Omnichannel

Many online retailers today offer some type of site-to-store option, such as in-store pickup from store inventory, ship-to-store or a combination of the two. As a result, now is a great time to look at what site functionality and enhancements retailers should consider leveraging when it comes to site-to-store options. What strategy changes would better engage consumers, and why should you spend scarce dollars on these options?

H&M Style Eye was sponsored by Lucky Magazine, Conde Nast Digital and MTV Networks, and was held on Facebook. Whoa, watch out multipurpose powerhouses! For the contest, users uploaded stylish photos of themselves while others voted. H&M went on to choose the three most stylish, flew them to New York for a weekend, along with a $500 H&M gift card and a photo shoot for the July issue of Lucky. Best of all (and supremely smart of H&M), the entire hoopla was shot on video and then broadcast on YouTube and Facebook.

In an early example of how a major fashion retailer is working with the iPad, Macy's is using the Apple tablet to turn its summer catalogue into a shoppable slideshow. Macy's 60-page print catalogue was converted into a two-page spread into which a 20-page slide show is embedded, with links to shop at Macys.com. The ad is running across the digital editions of 20 titles including Elle Decor and Marie Claire.

The Container Store, a leading multichannel retailer of storage and organization products, understands the importance of having a cross-channel retail strategy: Developing cross-channel customers pads its bottom line.

Customers who receive a mail piece along with regular emails have response rates 32 percent to 130 percent higher than customers who only receive email communications. This indicates the effectiveness of an integrated marketing campaign that combines direct mail and email.

Last week we saw highlights from the "Think with Google: Future of Multi-Channel" summit. Today we learn from Avinash Kaushik, Analytics Evangelist at Google, about measuring offline marketing impact online and measuring online impact offline. Watch the short 5-min video on non-line driven analytics.

SAN FRANCISCO – A Levi Strauss & Co. executive recommended building on traditional advertising campaigns by adding digital channels such as social media and mobile to the mix during the opening keynote address at ad:tech.

As social media use in the online shopping realm is still a new concept, it's not surprising there have been growing pains. Too often online retailers jump into the social media fray without considering long-term strategic goals. Web-savvy shoppers see right through “salesy” status updates. If your company is looking to get involved in social media and create unique customer/brand relationships, Twitter, Facebook and a company blog are three options to consider.

Creating a seamless cross-channel experience is likely your goal. But your customers may not be experiencing that, at least according to a March study from Forrester Research: US Online Retail Forecast, 2009 To 2014.

My.Suit's integrated e-commerce website and retail stores make it easy for men in the New York tristate area to order and purchase made-to-fit, made-to-order suits delivered in two weeks with a starting price of $495 — the cost of many off-the-rack suits men already have in their closets!