Editor's Note: Reverse Showrooming is the Newest Retail Trend

• Wal-Mart recently added an "in-store mode" to its iPhone app. When shoppers launch the app in a Wal-Mart store, they're prompted to enter the mode, which allows them to scan product barcodes for price checks, customer reviews and more information about the product. It also lets shoppers access the latest ads, discounts and QR codes, which may lower the price listed in-store.
• Target formed a partnership earlier this year with shopkick, a mobile app that enables consumers to accumulate points, or "kicks," by scanning merchandise in-store. Kicks can be traded in for gift cards, iTunes downloads and other goodies, with the hope that shoppers who scan goods are more likely to buy those goods.
• Best Buy is combating showrooming by allowing consumers to shop online in its stores if they don't have a mobile device handy. Store associates and Geek Squad workers are being equipped with tablets and other devices so they can help shoppers find more details on products and look up reviews.

Retailers can also fight back against showrooming via a site called Shop My Label, which enables them to incentivize shoppers to scan products in their stores to promote sales of those products to others who aren't in-store. Here's how it works: First, retailers register with Shop My Label. (The company has currently signed 32 retail partners, including Saks, Delia's, Avenue and Armani Exchange.) Then consumers open a free account to create online shops, selecting items from participating retailers to "stock" their shops. The shop owner then shares information about their stores with their friends through their social networks. When their friends or anyone else buys from their online shops — payment and free shipping included — they receive up to a 10 percent commission on each sale.