
Apps

Sears is fueling more downloads of its mobile application this season by asking in-store shoppers to enable location settings on their smartphones, select and pay for out-of-stock items within the app, and receive complimentary shipping. As retailers go head-to-head in their bid to capitalize on holiday sales, Sears is attempting to bump up digital purchases…
On Alex and Ani’s iPhone app, released Oct. 1, you can pose a question to an “Ogham Oracle” and receive a piece of life advice in return, derived from the ancient Celtic divination system. Or you can discover your “personal blueprint,” which explores the symbols that define you, like your birthstone. You can also shop…
This webinar offers insights and tips on how retailers can leverage digital technologies to better engage and sell to consumers.
The global consumer has thousands of options for every purchase they make, and ever-changing mediums on which they can engage with brands. With that in mind, one consistent trend shows that their buying habits are direct reflections of experiences they’ve had interacting with an e-commerce channel. This trend has been validated through a recent survey…
There’s an experience familiar to nearly anyone who’s downloaded a game on their smartphone. Try as you might to conquer the latest level/village/candy, your thumbs lack the speed/agility/candy to get you through. With deep regret, you purchase an item or expansion pack to continue your long march toward distraction. If every time you do this…
A Target Corp. executive who helped birth one of the Minneapolis-based retailer’s most celebrated digital innovations is leaving the company. Alan Wizemann, vice president of mobile and Target.com, played an instrumental role in launching Cartwheel, the retailer’s mobile coupon app that has rung up more than $1 billion in sales since it rolled out two…
Following its split from PayPal last week, eBay announced it’s closing down a number of standalone mobile applications, including eBay Valet, eBay Fashion and eBay Motors, and is retiring its on-demand delivery service eBay Now. On the latter item, the company says that eBay Now was “always intended” as a pilot program, and while it…
Traditional sampling strategy has always prioritized quantity over quality. With this approach, marketers are left questioning if the end result will justify the cost of giving free product away. Despite popular belief, it's through targeted sampling strategies that brands can experience the best results. When executed correctly, sampling is extremely effective and has the ability…
This June, the headlines exploded with story after story about Facebook offering free beacons to retailers. Finally, the potential to bring e-commerce-level shopper engagement to brick-and-mortar stores through beacons became more plausible. Since Facebook has a massive, always-on user base, this opens doors for widespread beacon use, overcoming the major hurdle of beacons relying on…
Sephora maximizes its mobile commerce possibilities with more relevant and personal content in a recent update to its iPhone application, which introduces a beauty match search feature into its Beauty Board. The beauty retailer’s latest app refresh launches new features such as an in-store scanner and a new search capability in its Beauty Board to…