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Warby Parker, the industry-disrupting seller of stylish, affordable eyewear, noticed fewer customers were using its 1-800 number and more were turning to Twitter to pose questions. But the retailer found it difficult to answer complicated questions, such as those about prescriptions, given Twitter's 140-character limit. Looking for a way to interact with customers outside the constraints of Twitter, the company's social media team started shooting videos of themselves answering questions, uploading the videos to YouTube and replying to customers’ tweets with a link to the video.

Brands know that content is king. But the challenge is finding the right strategy for a constantly changing digital landscape. According to research by Econsultancy, 90 percent of marketers say that content marketing is going to be extremely important to them in 2013. But only 38 percent actually have a strategy in place. Digital agency 360i recently released a report that details what marketers can do to develop a strategic content marketing plan - covering everything from content development (creation and curation), to syndication and distribution, to optimization.

ShopRunner, a company that offers two-day shipping across a network of retailers, is debuting a new service, PickupPoints, which allows consumers to receive packages from purchases made online at local stores in their area. The company's service offers an Amazon Prime-like unlimited, free two-day shipping service from a number of online retailers with no minimum order size. The company's network includes Lord & Taylor, Toys"R"Us, Sports Authority, GNC, drugstore.com, Borders, PetSmart and Newegg.com.

Last-minute preparations are being made for what's effectively the retail industry's Super Bowl, a stretch where both brick-and-mortar and online stores will be flooded with holiday shoppers looking for Black Friday and Cyber Monday deals. Many retailers have added seasonal employees to handle increased service calls, hoping to improve their customer service levels from the previous year or at least stay consistent with normal levels.

Green Mountain Coffee Roasters has named former Procter & Gamble and Coca-Cola executive Brian Kelley as its new president and CEO, effective Dec. 3. Kelley replaces Lawrence Blanford, who held the company's top spot since 2007 and announced his plans to retire in Feb. With Blanford at its helm, Green Mountain acquired Keurig, a manufacturer of single-cup coffee machines, in 2006, making it one of the fastest-growing U.S. companies. Although the company's market value increased five-fold with Blanford in charge, shares fell 41 percent this year.

New York -- For the second year in a row, Nordstrom topped the list of retail companies that keep their employees happiest, followed by Macy’s and OfficeMax, according to an annual survey by CareerBliss. The ranking takes into account employee reviews of...

Reuters reported that Wal-Mart Stores Inc is taking its first legal step to stop months of protests and rallies outside Walmart stores, targeting the union that it says is behind such actions. Wal-Mart filed an unfair labor practice charge against the...

SAN FRANCISCO -- Holiday season online spending got off to an early and strong start, spurred by rising consumer confidence and retailer promotions ahead of the traditional big shopping days, comScore Inc said on Wednesday. From Nov.1 through Nov.18,...

Philadelphia-based Urban Outfitters Inc. plans to open 49 new stores during fiscal 2013. The new stores will include 18 Urban Outfitters, 15 Free People and 14 Anthropologie stores, as well as one BHLDN and one Terrain store. The company also reported...

Moosejaw, the irreverent multi-channel retailer specializing in outdoor apparel and gear, recently welcomed Dan Pingree as their new VP of Marketing. Pingree comes to Moosejaw with an extensive e-commerce background. For the past 5 years, he led the...