ChoiceStream

According to a new study by NCR Corporation, 81% of North American Consumers are more likely to choose retailers that enable them to interact via their preferred combination of online, mobile, self-service and in-store channels. The survey also found that consumer loyalty is also being driven by consumers' desire for more control through a seamless experience across multiple channels; they want to receive personalized offers and information that match up with their individual preferences and receive them wherever they are. Meanwhile, 44% of respondents agreed that retail shopping or restaurant ordering would be faster if they had a personalized experience.Read the full article

It’s easy to lose customers as they move between different channels of a multichannel business, suggests a new report from GSI Commerce. Out-of-stock items in store are particularly likely to cost retailers a sale, says the company’s 2010 Multichannel Retail Report. But put into play a series of opportunities for the customer and there’s no need to lose a sale because you’re out of stock in store. The report found that if shoppers weren’t able to buy the item they were looking for in a store, the online response of 69% of respondents would be to look on other retailers’ websites to find it and compare prices. Only 40% would simply visit the website of the retailer whose shop they originally visited. However, given the opportunity in-store to order out-of-stock goods via the online channel, 81% said they would do so. The report said: “The data points to the fact that if a retailer has an item that is out-of-stock and does not offer its customers any other purchasing options while they are in store there is a very good chance it will lose the sale to its competition online.”Read the full article at Internet Retailing

Timing in an email marketing campaign, that is, deciding on what day and what time of day, to hit the send button is as important as actually crafting the message and selecting which segmented group of customers will receive it, according to social network Gather. The overall consensus from numerous studies show that mail sent on Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays has the best chance of being opened, according to Gather. But more thought - far more - should go into a send decision than that, Gather said. For example, Monday is a good day because after a long weekend, many email users make it a priority to organize their inboxes. “This means there is a good chance that they will run across your message and open it,” according to a recent Gather blog post.Read the full article at Retailer Daily

The always informative Get Elastic e-commerce blog has a great article to help all those retail commerce practitioners and vendors who have ever found themselves scratching their head at a 3-letter acronym in an ecommerce related article or document. They’ve compiled 99 of the most common 3 letter acronyms you’ll find in online business, from a wide range of functions including IT, marketing, web development, SEO, web analytics, web design and logistics. Enjoy!Read the full article at GetElastic

Despite widespread recognition that the click-through does not measure the full effect of an online ad—even ones placed with direct response objectives—and calls for better branding metrics, many marketers still rely on the easy-to-track click as their top performance metric. In fact, a recent survey (March 2010) by Chief Marketer showed the click remained on top, with 60% of US marketers reporting they measured performance in click-throughs. Fewer than two-fifths measured overall return on investment (ROI). Similarly, Collective Media reported that in February 2010, click-throughs were the most common measurement of ad network performance, used by 64% of responding advertisers. Meanwhile, Datran Media found in December 2009 that marketers worldwide considered conversions the most important success metric, with nearly 90% saying it was “very important.” According to Dave Hallerman of eMarketer, “Marketers’ familiarity with clicks is only one factor that contributes to its continued usage as the top metric. Click(s) are easy to count, too, and therefore an inexpensive metric to gather. In contrast, measuring either brand effectiveness or the indirect effects of online ads—such as how display ads contribute to search clicks—is more complex and typically costs more to accomplish that just tallying up clicks.” Read the full article at eMarketer

Consumer privacy advocates said a piece of draft legislation bill intended to protect consumers online does not go far enough in protecting consumers. Hoping to head off increased regulation, companies like Google and Yahoo have adjusted their own privacy policies in response to consumer concern. Industry groups, while arguing that free Internet content depends on this type of sophisticated advertising, have issued their own self-regulatory principles. The proposed bill would expand what information should be considered confidential. It would require companies to post clear and understandable privacy notices when they collected information. Essentially, companies would need to alert consumers whenever any information the companies are collecting can identify a single person or a single computer or device. In a conference call with reporters, representatives from privacy and consumer groups said the draft included several loopholes that might let companies track consumers too closely, noting their disappointment that the proposed rules rely on privacy policies, which few site visitors actually read. Stay tuned.Read the full article at NY Times

Online merchants are improving their e-mail marketing campaigns by creating more compelling content, personalizing the messages and sending them to more recipients, suggest survey data from The E-tailing Group. 85% of the consumers surveyed said they are focusing on creating compelling e-mail messages this year to gain more sales from their e-mails, up from 80% in 2009. 65% said they intend to increase their e-mail list sizes, up from 58% in 2009. 53% plan to focus on personalization and customization of their e-mail marketing campaigns, up from 45% last year.Read the full article at Internet Retailer

In the first of a two-part series on the evolution of e-commerce, it’s noted that e-commerce should now more accurately be called “everywhere commerce.” Technology is radically reinventing where, when, and how people shop. But retailers, for the most part, are behind the curve. According to the article, considered purchases are now enabled because retail marketers are now interacting with the consumer throughout numerous touch-points, both online and offline. However, no single retailer embraces the call to make the multi-channel experience seamless and easy. Instead, shoppers wind up with multiple third-party sites or utilities, paper notes, and a frustrating lack of integration between online and brick and mortar. Retailers of the future must embrace transparency, social networks, integrated systems, and the mobile phone as the connective tissue that binds it all together. Read the full article at ClickZ

Top online retailers sent each of their subscribers 2.8 promotional emails on average during the week ending April 30, 2010. That’s up 2% from an average of 2.7 promotional emails the week ending March 26, 2010. On a year-over-year basis, online retailers increased their promotional email volume 12% from about 2.5 emails during the final week of April 2009. Read the full article at Marketing Charts

The e-tailing group and PowerReviews have released the findings of the 2010 Social Shopping Study, which assessed consumer motivations and preferences regarding online product research and customer reviews. The study focused on two key areas: how, when and why consumers are conducting online product research as well as their behaviors and expectations related to customer reviews. Results indicated that online research remains central to consumer shopping behavior, with 50% of respondents reporting that they conduct research online for at least half of the purchases made (compared to 54% in 2007). The study also found that people strongly prefer to do their own research online versus speaking to a knowledgeable sales associate in-store. According to respondents, online research is preferred for three reasons: its ability to save time, increase confidence and provide credible information.
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