement, retention and analytics responsibilities.

Los Angeles -- American shoppers feel they can’t trust retailers to protect their credit card and personal information either online or in brick-and-mortar stores.  According to a survey by Bizrate Insights, 62% of shoppers agreed that "Current security to protect credit card and personal information at a retailers’ brick-and-mortar stores isn’t strong enough.”

This was only marginally worse than concerns for security on websites (60% agree) but better that mobile transactions (65% agree).

WAKEFIELD, Mass. — More than 80% of retailers plan to increase their customer experience spending in 2015, according to a new survey from SDL, a provider of global customer experience, and Econsultancy.

Findings from the online survey, called The Retailer’s Imperative: A Strategic Approach to Customer Experience, reveal that North American retailers are past the stage of debating the importance of customer experience management and are now trying to master it.

Quincy, Ill. - Niemann Foods, a regional independent grocer operating under the County Market banner, has selected Birdzi’s Shopper Engagement platform to provide its shoppers with new in-store services and personalized offers via the grocer’s branded mobile app. The Birdzi platform is currently deployed in eight County Market stores, but Niemann Foods plans to roll out the solution to all 45 of the grocer’s store locations in Iowa, Illinois and Missouri by second quarter 2015.

By Jim Crawford

In the 1990s, when the Internet and e-commerce created a tangible link between modes of shopping that had previously been isolated (stores and catalogs), retailers struggled with how to understand, measure, and connect with shoppers in multiple ways.

It was out of this confusion that the concept of “multichannel” was heralded as retail’s saving grace, and soon, retailers were all abuzz with cross-channel shoppers.