Category Archives: Merchandising and Marketing

by Ulyana Avetisov

Ensuring retail success in the post-peak era

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Retailers have been pushing to extend peak seasons like Christmas to gain more sales, but modern consumers shop on their own schedule and retailers must adapt and cater to their off-season needs.

By Kerry Lemos, CEO, Retail Pro International

 

Christmas coming earlier every year might be a cliché for most people, but for the retail industry it’s a simple fact.

We’re already seeing retailers prepare for the festive season, identifying the key products that will be this year’s must-haves and gearing up their Christmas campaigns.

This is very much in line with the traditional retail business models built around spikes in activity brought on by peak shopping periods. With stock piled high and temporary recruits boosting numbers on the shop floor, activity can be ramped up for a few weeks before returning to normal levels.

In recent years, however, these peaks have become much less well-defined.

Take Christmas, for instance. The season now covers much more than just a few weeks. It now spans the extended period from the build-up to Thanksgiving through to Black Friday, Cyber Monday and the January sales, where some retailers might hope to do half of their annual business.

This period of retail chaos means retailers are in direct competition for the same limited number of festive shoppers for an increasing amount of time, with both shoppers’ attention and supply chains becoming squeezed.

 

A new world

At the same time, Christmas is no longer the only peak period retailers need to be aware of.

In the UK, the growth of festivals such as Eid, Diwali and the Chinese New Year has introduced new periods that retailers may need to prepare for. Beyond these major festivals, there are other times of the year that could be seen as a peak period to some, or all, of the population, from the first day of spring to the beginning and end of the summer holidays.

What all of these periods show is that many retailers’ approach to consumers needs to change. Customers cannot be treated as a single mass who all shop at the same time, in the same way, and for the same things.

Focusing attention on a single, defined peak period is a strategy that retailers must move on from: individuals have their own approach to shopping, and as such have developed their own personal peak shopping periods.

 

Giving the public what they want

 

The question for retailers then is, how do they support these individual peak periods without losing the ability to maximize the potential of established shopping seasons?

Here are 3 actions retailers can take that will tip the odds in their favor.

 

Cross channels

We haven’t just seen an evolution in when people shop, but in how they shop. Customers won’t restrict their peak shopping period to simply visiting a select number of brick-and-mortar stores.

On the other hand, few consumers will do a hundred percent of their shopping online, instead welcoming the opportunity to browse for certain items in the flesh. Retailers should ensure these customers have a seamless experience, whether shopping online or in-store, with access to the same information and interactions however they purchase their products.

Ideally, a customer should be able to begin their shop in-store and complete it online, or vice versa, in a consistent, omnichannel exchange.

 

Map the landscape

With “peak” periods becoming more of a constant presence, it’s important that retailers understand exactly when these periods happen.

For instance, the Christmas period now begins in November and ends in January; but within this, there are individual days which show still-increased activity or relative slowdowns.

Not only this, but retailers must decide how they switch to peak periods; does activity accelerate overnight, or is there a slow build-up and deceleration to ensure they can attract shoppers who are operating on a slightly different timetable?

 

Build profiles

While predicting and supporting the shopping habits of every single individual is beyond the reach of retailers, they should still ensure they have categorised how their customers behave in peak periods and act accordingly.

For example, what proportion of shoppers do their holiday shopping early, and which wait until the last minute? How many spread their shopping across the whole period, and how many spend everything on one or two occasions? And when exactly do their customers flock to the store?

Using this information, retailers can build profiles of their customers and anticipate their needs throughout the year as appropriate.

 

By offering an omnichannel experience, mapping out the peak calendar and ensuring they have profiled their customers, retailers can ensure that they are supporting peak shopping for all their customers; whether it happens at Christmas or Candlemas.

 

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by Jennifer Bosavage

Do You Offer a ‘Wow’ Shopping Experience?

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Much like their marketing strategies, sales procedures and product development efforts, retailers must put time into creating the ideal customer experience.

It’s one thing for a retailer to announce it wants to create a more experiential experience for customers, and quite another to do it.

Talk of creating a compelling retail experience has been around for several years, driven in large part by the competition to brick and mortars by e-commerce. In a day and age in which shoppers can shop quickly and efficiently online, retailers need to offer customers a compelling reason to step foot inside a real building.

