| News about digital retail commerce |  |
- Department stores beef up investment in online retail
Department stores including Dillard's and Macy's are making a major investment as more customers migrate to shopping online. Last month, both chains announced a plan to open Internet-only fulfillment centers. Macy's added that it plans to hire hundreds of workers to support online retail growth. "If online is the fastest-growing segment, you have to be insane not to invest a disproportionate amount of your available capital to online," said retail consultant Howard Davidowitz. Arkansas Business (1/24)      
- Retailers pay big bucks for Web domain names
The rapid growth in online shopping is helping drive a hot market for in-demand Web domain names, a market that's coming to resemble commercial real estate, write consultants Jeremy Aguero and Jake Joyce. While many domain names can still be acquired for relatively low prices, merchants including Toys "R" Us and Slots.com have spent millions to acquire coveted domains, and some entrepreneurs have created online listing services to match domain-name buyers and sellers. In Business Las Vegas (1/24)  | Target plans to launch its new website for the 2011 holiday season. Bring your talents to our groundbreaking e-commerce initiative as we launch our new Target.com website and continue to lead the explosive mobile retail experience. Join our Talent Community; apply for great new careers, and keep track of what's happening at Target.com! | - Do employee check-ins have a chilling effect?
Weekly Foursquare check-in rankings by Advertising Age reveal that some retailers have consistently higher rates than others, a trend the publication attributes in part to employees who check in every time they show up for a shift. The trend could have a chilling effect on potential customers who could come to believe they have no chance of ever reaching "Mayor" status when they're competing against workers who show up daily, writes Matt Carmichael. Advertising Age (tiered subscription model)/AdAgeStat blog (1/24) - 3 types of social communities retailers must address
 Marketers have three types of communities to consider when formulating their social strategies, writes social business consultant Jacob Morgan. External communities are the most targeted because they consist of customers and potential customers, but effective social marketing plans also address the needs of hybrid communities, which typically include employees, vendors and sometimes "super users." Internal employee-only communities are on the rise -- networks that staffers use to collaborate on projects and find subject experts. CustomerThink (1/24)  | Blog like the big brands
McDonalds' Rick Wion joins practitioners from Cisco, Ford, Sony and Proctor & Gamble to share insights into using blogs to expand your business. 23 blogging experts give you strategies for engaging your fans & growing your brand at the Blogging Success Summit. Early-bird pricing ends 1/25. Register today! |
 | Companies in the News |  | | | - Sales at Nook Newsstand gain momentum
Subscriptions to magazines and newspapers on Barnes & Noble's Nook Newsstand have increased 150% since Christmas, while subscriptions and single-copy sales have hit more than 650,000. The newsstand offers about 120 digital periodicals, and sales have been on the rise since the company launched its color e-reader in October. PC Magazine (1/24) - Facebook to phase out online currencies
Facebook has informed game developers that they will be required to offer Facebook Credits as the only means for players to get real currency into a game, effective July 1. The move may be the social giant's next step in creating a "Pay With Facebook" option for third-party websites selling physical goods as well as virtual ones. TechCrunch (1/24) - McDonald's to add contactless payment options in the U.K.
McDonald's plans to institute a contactless payment system to all 1,200 stores in the U.K. this year, giving guests the option of touching payment cards on a wireless reader without having to enter PIN numbers. The move comes shortly after Starbucks announced its plans to let customers use their mobile phones to pay for purchases. "From McDonald's point of view, it's very important because it enables it to increase the speed of payment and reduce queues," said Juniper analyst Howard Wilcox. ComputerWeekly.com (U.K.) (1/24)
| Interactive Advertising | | | | | Shop.org Spotlight | | | | - American Eagle, 1-800-Flowers.com execs talk social monetization
You are tweeting, you have a Facebook page, you have built a community. Now what? Join executives from American Eagle Outfitters and 1-800-Flowers.com for a Shop.org webinar on Jan. 26 as they discuss hot social monetization trends for 2011 including social commerce, virtual goods and currency and group buying. Registration is limited to NRF and Shop.org members only. Learn more. - Shop.org SmartStat: Jan. 25, 2011
 79% of retailers say they use Twitter, up from 61% in 2009. Source: Retail Horizons 2010.
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