  | News about digital retail commerce |  |
- Scholastic.com creates virtual book club for teen readers
Publisher and children's book retailer Scholastic said it will launch its "this is teen" virtual book club later this month, along with a location-based mobile gaming app from Scvngr that allows members to accrue points by performing book-related challenges such as writing the best opening line for a story. "When targeting a teen audience, it's absolutely crucial to include a mobile component in your brand's campaign to drive engagement and recall," said Scvngr Vice President Chris Mahl. InternetRetailer.com (4/8)        | eCommerce Replatforming Incentives for 2011!
Venda can help you expand internationally, manage all your commerce in one place and test new strategies like mobile and social commerce. Our transparent and efficient business model help us lower costs and provide superior ROI. Visit or call to learn about incentives for upgrading to Venda from Volusion, Marketlive, Demandware or ATG. | - Why Marbles: The Brain Store gave its website a makeover
To continue on its aggressive expansion path and win $5 million from outside investors, Chicago-based merchant Marbles: The Brain Store had to transform its website from an afterthought into a true online store. The merchant undertook a six-month makeover for the site, which is now forecast to bring in about 10% of total revenue compared to 1% last year, making it one of a growing number of small retailers who are turning their sites from simple pages into viable selling channels. Crain's Chicago Business (4/11) - Tips for website tweaks to boost online sales: Small merchants often find that making small, affordable tweaks to their websites can boost sales without the expense of a major overhaul. Creating must-read content and appointing one staffer to be in charge of keeping your site updated are less-expensive options that have paid off for Chicago-based retailers World Shoppe and Barker & Meowsky. Crain's Chicago Business (4/11)
 | Akamai - The Right Partner with the Right Solution
Are you failing to to satisfy user expectations for an outstanding online shopping experience? Do you need to accelerate your dynamic content? Do you strive to be a retailer that pushes the envelope with site technology and offerings? Learn why the Akamai Dynamic Site Accelerator is the right solution for those issues and more. |
 | New Media & Technology |  | | | - Experts advise merchants to keep QR content valuable
As mobile shopping gains in popularity, retailers from Macy's to Best Buy to Sephora are experimenting with quick-response codes that smartphone users can scan to access websites, promotions, product information and style-focused content. Experts advise merchants to pay particular attention to providing relevant and useful content when crafting QR campaigns. "You better get something good. I'm talking about an exclusive discount," said Chris Mason, co-founder of mobile commerce company Branding Brand. Pittsburgh Post-Gazette (4/10) - Smartphone app simplifies grocery shopping
Tim Stanford and Kate Cass have developed a free application for iPhones that allows users to scan the bar codes of products in their pantry to easily develop shopping lists. The app can organise the lists into aisles that align with the supermarket layout. "The idea for the application was born when Kate's husband suggested he do the weekly shop," said Stanford. "Upon his return Kate found she had all kinds of weird and wonderful things, not to mention the things he forgot ... forcing her to go back to the shops. Something so frustrating that we all can relate to." The Sydney Morning Herald (Australia) (4/8)  | Business Platinum Card®
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  | Hot Topics | | | | Top five news stories selected by Shop.org SmartBrief readers in the past week. - Results based on number of times each story was clicked by readers.
| Companies in the News | | | | - Lands' End iPad strategy exploits mobile capabilities
Like many other retailers that have embraced emerging e-commerce technologies, Lands' End is taking a unique strategy with its iPad marketing approach. As Kathy Neumann, who heads up the clothing retailer's marketing practice, explains, the mobile device offers up tons of capabilities for engaging shoppers beyond the traditional online catalog experience. eMarketer (4/8) - Google joins with national merchants to expand Latitude check-in
Google expanded its Latitude check-in service for Apple iPhone and Google Android smartphones to additional markets last week through national partnerships with chains including American Eagle Outfitters, RadioShack, Quiznos and Arby's. Retail and restaurant partners are offering promotions in exchange for check-ins, along with reward tags, such as the "Champion of Taste" at Quiznos. Yahoo!/PC World (4/8) - Groupon launches daily deals to match consumer interest
Groupon has launched a new service in its home market of Chicago that promises to match users with promotions based on their areas of interest, starting last week with Home & Garden deals. The Home & Garden e-mails will boast six deals instead of one, and the bargains will run for three or four days. InternetRetailer.com (4/8) - Expert: Facebook and Square to give PayPal a run for its money
 PayPal is still seeing strong growth, but a few flaws may provide room for newer rivals including Facebook and Square to make inroads, writes former PayPal executive and payment systems expert Ohad Samet. PayPal's reliance on traditional credit card systems, its concentration in the U.S. and the requirement that users be redirected to its site to complete a transaction are likely to tempt at least some small businesses and consumers to switch, he writes. TechCrunch (4/9) | | | Most Popular Headlines from Last Week Results based on number of times each story was clicked by readers. |
| Shop.org Spotlight | | | |  | - How to successfully execute a multichannel makeover
In today's retail environment, a multichannel brand must be all things to all people -- physical, online, mobile and social. Hear what executives from two retail companies learned as they tackled multichannel brand changes that included in-store, Web and catalog redesigns, and investment in new marketing and commerce channels. During tomorrow's Shop.org webinar, executives from Talbots and Big M (Mandee and Annie sez) will share mobile marketing tactics that drive traffic, what makeovers mean for customer services, and the moments of truth they experienced during the process. Learn more. |
- Learn how to grow globally at the 2011 Global E-commerce Summit
Shop.org heads to Barcelona, Spain, May 23-25 as an industry partner for the annual Global E-commerce Summit. With speakers hailing from Expedia Europe, Forrester, YOOX Group, Pixmania.com and Best Buy, attendees will learn about new perspectives to develop and grow global online and cross-channel retail. Learn more.
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