The irony is that experiential shopping isn’t new, rather, it harkens back to a golden age. Back in the 1950s and 60s, shopping was an event. Stores provided hair salons and restaurants for “ladies who lunch,” for example. While clientele has changed greatly in the past 60+ years, the lesson to be learned is that shoppers enjoy being catered to. Retailers that build memorable experiences will be rewarded with larger shopping carts and loyal customers.

Case in point: Ulta, a purveyor of beauty products, has found it very profitable to provide customers an entire spectrum of items, some costing pocket change and others the price of a fancy dinner for two. The reason Ulta has become a destination, explained a Wall Street Journal reporter to NPR recently, is that it took the bold step of including such a wide array of products. Typically, manufacturers are loath to share floor space with brands that are elsewhere on the value chain, i.e., luxury and bargain brands don’t mix. But at Ulta, they do. And customers are thrilled.

Ulta management theorized that women who use a $8 mascara might want to come in and buy that product — and perhaps also indulge in something new or “special.” Combining that idea with free services such as mini-makeovers, and they had a winning formula. As a result, revenue rose nearly 24-percent last quarter, and a total of 970 stores are planned by the end of the year.

The strategy not only exemplifies how destination shopping can improve the bottom line, but it also speaks to the importance of promoting complementary purchases. In essence, Ulta counted on customers making at least one “impulse” buy while they were at the store: that mascara could use eyeliner; this foundation might benefit from concealer, etc.

In addition, the personal touch is not forced, rather, it is sought after by the customer. Associates greet each guest, and they offer to apply products and make suggestions — all at the request of the shopper. The customer is enjoying herself, doesn’t feel harassed and feels in control.

And that is a beautiful retail experience.

 

 

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by Jennifer Bosavage

The Critical Issue of Out-Of-Stocks

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One of the top complaints retailers hear from customers is the lack of product, or “out of stocks.” Few things are more aggravating for a shopper than arriving at a store and finding that the desired product is unavailable. In response to sagging sales as a result of empty shelves, mega-retailer Target is aiming to take control of the supply-chain problems and shore up its customer satisfaction as well as sales.

Online retailers and brick-and-mortar shops alike depend on good inventory management to run an efficient business.

Online retailers and brick-and-mortar shops alike depend on good inventory management to run an efficient business.

A study from IHL Group last year reported that overstocks and out-of-stocks cost retailers $1.1 trillion globally in lost revenue. Inventory management systems can help, because they inform managers what products are hot sellers. However, some products are must-haves for retailers to carry: For grocers, it might be ketchup, for an office supply store it could be reams of paper. Those are staples that have to be there no matter what. Barren shelves are an issue that, for instance, Wal-mart is criticized for frequently, and that Target has been under fire for recently as well.

But while Walmart’s woes seem to be related to being short-staffed and, therefore, unable to move inventory from the stockroom to the sales floor, Target’s stem from inventory management. There simply isn’t product in the stockroom to display. Last summer, during a conference call with investors, CEO Brian Cornell blamed the inventory problem on an antiquated supply chain strategy that didn’t account for a multi-channel approach to selling. The ability to buy online and pickup in store (BOPIS) had successfully depleted brick and mortar supplies. As a result, Cornell has since launched a strategy designed to take control of the supply chain — which previously had largely been outsourced — to get products onto shelves and into customer’s baskets.

The importance of customer satisfaction in this realm was not lost on the newly minted Chief Operating Officer John Mulligan, who was promoted from the role of Chief Financial Officer. ”Given the breadth and complexity of the business, it will always be a challenge to be in stock on every item in every store… but our guests need us to be consistent in delivering everyday essentials,” Mulligan told Business Advisor.

What Target is learning is that while those products need to be available, not every permutation of the product has to be stocked. For example, how many types of bottled water are needed to satisfy customers? How many bottles does each “case” have to have? Will a shopper walk out if the 16.9 oz. bottles are only available in a 24 pack?

Target is betting that narrowing those types of selections will be acceptable to customers and easier for the stores to manage. It seems to be working: Fortune reported that out-of-stocks were down a whopping 40% during the holiday shopping period. In addition, e-commerce sales rose 34% during the holiday shopping season, according to investorplace.com. Some of the resulting profit will likely fund Target’s expanding use of RFID for inventory, which will enable the retailer to wirelessly track products in stores, warehouses and en route to customers.

All of which shows just how interconnected multichannel commerce truly is: Keeping the shelves stocked on Main Street will keep shopping carts filled on the ground, as well as online.

