ALICIA FIORLETTA

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retailtouchpoints: Develop An Interest In Pinterest: 3 Ways To Capitalize On The Latest Social Network Craze By Amanda F. Batista, Associate Editor If social networks are the popular students at school, Pinterest is the new, cool kid on the block. Founded on the idea that a “virtual pinboard” can help users organize and share their favorite things found on the web, Pinterest is a retail treasure-trove.  According to comScore, Pinterest drew 11.7 million unique monthly visitors in January 2012, making it the third-fastest-growing web site since December 2011. Moreover, Pinterest drove nearly 4% of all web traffic referrals in January, according to content-sharing firm Shareaholic. That’s more than Google+, LinkedIn and YouTube combined. To help retailers get in on the sharing action, I suggest the following three basic tips that can help retailers garner more customer interest, based on my personal experience using Pinterest. Make Sure Customers Aren’t “Board” To Death — Although the foundation of Pinterest is pinning to boards, retailers can step outside the box and create boards of images that put a face to the brand. For instance, create a board with your executive’s favorite items from the spring collection, or the products that you’re using at home. This helps customers identify with you on a personal level, and on a Pinterest level. Empower Users To Aspire — Pinterest is one mish-mosh of community commodities. From the things users just need to have (new spring pumps, anyone?) to those aspirational images that are merely out-of-reach, such as shiny, new, stainless steel kitchen appliances, the online community is a goldmine of “gimme gimme.” The mindset of a Pinterest user is simple: look, want, love and aspire. Keep this in mind when posting new images — and encourage the community to pin products across a bunch of different user boards. Integrate To Instigate The Sale — As with other social networks and shopping channels, retailers have a great opportunity to integrate Pinterest into their product sharing functionality to immediately enable users to pin an image. For example, JewelMint, an eTailer and jewelry recommendation site, customizes its assortment for users and enables visitors to pin products to their Pinterest pin boards directly from the product page. Similar to a digital scrapbook, Pinterest allows shoppers to easily gather and admire the products and brands they know and love, and on their own terms. Although retailers still are determining optimal engagement strategies via Pinterest, the site creates a promising opportunity for shoppers to engage with inventory on a more intimate level.  At Retail TouchPoints, we have reported on Pinterest with great interest — as part of an overall Social Commerce feature, Parts I and II, as well as in an Infographic.Follow Amanda on Twitter: @AmandaF_Batista

retailtouchpoints:

Develop An Interest In Pinterest:
3 Ways To Capitalize On The Latest Social Network Craze

By Amanda F. Batista, Associate Editor

If social networks are the popular students at school, Pinterest is the new, cool kid on the block. Founded on the idea that a “virtual pinboard” can help users organize and share their favorite things found on the web, Pinterest is a retail treasure-trove.  According to comScore, Pinterest drew 11.7 million unique monthly visitors in January 2012, making it the third-fastest-growing web site since December 2011.

Moreover, Pinterest drove nearly 4% of all web traffic referrals in January, according to content-sharing firm Shareaholic. That’s more than Google+, LinkedIn and YouTube combined.

To help retailers get in on the sharing action, I suggest the following three basic tips that can help retailers garner more customer interest, based on my personal experience using Pinterest.

  1. Make Sure Customers Aren’t “Board” To Death — Although the foundation of Pinterest is pinning to boards, retailers can step outside the box and create boards of images that put a face to the brand. For instance, create a board with your executive’s favorite items from the spring collection, or the products that you’re using at home. This helps customers identify with you on a personal level, and on a Pinterest level.
  1. Empower Users To Aspire — Pinterest is one mish-mosh of community commodities. From the things users just need to have (new spring pumps, anyone?) to those aspirational images that are merely out-of-reach, such as shiny, new, stainless steel kitchen appliances, the online community is a goldmine of “gimme gimme.” The mindset of a Pinterest user is simple: look, want, love and aspire. Keep this in mind when posting new images — and encourage the community to pin products across a bunch of different user boards.
  2. Integrate To Instigate The Sale — As with other social networks and shopping channels, retailers have a great opportunity to integrate Pinterest into their product sharing functionality to immediately enable users to pin an image. For example, JewelMint, an eTailer and jewelry recommendation site, customizes its assortment for users and enables visitors to pin products to their Pinterest pin boards directly from the product page.

