E-Commerce

Any last-minute efforts to prepare and strategize can make a real impact this holiday season, but perhaps the most important area to focus on is payments. Simply put, a business can’t make money if it can’t accept money. It’s important that the payment experience be efficient, secure and reliable for both the customer and the merchant. Here are some easy ways to prepare for the holidays:

GfK's Future Buy research reveals that the online shopping experience is resonating more with consumers than the in-store experience. The study found that consumers rate online shopping significantly higher for nearly all attributes that result in a winning experience. In fact, there's not a single major attribute where the in-store experience is rated higher than online. One can surmise that retailers first priority should be to deliver the same shopping experience in-store as they are online.

Quad/Graphics has signed a multiyear agreement with Bluestem Brands, best known for its growing Fingerhut and Gettington.com brands. The agreement, which will exceed $135 million over its contract term, covers all printing, paper procurement, premedia, and page layout and production services as well as all product photography and video content creation services.

The Chinese Online Shopping study from Acquity Group found that 45 percent of Chinese online shoppers indicated that they make an online purchase once a week or more and 44 percent buy something online up to three times every month.

A backlash is growing against an app designed to help consumers scope out products at local stores, compare them to similar goods on Amazon and then leave the stores empty-handed to make their actual purchases online.

When William Henry Belk launched a department store in Monroe, N.C. in 1888, he named it the New York Racket. The name, he believed, made the store sound bigger than it actually was. The new branding, the company’s first change since 1967, was just one element in a massive multiyear remake of the department store chain.

For online retailers to fully maximize this year’s holiday rush, marketers and merchandisers need tools to ensure that each customer receives a personalized shopping experience. Here are several best practices for retailers to help them identify key website traffic segments and properly leverage analytics to make the most of this holiday shopping season.

While the twinkling lights and tinsel make 2011 seem like a typical year for holiday shopping, the truth is it's not. The biggest difference this year is with consumers themselves, specifically where and how they spend their money and how retailers are competing for those dollars.

Swedish fashion chain H&M has admitted to using computer-generated models to showcase a range of collections on its website. The virtual models look completely human, but if you look closely, they all have the same body shape and pose.

A day after Amazon announced that it would give shoppers up to $15 for using its Price Check app in a brick-and-mortar store and buying that item from Amazon afterward, prominent retail groups are lashing out at the e-commerce giant.