 

by Jennifer Bosavage

3 Technologies Retailers Need In 2016

As we are in the last hours of 2015, it seems like an ideal time to reflect on three technologies that made a large impact on retailers this year, and that are poised to make a “huge”— to use a word commonly used by one certain presidential candidate — impact in 2016. Retailers looking to increase visibility as well as revenue should consider these implementations.

1. Beacons and geofencing
Beacons give retailers visibility over foot traffic, in addition to the ability to push relevant information to consumers’ smartphones.

Geofencing lets retailers promote products when shoppers enter a specific, predetermined area. It’s not difficult to see how these technologies can complement each other and drive quality customers through the door. However, geofencing works best when used in combination with beacon technology, and can provide a more complete view of customer behavior. Retailers are beginning to see the potential; according to luxurydaily.com, investment in geofencing will reach $300 million by 2017. The challenge for retailers is to get customers to enable location services and bluetooth on their smartphones. Such services use battery power and, to some, bring up privacy issues. Given the proper incentives by retailers, much of that resistance can be overcome.

2.  RFID
Yes, this technology has been around–and around. But it’s time to shine has finally arrived. Juniper Research recently reported

RFID tags can be used for a number of retail purposes.

RFID tags can be used for a number of retail purposes.

that Internet of things (IoT) technologies will be implemented by far more retailers in 2016; the firm expects merchants will spend an estimated $2.5 billion in hardware and installation costs, nearly a fourfold increase over this year’s estimated $670 million spend. And RFID is a part of that investment. RFID helps retailers with in real-time asset tracking, reduced labour costs and even dynamic pricing according to stock levels and online pricing. Software applications are catching up to what this veteran technology can offer. Linking the potential capabilities of RFID tags with beacons and geofencing promises more thorough business insight and an improved customer experience.

3. BOPIS: Buy online, pick up in store
Shoppers are looking for ways to streamline their lives, just like retailers want to make their operations more efficient. By facilitating “strategic strikes” — shopping trips that are meant for specific items, in which the customer is a buyer, not a shopper — retailers cultivate goodwill. A customer who knows a trip for a specific green sweater will be met with success and will require minimal waiting on a checkout line is likely to return. Look for BOPIS to evolve to include curbside pickup. Target and Kroger recently rolled out curbside pickup services in some locations, while Sears has expanded its in-vehicle curb services to include returns and exchanges. Curbside services acknowledge that the customer is patronizing the store for a specific reason and does not want to go inside. Rather than fight that fact and risk antagonizing customers with offers to “come inside for…” smart retailers are accommodating the desire to pick up merchandise and leave. They recognize that they’ll be back again, either for a quick trip or an extended visit. Either way, a sale is a sale.

 

by Jennifer Bosavage

Retailers Go the Personalized Route

Half the battle for success in retail is getting the customer in the door or on the website, followed by the challenge of closing the sale. According to MyBuys research, highlighted in Personalization Comes of Age, 75 percent of shoppers would buy from a merchant if they received a discounted price on the merchandise. In addition, roughly the same number would buy online if a special offer including free shipping was provided.

Seems obvious that customers want to hear from retailers with pertinent information. In other words, they want to know more

As merchants streamline their multichannel store operations and focus on enhancing the customer experience, many shoppers are choosing to return to stores to make their purchases.

As merchants streamline their multichannel store operations and focus on enhancing the customer experience, many shoppers are choosing to return to stores to make their purchases.

about products and services in which they’ve expressed prior interest.  Busy people appreciate a quick reminder about products left in shopping carts — or even about those they may have been researching — especially if a purchasing incentive comes with that reminder. Discounts or other benefits, coupled with personalized messaging and recommendations can provide customers information that will help them determine that the products they’re considering are just right. A substantial number, 70%, of shoppers want recommendations on retailers’ web sites: It’s always nice to corroborate a potential purchase.

That feeling of purchase satisfaction can’t be underestimated. The MyBuys research found that few shoppers (27%) buy when they perceive they are “settling” for a product. It’s not enough for them to purchase something “just like” the one that’s desired. “Close enough” just doesn’t cut it. Therefore, to achieve true customer satisfaction, it’s crucial for retailers to supply messaging that not only corroborates the purchaser’s decision, but also makes it an undeniable value.

