Technology

Retailers have countless opportunities to creatively reach consumers through mobile devices — and it's not just limited to smartphone users. One-hundred percent of all mobile phones receive text messages, which means retailers can effectively reach customers and prospects to engage them on a personal basis. Consumers expect instant gratification in their multichannel interactions with retailers. There are many more social ADD consumers that would rather text than talk; they're very comfortable using mobile devices to buy things online.

Shopping cart abandonment is one of the most pervasive concerns among online retailers, and with good reason. According to a study from Listrak, 75 percent of your site visitors will likely leave without making a purchase, and 85 percent of the top 1,000 online retailers are doing nothing to combat this growing issue. If you're investing in channels to drive traffic to your site this holiday season, take advantage of the opportunity to add value to your campaigns and maximize return on investment by using your existing AdWords Conversion Tracking pixel to remarket to past converters.

Retail theft (i.e., shoplifting and dishonest employees) continues to be a much greater problem than many people realize. These losses are responsible for higher prices paid by consumers and even store and company closures due to the profit drain. To prevent your business from becoming part of these statistics, there are steps you can take to limit retail theft losses:

The vision for the SKLZ website, which receives more than 100,000 visitors a month, is to inspire athletes to develop their skills. To meet that vision, the retailer made a commitment to add videos to its site and drastically expand its library of training-related video content. SKLZ believed that if athletes could watch instructional videos that incorporate its products, then they'd be more likely to see SKLZ as a legitimate source for training.

It's easy to avoid pushy sales clerks when shopping for new threads. A department store in Japan now uses inescapable RFID-equipped clothing hangers to try to sell you other products and accessories when you take a garment off a rack.

The time has come: my college roommate is getting married. I’m extremely excited and happy for her and I have the honor of being a bridesmaid. The problem is I live in Philadelphia and she lives in Syracuse, N.Y. — a little over 250 miles away. That doesn't exactly lend itself to jumping in the car on a Saturday for a quick dress fitting. If only her selected bridesmaid dress was from Sears and we both lived in Canada ...

Retail giant Wal-Mart may not be known as a Silicon Valley tech company, but the world’s biggest retailer is investing in Silicon Valley-style innovation. The company’s tech shop @WalmartLabs, was formed from the acquisition last year of startup Kosmix, which monitored vast streams of social media data to help businesses track sentiment about products and brands. 

Lowe's plans to outfit employees with 42,000 iPhone 4s next month, with custom apps that will make use of the device as a point-of-sale system as part of a technology-heavy retail overhaul. The retailer will introduce a new MyLowes online tool and implement the iPhones in an effort to catch rival Home Depot, which invested more than $60 million on handheld Motorola POS system last year.

Not sure where you are right now, but unless it's Alaska or Antartica, you're probably somewhere where the air is hot and humid. (I know I am, as I write this column from my home office in Brooklyn, N.Y. in early July.) That's why I thought I'd take a look at some cool (get it, cool) retail technology trends I've heard about recently.

Listen in as David Wertheimer, CEO of Canopy, a business unit of web design and engineering firm Alexander Interactive that focuses on the online retail space, discusses the new programming language HTML5 and what it means for your business.