Similar to a digital scrapbook, Pinterest allows shoppers to easily gather and admire the products and brands they know and love, and on their own terms. Although retailers still are determining optimal engagement strategies via Pinterest, the site creates a promising opportunity for shoppers to engage with inventory on a more intimate level.

 At Retail TouchPoints, we have reported on Pinterest with great interest — as part of an overall Social Commerce feature, Parts I and II, as well as in an Infographic.

Follow Amanda on Twitter: @AmandaF_Batista

Valentine’s Day Results Spotlight Mobile Mayhem

I’ve never been one for Valentine’s Day. Even after being in a monogamous relationship for nearly three years, I find it silly for couples to focus on one singleday in the entire year to be nice to each other and shower each other with gifts. Are we really confining showing our significant others that we care to just one day a year? Really? But I digress…


Regardless of my pseudo-feminist rants, the fat cats at Hallmark are reigning victorious once again — and so are retailers. Consumers flooded to drug stores, department store chains, and jewelry shops to find the perfect gift for their sweethearts. In fact, results from National Retail Federation’s 2012 Valentine’s Day Consumer Intentions and Actions survey, conducted by BIGinsight, revealed that the average shopper was expected to spend $126.03, an 8.5% increase from 2011 and the highest results of the survey’s 10-year history.

However, shoppers’ increased desire to buy for their Valentine’s spotlights the continual growth of mobile shopper. Many analysts point to 2012 as the “Year of Mobile Commerce;” it’s safe to say it has officially arrived.

John Squire, Director of Digital Marketing and Analytics for IBM, revealed analysis the week leading up to Valentine’s Day, which indicated that 14.5% of all online sessions on a retailer’s site occurred via mobile device. Furthermore, 10.1% of all online sales for the same period came through mobile device.

“Couch commerce” is an integral part of the shopping journey. Consumers now tap into their smartphones and tablets to browse possible purchases to ensure they find the best buy. In fact, that pre-shopping research period is a necessity to mobile-savvy consumers. Sometimes, they a seamless and memorable mobile experience is all shoppers need to move across the buying lifecycle straight to the point of sale.

But the top are many retailers struggle with is determining the key characteristics of an optimal mobile experience. How can one start? By finding out the preferences, as well as the browsing and buying behaviors of today’s technology dependent shoppers. I recently wrote a two-part series all about analyzing the mobile consumer. Industry analysts and experts shared their thoughts on the rise of mobile and how retailers can keep pace. From personalization to location-based offers, best-in-class retailers are pulling the stops to reach the new, evolved shopper. Need more proof? Check out the feature here.