Of course, the retailer must be conscious of not overstepping boundaries, which may not always be intuitive. For example, while MyBuys reported that 39% want to receive personalized messages on social media, such as in a Facebook stream, they may not want to be greeted in-store with the same message. It’s one thing to be wished “Happy Birthday!” in an innocuous post from a retailer on Facebook, but another, more unsettling, experience to be told that by a store associate who is a stranger. However, couple that social media greeting with a “get 10% off on your special day by mentioning this Facebook message,” and the retailer will likely be rolling out the welcome mat that day.

Proximity marketing, enabled by beacons and bluetooth technology, are also excellent ways of drawing in customers. New data from Juniper Research found that retailers will spend an estimated $2.5 billion in hardware and installation cost of such Internet of Things technology by 2018. MyBuys found that 39% of those surveyed welcome mobile advertising, such as proximity marketing, and that number is likely to grow as installations increase.

Retailers will look to beacons and beyond in 2016, and continue to invest in data science and analytics to better serve customers both in-store and online.

by Jennifer Bosavage

Digitally Connected Display Screens Are a Sign of the Times

Consumers are accustomed to seeing large display screens in retail stores, but those screens are rapidly evolving to not only provide supplemental information on products but also to predict what products a particular shopper might want to buy.

In North America, retailers are taking advantage of the benefits of Internet of Things technology by implementing solutions that help them monitor and interpret their shoppers’ behavior. In-store contextual marketing is gaining popularity as retailers aim to capture continuous, real-time streams of data. That information comes from mobile devices, online customer activity, in-store Wi-Fi routers/beacons as well as video cameras. Acting on the intelligence that information provides can result in an omnichannel experience for customers in which e-commerce and traditional retailers are interested.

Store displays highlight retailers' products.

Store displays highlight retailers’ products.

Digital signage initially was a one-way street: Stores pushed out information on merchandise to all shoppers. Today’s technology lets retailers be far more discriminating: Content can be tailored and can change depending on the customer viewing the display. The display itself can be equipped with sensors that can detect the height or even facial characteristics of a passerby, and deliver customized information. Such real-time adaptation can maximize a retailer’s potential profit.

According to the International Data Corp., the use of digital signage in retail outlets will increase to $27.5 billion in 2018 from $6 billion in 2013. That’s a 35.7 percent five-year compound annual growth rate. And it underscores the important role digital screens can play in the customer experience.

No longer are screens glorified televisions, relegated to keeping customers entertained while standing on checkout lines. Today’s screens can be programmed with content selected and even created by the retailer. Grocers wanting to beef up sales of steak can program content showing barbecue recipes. But even more than that, beacon technology can be integrated into an IoT signage system, providing retailers the means of offering customers discounts and product information that can be displayed. Signage can even tell what areas are “hot” in a particular store and through the use of heat-mapping technology, can upsell items based on those identified high-traffic areas.

In addition, signage is becoming more interactive. Touchscreen navigation can provide customers with relevant and personalized content, the ability to check inventory, or speak with an associate using video conferencing. Connecting to social networks and displaying customer’s posts is another way of connecting with customers, particularly Millennials.

Digital Signage Today reported that, according to InfoTrends, digital signage has increased brand awareness by 47.7 percent, purchase amount by 29.5 percent, sales volumes by 31.8 percent, repeat buyers by 32.8 percent, and in-store traffic by 32.8 percent. Around the world, retailers are discovering the many uses of digital signage, and the advantage of connecting the technology to the Internet of Things. The content fills a void in situations in which salespeople are unavailable. Signage is a piece of the IoT puzzle for retailers, and it can be used as a helpful tool to provide the service and extraordinary experience customers crave.

by ketv

How to collect and analyze customer data in Retail Pro®

 

 

Understanding your customer is key when it comes to offering service that meets and anticipates customer needs, cultivates loyalty, and stimulates repeat business.

Retail Pro® provides native functionality that allows you to capture and analyze the exact information you need to understand your customers’ shopping habits, needs, and expectations across channels.

Data collection with user-defined fields 

User-defined fields in Retail Pro®

User-defined fields (UDF) in Retail Pro allow you to track a virtually unlimited number of data elements.

UDF and auxiliary fields can be completely customized to ensure you capture the specific type of data you need to inform, for example, your merchandising or marketing strategies.

Capture customer preferences like favorite colors, styles, and activities to personalize your marketing campaigns, or arm your sales associates with access to those details on a mobile device so they can make meaningful recommendations.

For example, a cosmetics retailer might track a customer’s favorite brand, shade of eye shadow or lip tint, or their skin type based on their transaction history, and can send special offers for those products when they shop online or come into your stores during their birthday month.

