Merchandising

Digital Content is everywhere - your website, blogs, social media outposts, and every mobile device imaginable. And with customers and prospects radically adjusting to this wealth of information, companies are investing in developing digital content like never before. Despite their efforts, however, these same companies often miss valuable opportunities because they lack a well-rounded content marketing strategy.

This new whitepaper from Bridgeline Digital identifies the top 10 steps to building a content marketing strategy that you can execute within your company in an effective and timely manner.

What you will learn:

- What is content marketing management
- Why you should treat content like a critical business asset
- How to understand the content needs of your audience
- Why maintaining an editorial calendar is so important
- Why you need to give your content a "voice"
- Why content management and web analytics tools can best help you deliver relevant content

Better known as an electronics and appliance retailer, Minneapolis-based Best Buy entered kitchenware retailing when it joined forces with Cooking.com to launch the Best Buy Kitchen Shop microsite. The Best Buy Kitchen Shop is operated by the online kitchenware retailer and adds more than 3,000 kitchenware products to the Best Buy site. "We're always looking for ways to enhance our customers’ online shopping experience, and this partnership delivers more ways to shop when and where they want," said Liz Haesler, vice president of Home Business Group for Best Buy. 

A new digital marketing landscape is beckoning; how can you be sure you're prepared? With the simultaneous explosions of mobile, social networking, Wi-Fi and constant connectivity, we're creating a world that constantly offers more, with more selection, more options and more more than ever before.

More than 3.5 billion pieces of content are shared weekly on Facebook alone — certainly the fastest growing of the social platforms, but definitely not the only one. It's simply not enough to call this digital landscape "modern marketing" anymore.

Key points you'll take away from this free whitepaper include the following:

• how to build the best team, insource vs. outsource;
• what are the right tools for your marketing strategy — content management, e-marketing, web analytics and e-commerce;
• how to choose the most effective technology for your company goals — SaaS vs. perpetual, integrated vs. multiplatform; and
• how to tie all three together to increase traffic, visitor engagement and conversions.

Looking to kick its retail operations into high gear, hipster clothing chain Brooklyn Industries last fall borrowed from the playbook of higher-flying competitors H&M and Zara, known for what the retail world calls "fast fashion," or ultraquick turnaround of the latest designer styles. As fast fashion continues to win over shoppers, more specialty retailers like Brooklyn Industries, which traditionally freshened merchandise just a few times a season, find they too must speed up their turnaround cycles. That could create new opportunities for their garment-district suppliers and New York-area vendors whose proximity allows for faster production.

Uncover the ins and outs of selecting the right list provider. Check out this free whitepaper, which covers the following: tips to identify audiences that respond; pros and cons of house, purchased and rented mailing lists; important details about list owners, managers and brokers; and how to sort through the clutter to get the best lists possible. Download this free whitepaper to find the right list partner for you.

Target plans to open its first stand-alone athletic sportswear brick-and-mortar store under the C9 Active Apparel name. The 3,000 square-foot store will open in San Francisco and sell Target's exclusive C9 by Champion collection.

Diapers.com, the one-stop shop for baby essentials, announced the launch of its new Clothing & Shoe Shop at Diapers.com. With more than 30,000 clothing and shoe items, 100-plus brands and sizes ranging from newborn to 5, the shop makes it easy for parents to find everything they need to keep up with their baby's growth. The Clothing & Shoe Shop at Diapers.com offers a wide selection of styles from familiar favorites such as Carter's, OshKosh, Robeez and Crocs, as well as specialty boutique brands like Tea Collection, Splendid, Zutano and Pink Chicken.

Sears and Bonnier Corporation's Outdoor Life announced today they've entered a relationship to launch a line of Outdoor Life-branded sportswear for men, available in over 800 Sears stores nationwide and on Sears.com beginning in September. The exclusive collection is being designed with the all-American "guy's guy" in mind, a loyal customer of both iconic brands. The products will combine utility, comfort and quality for the outdoorsman.

Giovanni Feroce, CEO of Alex and Ani, announced a partnership with Bloomingdale's to create an Alex and Ani "Shop Within a Shop" on the second floor of the retailer's flagship Manhattan store located at 59th Street and Lexington Avenue. The "Shop Within a Shop" is currently displayed and will be up until May 15, however, the collection will continue to be available at the upscale retailer. 

Destination Maternity announced its new broad-based partnership with Bed Bath & Beyond and its subsidiary, Buy Buy Baby. In addition, Destination Maternity expects that its Motherhood Maternity and A Pea in the Pod branded maternity and nursing apparel will be available for sale in select Buy Buy Baby stores beginning in November 2012. As of February 25, 2012, Buy Buy Baby has 64 stores in the United States.