The following blog was written by Retail TouchPoints’ own Debbie Hauss, my editor-in-chief. We always discuss social as a key driver of engagement and customer communication. But commerce? Sure, this trend has been brewing in the retail trenches for a while now, but analysts and merchants alike are still debating its efficiency. A recent article from Bloomberg, in fact, recently pointed to the inevitable implosion and extinction of social commerce. Bloomberg reporter and author of the piece, Ashley Lutz, spotlighted some hard-hitting examples, which include GameStop, GAP, JCPenney and Nordstrom. All retailers opened Facebook storefronts, and quickly shut them down. “There was a lot of anticipation that Facebook would turn into a new destination, a store, a place where people would shop,” Forrester Analyst Sucharita Mulpuru told Lutz in a telephone interview. “But it was like trying to sell stuff to people while they’re hanging out with their friends at the bar.” A fair assessment. However, with Facebook’s recent IPO filing, retailers may be sparked to further investigate the social network’s profit potential. In a recent discussion with Richard Hastings, Macro and Consumer Strategist for Global Hunter Securities, LLC, he explained that by becoming a public company, Facebook will be able to enlighten companies with more analytic insight into social engagements, such as “Likes” and comments. “We’re starting to see the first wave of financial measurability for social, which influences the whole space,” Hastings explained. “It makes retailers ask how profitable their current social strategies are, and how they can alter their tactics more effectively.”It will be interesting to see how the space continues to develop….but until then, give Debbie’s piece a look and see why it’s vital for us to dive deeper into the world and meaning of social commerce. retailtouchpoints: Preparing For Social Commerce, Quickly By Debbie Hauss, Editor-in-Chief Admittedly, it’s taken me a while to jump on the social media bandwagon. I watched the movie “The Social Network” with awe and envy – wishing I was smart and industrious enough to launch such an idea. I originally joined Facebook so I could see my daughter’s pictures from her travels in Thailand. Now when I do anything on the Internet – make a purchase or sign up for a race to run – I’m asked if I want to let everyone on Facebook know what I’ve just done. LinkedIn and Twitter have become part of my everyday routine as Editor-in-Chief of Retail TouchPoints. It’s amazing to me how quickly one can gain “followers” when one “follows” others. I have learned more about mobile apps from my 19-year-old son than anyone else. I’m also impressed with some of my friends, also from the baby boomer generation, who have embraced blogging and sites like Pinterest. Reluctantly, although now with piqued interest, I’ve come around to the fact the social media has become an integral part of our everyday existence. That said, Social Commerce is now emerging as an impressive part of the equation. Facebook storefronts are popping up and retailers are quickly organizing around the idea of integrating social commerce as the next great retail opportunity. At Retail TouchPoints, we have watched this trend grow. In response, we recently published a two-part feature article, titled Social Commerce – The New Era of E-Commerce. This week, we launched a ground-breaking survey that garnered an impressive response in just the first day of release. Titled The Push Toward Social Commerce, the survey promises to provide merchants with the insights, tools and strategies they need to pursue this great new channel with confidence and success. Retail executives are invited to participate by clicking here. All respondents will receive a complimentary copy of the final report. I’m sure many of you have advanced more quickly into the social realm than I have, but I hope that as we move together into the new world of social commerce, we do so with curiosity, awe and anticipation of whatever could be coming next. —- Follow Debbie on Twitter for more information on Social Commerce trends: @DHauss

The following blog was written by Retail TouchPoints’ own Debbie Hauss, my editor-in-chief. We always discuss social as a key driver of engagement and customer communication. But commerce? Sure, this trend has been brewing in the retail trenches for a while now, but analysts and merchants alike are still debating its efficiency.

A recent article from Bloomberg, in fact, recently pointed to the inevitable implosion and extinction of social commerce. Bloomberg reporter and author of the piece, Ashley Lutz, spotlighted some hard-hitting examples, which include GameStop, GAP, JCPenney and Nordstrom. All retailers opened Facebook storefronts, and quickly shut them down.

“There was a lot of anticipation that Facebook would turn into a new destination, a store, a place where people would shop,” Forrester Analyst Sucharita Mulpuru told Lutz in a telephone interview. “But it was like trying to sell stuff to people while they’re hanging out with their friends at the bar.”

A fair assessment. However, with Facebook’s recent IPO filing, retailers may be sparked to further investigate the social network’s profit potential. In a recent discussion with Richard Hastings, Macro and Consumer Strategist for Global Hunter Securities, LLC, he explained that by becoming a public company, Facebook will be able to enlighten companies with more analytic insight into social engagements, such as “Likes” and comments.

“We’re starting to see the first wave of financial measurability for social, which influences the whole space,” Hastings explained. “It makes retailers ask how profitable their current social strategies are, and how they can alter their tactics more effectively.”

It will be interesting to see how the space continues to develop….but until then, give Debbie’s piece a look and see why it’s vital for us to dive deeper into the world and meaning of social commerce.

retailtouchpoints:

Preparing For Social Commerce, Quickly

By Debbie Hauss, Editor-in-Chief

Admittedly, it’s taken me a while to jump on the social media bandwagon. I watched the movie “The Social Network” with awe and envy – wishing I was smart and industrious enough to launch such an idea. I originally joined Facebook so I could see my daughter’s pictures from her travels in Thailand. Now when I do anything on the Internet – make a purchase or sign up for a race to run – I’m asked if I want to let everyone on Facebook know what I’ve just done.

LinkedIn and Twitter have become part of my everyday routine as Editor-in-Chief of Retail TouchPoints. It’s amazing to me how quickly one can gain “followers” when one “follows” others. I have learned more about mobile apps from my 19-year-old son than anyone else. I’m also impressed with some of my friends, also from the baby boomer generation, who have embraced blogging and sites like Pinterest. Reluctantly, although now with piqued interest, I’ve come around to the fact the social media has become an integral part of our everyday existence.