Data analysis with calculated field 

Calculated Fields in Retail Pro®

Calculated fields like total sales, total transactions, total units, and the total number of visits enable you to analyze your customers’ sales history and determine their lifetime value.

Then, using that key criteria, build targeted customer lists to increase the effectiveness of your marketing across channels.

For example, you can create segments to market to customers with total sales over $10,000 or every customer whose favorite hobby is fishing.

Whatever your engagement strategy, Retail Pro gives you the tools you need to gather and analyze the customer data that helps you drive effectiveness and build greater loyalty and customer satisfaction.

by Jennifer Bosavage

Target’s Bull’s Eye Focuses On Local Customers

In the world of brick and mortar retail, bigger is not always better. Boutiques that specialize in catering to a particular shopper have long found that focus on their core customers is lucrative. Now Target is trying that model on for size.

Smaller Target stores have been around in cities for a little while, because the small footprint allowed the store to fit into a cityscape. When there’s no room to build a mega store, Target took advantage of a city location, but pared down its offerings in a “Target Express.” Today, all the mini stores are rebranded as “Target,” and the retail merchandizing is focused on serving the specific needs of local customers rather than trying to provide a wide variety of tastes. The Washington Post recently wrote about the new Target in a Arlington, Va., neighborhood.

Target has long made use of data analysis to target customers through the mail, offering coupons and specials to individuals based on

Retail customer intelligence and other forms of data analysis can help businesses target their advertising and optimize store operations.

Retail customer intelligence and other forms of data analysis can help businesses target their advertising and optimize store operations.

their shopping histories. Now the department store is aggregating that information to create shopping experiences that are customized for the local shoppers. So, for example, does research show there are several local knitting groups? Check out the organic cotton yarn in our craft section. Lots of nursery schools? See the expanded children’s book section. Landlocked city with no hunting or fishing clubs? Save the rifles and reels for another store.

Target seems to have learned a great deal from its debacle in Canada, where a lack of quality market research resulted in the retailer stocking irrelevant products. Management didn’t recognize the difference between U.S. shoppers and their Canadian counterparts, and the expansion was a flop. The move into micromarketing the smaller stores indicates an intent to offer shoppers a quick and easy way to find products they have in mind, rather than foster more of a browsing experience.

Such an approach means a good deal of curation by management. Determining what products will appeal most to the demographic requires data analysis, not only of purchases within the store but also of activities within the community. In a way, it is similar to the charter of a local daily newspaper: The news of the day takes on relevance only as it relates to the community. For example, a day care center opening is of interest to that city’s residents, but not to those of the state. Further, that center’s opening would indicate more children in the neighborhood, and a local Target might beef up offerings targeted at children, as well as their mothers.

Target is the nation’s sixth-largest retailer, with $73 billion in revenue last year. Once a powerhouse among style-savvy shoppers, it has lost its cache in recent years, mainly due to a faltering economy. But shoppers it may have lost to lower priced chains, such as Walmart, may be lured back as the economy rebounds and Target once again regains its reputation as being “in the know” about its customers’ tastes.

by Jennifer Bosavage

Amazon’s Brick and Mortar Is a Bold Marketing Move

Online retail giant Amazon recently opened a brick and mortar store. The ecommerce behemoth has ventured into territory where others have failed to trun a profit — RIP Waldenbooks and Borders.

But what if the stores aren’t aiming to make money, at least not primarily? What if, instead, the store is ramping up as a marketing tool for Amazon?

Amazon is one of the few large retailers to grow faster than smaller merchants.

Amazon is one of the few large retailers to grow faster than smaller merchants.

So far, only one book store has opened its doors, at that’s in Seattle. Most of the news reports have mentioned the store’s unconventional way of displaying books: front cover outward. That, of course, lessens the number of books on display, but online shoppers are accustomed to being “greeted” by a book’s cover, rather than its spine. It makes sense to me there might be a correlation between seeing a cover and buying a book.

That’s not a new idea; independent booksellers have — and do — display books that way, but it does limit how many books can be kept in stock. But criticizing Amazon for making such a “retail newbie” mistake, as some have, is ridiculous. Only 5,000 to 6,000 books will be sold at Amazon Books, a small number compared with other bookstores. But Amazon seems to be using the stores as a physical implementation of “suggested for you,” as it offers 32.8 million books for sale in varying formats: paperbacks, hardcover, Kindle, audio CD, board books and audio books. Clearly, it via its omnichannel strategy, it can provide any book desired.

