| 4/15/2008 |
Paula Rosenblum |
| First Insight: Can Retailers Expand Beyond Social Networks to Include Employees? |
Retailers have a built-in social network – their in-store employees. I asked myself why not make these folks the core of the social network? This is not quite the same as Wal-Mart’s employee blog, where it’s okay for employees to say bad things about some of the company’s products. This would be prospective: a community of employees who can give their opinion on what WILL sell.
For the most part, the retail world hasn’t gotten more employee-friendly. RSR’s recent surveys show the divide between headquarters and the workforce is greater than ever. How can this conundrum be solved?
Self-service is important, but it can only take you so far. And who has a better “First Insight” into what customers want than your very own employees?
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| keywords: Retail, IT, Retailer Workforce, Social Networks, Employees |
| 4/1/2008 |
Nikki Baird |
| Where Will Consumers Drive Mobile Retail? |
As with everything before it, mobile was once going to change the world – overnight. I think some of that change-the-world stuff is starting to come true as it relates to mobile. So what does that mean for retailers?
I’m not talking about what consumers are doing in the realm of mobile coupons (though they exist), or actually transacting a purchase on your phone (though that too exists, even in the US), and I’m not talking about mobile advertising or search, either. What I’m looking at are non-retail, innovative uses of mobile phones in consumers’ everyday lives – and stretching a bit to see how they might apply to retail.
I've listed several examples in a recent RPW article. Are there any others we should know about?
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| keywords: Retail, IT, Mobility, mCommerce, Mobile Phones, Online Shopping, Cross-Channel |
