Home Depot

In the near future, D-to-C selling will be an imperative for manufacturers hoping to compete and grow brand loyalty. Those not offering online shopping invite brand skepticism, if not scorn, among consumers who visit a site only to find that the shelves are bare. The cost is more than a one-time sale lost; it can mean brand degradation that inflicts long-term damage on a manufacturer's fortunes. With concessions to retail partners and the right technology, manufacturers will be well on their way to meeting the D-to-C mandate.

Imagine this scenario: You've thought of a way to reinvent in-home air conditioning. You go through the process of sketching the idea and sharing details of what's going to make your invention a revolution in the product category. However, you're overwhelmed by what the next step could be. Do you have a marketing strategy? How much does it cost to make your idea a reality? Who do you connect with to help put this product in consumers' homes?

We all lead such busy lives that anytime we can do something to save time we should consider doing so. This is why I'm writing today's column — to save you from having to read the stories about the latest hackings of retail stores that will continue to be repeated in the news in the months ahead. Since the hacking of Target that began around Thanksgiving 2013, we have seen the same story played out in store after store, including

Despite its size, Home Depot's data breach has been met with a big, fat yawn in many circles. Why? In September, Home Depot said that its payment systems had been breached, which may have impacted roughly 56 million cards, making it significantly larger than the Target breach, which impacted about 40 million cards. Already, card-issuing banks J.P. Morgan Chase and Capital One have announced that they will send out new credit cards to those potentially impacted by the breach. While the Home Depot story is certainly garnering attention, consumers seem to be less angry about it than the Target breach. 

They compete tooth and nail to draw customers to their Midtown flagship stores, but Macy's and J.C. Penney are teaming up to block the thievery of organized crooks. The rivals have joined more than 100 companies and the NYPD to form an alliance that will be known as the Metropolitan Organized Retail Crime Alliance. Its objective is to improve retail stores’ security efforts by sharing intelligence on crews of bandits, scams and ripoffs. Target, Home Depot and Rite Aid have also signed up for the crime-busting venture. Computer giant Apple is poised to jump onboard soon, sources said.

Using compelling content, smart retailers like The Home Depot, e.l.f. Cosmetics, Kidrobot and REI are giving consumers unique and memorable shopping experiences that create powerful brand loyalty and convince them to buy. Here's how they do it:
 

Home Depot said Thursday that a data breach that lasted for months at its stores in the U.S. and Canada affected 56 million debit and credit cards, far more than a pre-Christmas 2013 attack on Target customers. The size of the theft at Home Depot trails only that of TJX Companies’ breach of 90 million records in 2007. Target's breach compromised 40 million credit and debit cards. Home Depot, the nation's largest home improvement retailer, said that the malware used in the data breach that took place between April and September has been eliminated. 

Home Depot has confirmed that its payment systems were hacked at its U.S. and Canada stores starting in April. Customers who paid with cards may have had their data compromised. The company says there's no evidence that pin numbers from debit cards were stolen. On Sept. 2, Home Depot said it was working with banks and law enforcement to investigate reports that its stores could have been the source of a new batch of credit and debit card numbers being sold on the black market. 

This morning Twitter introduced its Buy Now button, a feature that enables users to make purchases directly on the social network as well as its mobile app. Twitter is the latest social network to integrate commerce into its offering, with previous efforts seeing varying degrees of success.

Home Depot has been hit with a class-action lawsuit stemming from a suspected data breach at the home improvement retailer. While one legal expert portrays the lawsuit as premature because the investigation is still under way, another says the filing was made because it's highly likely the breach will be confirmed. The lawsuit, filed Sept. 4 in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Georgia, alleges that the retailer failed to meet its legal obligation to protect customers’ credit card and personal information. It also accuses Home Depot of not notifying its customers about the alleged breach.