Indeed, some of the criticism seems petty, but booksellers are smarting from 20 years of online competition for which it was unprepared. Some suggest there’s not much new going on in the stores, citing, for example, the brief recommendations from Amazon reviews on cards by each book (hand-scripted employee selections are staples in independent bookstores). Seems to me that’s simply implementing a best practice of making a personal connection using a low-tech method. As author Charles Caleb Colton said, “Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery.”

Others have suggested the store set-up is not conducive to shopping, noting, for example, the tables were placed too close to the entrance, discouraging browsing. But most people don’t go to the bookstore for a quick hit — it’s generally a destination. That doesn’t mean shoppers want to play hide and seek. Allowing customers to find a book quickly makes them happy, and should not dissuade them from shopping further.

In fact, reports on the stores seem to indicate Amazon is attempting to put the customer first. Making the atmosphere appealing with books easy to find, and at prices in line with those online seems to add up to a positive customer experience. A bit of the fault-finding is unsubstantiated, like the inference the stores will not have knowledgeable staff members. Take the comments of John Mutter, co-founder and editor-in-chief of the book industry newsletter Shelf Awareness in GeekWire:

It’ll be interesting to see how the book retailer that relies on algorithms and readers’ recommendations and cold sales metrics will do in a brick-and-mortar space, where customers are used to dealing with booksellers who love books and have a lot of personal knowledge of the kind that is opposite of Amazon’s corporate approach.

It will also be interesting to see how brick and mortar responds to Amazon’s algorithm of customer service, price and selection, this time in “real life.” After years of missed opportunities to engage customers, perhaps it is this push by an online giant, which heavily relies on business intelligence, that will spur booksellers to try and to implement new ways of delighting their customers.

by Jennifer Bosavage

3 tips to increase customer app use

It’s a challenge faced by every retailer in the age of interconnected things: How can customer interaction increase?

If retailers knew more about their customers, they could create and deploy offers that would be in tune with their buying habits. But consumers are hesitant to share key information with retailers.

Many fear being deluged with unwanted offers or marketing information. Others view it as an invasion of privacy.

Retailers might have truly innovative and relevant offerings, but getting a foot in the digital door is increasingly difficult.

Recent findings from a Forester survey found only about a third of survey respondents are willing to share location data and enable push notifications in retailer apps.

The value of doing either was a concern for consumers. So retailers designing new apps must make sure the features offer clear consumer value, or they will not be enabled.

Here are three tips geared toward increasing customer engagement to remember when creating or updating an app.

Provide extra incentives for using the app. Regular users of an app can easily be rewarded with “secret sales,” better coupons or “insider perks.” And apps are not only a tool for large retailers — small ones can also benefit from marketing via smartphone.

For example, a pet store might note a particular app-enabled customer buys a certain amount of aquarium equipment each month.

If customers place, say, three orders for pickup through the app, why not offer a free in-home tank cleaning, with that third order delivered?

Not only is the customer delighted with the opportunity to leave the aquarium scrubbing to someone else that month, but it also introduces him or her to a new service offering.

Promote brand loyalty. Surveys have traditionally found that consumers will most often share personal information if they feel loyal to a brand.

But just meeting basic customer needs — in-stock inventory, convenient store hours, polite salespeople, etc. — isn’t enough.

Retailers should consider defining and then promoting their company cultures.

A company culture that connects with customers’ personal beliefs is one that engenders loyalty.

When marketers make that connection, customers are more than willing to share their data.

A brand becomes emblematic of the company’s culture and what it stands for.

When that meshes with what customers hold dear, loyalty is born.

Push location-specific offers. Just as savvy real estate agents preach that it’s all about location, the same holds true for marketing.

With more location information retailers can position campaigns to appeal to certain customer segments.

Location-based marketing uses global-positioning technology to send geographic-specific business marketing to consumers via their mobile devices.

Those customers will be more responsive because the offer is clearly relevant to them.

The key is in crafting important and meaningful messages so potential customers will sign up to receive them.

It’s worth the effort: Ads and offers that integrate time and the consumer’s location reportedly can generate two to 10 times the amount of business than a generic ad.

It’s all about making customers happy and feel appreciated.

The bottom line is that should be the focus of any retail app.

If you succeed, the digital door to customers’ information will be held wide open for you.