That said, Social Commerce is now emerging as an impressive part of the equation. Facebook storefronts are popping up and retailers are quickly organizing around the idea of integrating social commerce as the next great retail opportunity.

At Retail TouchPoints, we have watched this trend grow. In response, we recently published a two-part feature article, titled Social Commerce – The New Era of E-Commerce. This week, we launched a ground-breaking survey that garnered an impressive response in just the first day of release. Titled The Push Toward Social Commerce, the survey promises to provide merchants with the insights, tools and strategies they need to pursue this great new channel with confidence and success. Retail executives are invited to participate by clicking here. All respondents will receive a complimentary copy of the final report.

I’m sure many of you have advanced more quickly into the social realm than I have, but I hope that as we move together into the new world of social commerce, we do so with curiosity, awe and anticipation of whatever could be coming next.

—-

Follow Debbie on Twitter for more information on Social Commerce trends: @DHauss

A Fashion Junkie’s Dream: My First Fashion Week Experience

Growing up, I thrived and survived for fashion. At the ripe and innocent age of 7, I scraped my leftover Christmas and Birthday money to buy the latest issues of Vogue, Allure and the like. I was the real-life characterization of Thirteen Going On Thirty. Only it was more Seven Going On Twenty-Seven, I guess. When E! used to show behind-the-scenes footage of Fashion Week and fashion shows, my eyes were glued to the screen as if I was tuning in to happenings of a natural disaster.

Although I have veered more towards the technology and marketing spaces within retail, I still live for luxury and all things fashion. From Marc Jacobs and Chanel, to Betsey Johnson and Christian Louboutin, I get so much joy out of seeing creative minds provide art for the human form. This past week, one of my childhood dreams came true: I got to attend New York Fashion Week.

Granted, it was not the typical situation: American Express Business Insights unveiled compelling research on the luxury market and I had the opportunity to hear Ed Jay, the company’s Senior VP, speak on the subject.

Not much to my surprise, the market is thriving. In fact, luxury was the fastest retail category to bounce back from the recession, according to Jay. I shared a majority of the key findings in a recent article for Retail TouchPoints.

Results revealed that despite an insecure job market and turbulent economy, Generation Y consumers ramped up their spending on luxury goods, increasing purchases on premium luxury fashion by 33% in 2011 over 2010. This is a positive bounce-back after the stagnant results from the recession, Jay explained.

Jay also touched on the more eclectic, younger consumer. As a young, modern shopper, I appreciate classic brands that are higher-priced. Overall, I have no problem spending money if I know the quality is good. With that in mind, I also enjoy buying fun, outrageous accessories and graphic tees from Forever 21, H&M and Threadless. There are no rules today. For boring retailers, this is a giant obstacle. However, this new evolution has allowed cutting-edge, “no rules” brands and designers to stand out.

Jay noted: “Unlike older generations, Gen Y is less brand loyal and willing to experiment with luxury brands, providing an excellent opportunity for luxury marketers,” he said.

Indeed. And experimentation is key: for fashion and marketing. With the powers of social media and mobile, retailers must be fearless and have fun!

After the conference, I got to catch the Concept Korea showing. Lush, purple furs, metallic, goddess-inspired tops and sequin minis were among the flock. However, the showing also displayed more retro, earthy-toned looks, including graphic knit skirts and bold sweaters with blocks of colors. It was such an amazing experience to see these looks in the flesh, and observe how ideas turned into real-life items and works of art.

maccosmetics:

Jeremy Scott, AW12 New York Fashion Week

So sick!

A second is no more than a second, a minute no more than a minute, a day no more than a day. They pass. All things and all time will pass. Don’t force or fear, don’t control or lose control. Don’t fight and don’t stop fighting. Embrace and endure. If you embrace, you will endure.

—james frey, “a million little pieces” (via thiselephante)

(via alliea)

This photo is inspiring me to bust out my metallic blue liner. Although I don’t think I’m bold enough to do the dots underneath. Another fantastic look from #NYFW, courtesy of Anna Sui.

This photo is inspiring me to bust out my metallic blue liner. Although I don’t think I’m bold enough to do the dots underneath. Another fantastic look from #NYFW, courtesy of Anna Sui.

(Source: glamour)