| News about digital retail commerce |  |
- Cyber Monday kicked off with high traffic, big sales
Early online deals didn't dilute enthusiasm for Cyber Monday. Sales at 500 major retailers were up 28.3% by 9 p.m. Eastern compared with last year, according to IBM Smarter Commerce. Wal-Mart, Best Buy, Amazon, Sears, and Target were among retailers getting the most traffic, according to Experian Marketing Services, with Amazon's Kindle Fire tablet and Ugg boots being searched for the most. USA Today
(11/26), The Charlotte Observer (N.C.)
(11/27)     
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U.S., European law enforcement partner to fight fakes: Law enforcement agents from the U.S. and Europe teamed up in advance of Cyber Monday to take down 132 websites selling counterfeit designer goods, the agencies said Monday. The sites were selling fakes from 41 brands including Burberry, Hermes, Louis Vuitton and Gucci; in the US, the operation was part of the larger Operation in Our Sites launched in 2010. Women's Wear Daily (subscription required)
(11/26)
 | Boost Sales: Accelerate Your Mobile Experience
While global eCommerce sales will steadily grow in the coming years, mobile commerce is set to grow to 100x its size by 2015, accounting for more than $119 billion in sales (ABI Research). Follow our practical guide which outlines a 3-step approach to help you accelerate your mobile commerce performance. Download Now |
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- Can retailers win loyalty with free returns?
Online retailers that pay for return shipping may see a substantial return on the investment, according to a new study. Researchers tracked four years of purchases at two online retailers and found that buyers who could return purchases for free were likely to return and spend thousands in the future, while sales fell significantly when returns weren't free. KUOW-FM (Seattle)
(11/26)
- Review sites are top destinations for online shoppers
 More than four out of 10 consumers who use the Web will use review sites as they plan holiday purchases, according to a ConsumerSearch report. Only around one in 10 Web users expect to use more social strategies such as conferring with social media contacts or perusing recipients' Facebook pages. eMarketer
(11/27)
 | IBM White Paper: Innovative Retail Strategies
Find out how predictive analytics can help provide consumers with an enhanced and highly targeted shopping experience, leading to larger shopping baskets and increased retail sales. Download now. |
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| New Media & Technology |  |  |
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- Studies point to mobile's growing retail role
More shoppers used their mobile devices as part of their Black Friday weekend shopping activities, and mobile accounted for 16% of all e-commerce purchases, up from 9.8% last year. Other studies point to the technology's growing role in retail, including a new Pew report that found that 56% of smartphones owners use the gadgets to access the web. MediaPost Communications/Online Media Daily
(11/26)
- What is Twitter's role in a digital retail world?
 Merchants of all sizes are finding, and sometimes innovating, new ways to use Twitter to reach prospective customers, drive traffic to their stores and encourage brand fans to spread the word to others, explains Global VP Richard Alfonsi. "Regardless of the goal, authenticity is key. If you think about the image you want to project, the voice you want to use, and are doing that in a natural way that’s engaging with your customer base, that is what resonates and generates success for a business." Retail's BIG Blog
(11/27)
| Companies in the News | | |
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- EBay stock jumps along with online shopping
Increased holiday shopping propelled eBay's share price to an eight-year high of $51.40 on Monday. "EBay is definitely participating in holiday 2012 in a much different and larger way than last year," ChannelAdvisor CEO Scot Wingo wrote in a blog post. Bloomberg
(11/26)
- Facebook Gifts gets boost from Apple's iTunes
Facebook users will now be able to use the network's Gifts service to send iTunes digital gifts to their friends, with users able to gift albums, video content, games, apps and iTunes credits in various denominations. The move is another sign that Facebook and Apple are eager to develop a "mutually beneficial relationship," writes Mark Walsh. MediaPost Communications/Online Media Daily
(11/26)
- Amazon issues first bonds in nearly 15 years
Amazon raised $3 billion in its first bond offering in almost 15 years, facing a dramatically different market from the one in May 1998, when the retailer was rated "junk." The company is expected to complete a $1.16 billion purchase of a corporate campus by year-end. The Wall Street Journal
(11/26)
| Shop.org Spotlight | | |
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- Weekend recap: Everything you need to know about Black Friday and Cyber Monday
The 2012 holiday shopping season has begun, and consumers are hitting stores and websites in record numbers. Want the scoop on the season’s biggest consumer trends and takeaways? In a members-only call on Wednesday, Nov. 28, NRF SVP Bill Thorne will share trends from a busy Black Friday weekend and the just-released final results from Cyber Monday -- all the consumer stats retailers need to know to make the rest of the holiday shopping season the best it can be. Learn more or register.
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- How Belk and Sony leverage converging retail channels
With consumers using multiple devices and social tools to shop, retailers have an ever-growing list of channels and touchpoints that converge to engage with customers. This puts the onus on retail executives to rethink their approach to everything from talent and training to marketing to inventory management in order to maximize the experience for customers. At Retail’s BIG Show in January, executives from Sony and Belk will discuss how their businesses are adapting to omnichannel models to succeed in the marketplace. Learn more.
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Video games, Xbox 360, and Nintendo Wii U are among the most popular toys for boys this year. Source: 
