A Review of Total Retail's Top Content in 2020

As 2020 winds down, Total Retail would like to take the opportunity to highlight some of the top content it produced this year. Our e-newsletter, Total Retail Report, will be on hiatus during the holidays, with the next issue hitting subscribers' inboxes on Tues., Jan. 5. Until then, here’s a list of our most popular content from the past 12 months. Enjoy, and we will see you on the other side of 2020:

1. Sharing the Risk: Reopening America
   The highly contagious COVID-19 virus will require businesses to take special precautions to protect workers and customers, but the chance of infection remains, potentially leaving businesses at risk of costly and protracted lawsuits that they can ill afford after weeks of closure. Lawmakers must determine who should bear the risk of new cases of COVID-19; we contend the risk needs to be shared by businesses and customers in order for businesses to reopen.
2. 4 Factors That Actually Influence Consumer Purchase Decisions
   Marketers are more focused than ever on generating sales, reaching new audience segments, and boosting engagement. But how can this be done when consumer behavior is still such a mystery? The answer is understanding what matters the most to your target customers and incorporating those elements strategically into your marketing.
3. Embrace the Unknown and an Accelerated Future
   When the world begins to open back up, multiple industries will have undoubtedly changed, in some ways we’re able to predict, and some we’re unable to anticipate. What will shopping look like? What will travel feel like? Will dining out ever be the same again? Although these are all uncomfortable thoughts, they’re ubiquitous to everyone — and it’s ultimately healthy and smart to embrace the unknown, both personally and professionally.
4. Checking in on the Commerce Consumer: You OK?
   To win in this challenging environment, understanding what consumers are thinking in terms of time and feeling when it comes to emotions and spending can be the difference between effectiveness and dumping budgets blindly behind traffic.
5. The Time is Right to Revisit Retail Lease Provisions in Light of COVID-19
   Seven months into the pandemic, many issues aren't fully resolved and most businesses are not running at full steam. Yet, the time is right for landlords to analyze key lease provisions such as force majeure and common area clauses to prepare for future deals that will likely take place in the context of an uncertain and unstable landscape.
6. Michaels Supports Small Businesses With New MichaelsPro Program
   Editor-in-Chief Joe Keenan interviews Matthew Rubin, business development and growth at Michaels, North America's largest specialty provider of arts, crafts, framing, floral, wall décor, and seasonal merchandise for makers and do-it-yourself home decorators. Listen in as Rubin discusses the launch of the new MichaelsPro program, and how it serves small businesses and "makerpreneurs" that purchase in bulk from the retailer.
7. Retail Wars: From SoLoMo to Omnichannel
   Just like all disruptive technologies, mobile invaded our daily lives and changed the game in many industries, including retail. While businesses try to make the most out of this trend, the technology develops in its own unique way. SoLoMo (Social+Local+Mobile) evolved in 2010 as a popular marketing approach to how mobile should integrate into the customer experience. The concept is still valid, but has mostly evolved into the omnichannel approach to commerce.
8. Welcome to the Values Economy: Why Brands Can’t Afford to Stay Put Post-COVID-19
   Companies that can identify what consumer shifts are going to stick and then prepare for them are the ones that will thrive. The evidence suggests that those that are expert and efficient at what they do AND take actions that meaningfully demonstrate their true purpose and values will ultimately come out of this stronger.
9. Getting Ready for the E-Commerce Market Expansion Due to COVID-19
   The coronavirus crisis has changed all aspects of shopping and e-commerce. In a short time, we've experienced the early rush on hand sanitizer to Amazon.com packages being a lifeline during quarantine. In an exclusive look at Yotpo’s aggregated e-commerce order trends, indexed to the week of Jan. 27, 2020, the signals are there of a recovery from late March into April.
10. Why Digital Transformation in the Retail Sector is More Important Now Than Ever
    While this pandemic has put a break on business activities, it has given a mandate to retail businesses to accelerate the pace of digital transformation programs and tweak their customer journey to respond effectively in these challenging times.