eRetail Association Newsletter
February 5th 2001
from Nigel Fenwick, President, eRetail Association

Welcome to the February e-newsletter from the International eRetail Association & eRetailNews.

In this month's newsletter:

• Wish Lists as a customer retention tool
• Site news and new sites
• New research at discounted rates to members
• Predictive technology - beyond collaborative filtering

WISH LISTS AS A CUSTOMER RETENTION TOOL 

Even as companies look to expand their customer base, they are keeping a firm eye on satisfying the needs of existing customers. eRetailers are increasing retention using a variety of techniques, such as frequent shopper programs, newsletters, ezines, online community pages, online chat and message boards, personalized email marketing, personalized product recommendations and wish lists. The 2001-1 eRetailNews Report focuses on the use of wish lists as a customer retention tool.

Wish lists encourage shoppers to return to their favorite online retail sites on a regular basis. Wish lists are also a powerful and effective tool for viral-marketing. Recent advances in wish list technology are allowing shoppers to save products from multiple retailers to a single wish list, making this type of wish list more valuable to the shopper.

Wish list service providers are now offering shopping portals, featuring their retail client websites and making it easy for list shoppers to find merchants sharing the same list technology. Some lists now include the ability to add items from any site on the Internet!

Click here for more.

The eRetailNews report on Wish Lists covers the following aspects of Wish Lists: 

• The benefits of offering a wish list 
• What features should a good wish list offer?
• Outsourcing wish list services - a quick guide
• Wish list vendor roundup - leading vendors and some of the features they offer
• Feature comparisons - quick checklist
• How to select an wish list outsourcing partner

The report also includes an article on Predictive Technology; going beyond collaborative filtering at eBags.com.

SITE NEWS AND NEW SITES

Kozmo.com is offering one-hour free delivery of fresh flowers in nine US cities.

Maytag.com allows customers to shop for a home appliance at its site by adding items to a shopping cart that is automatically transferred to a local retailer based upon the customer's zip code. Shoppers get real-time pricing and inventory availability from the retailer while they are on Maytag.com.

1,300 jobs will go at Amazon.com as it re-structures its operations in an attempt to achieve profitability. 

Survey suggests weak holiday sales were due to a lack of selection and failure to live up to customer expectations. 

Study shows that there have been significant reductions in fraud rates due to better than expected usage rates, improved solutions, and more awareness of the threat of credit card fraud to Internet merchant profitability. 

Strong Numbers Marketview supplies retailers and manufacturers with custom feeds of demand-based pricing information (see link). 

iAnywhere Solutions' mobile and wireless technology has been selected to power new retail applications for several vendors, including ETS, Inc., The Pinnacle Corporation and PixelPoint.

MessageMedia's UnityMail 4.0 database-enabled, e-mail marketing software was recently named "Product of the Year" in the "Best E-mail Marketing Software" category. 

Cardservice International is teaming up with Web-hosting company ValueWeb, a subsidiary of e.spire Communications Inc., to offer two new Web-hosting services tied to its existing e-commerce solutions. 

Bluelight.com has rolled out more than 3,500 Web shopping kiosks in 1,100 Kmart stores. 

Staples rolls out Internet access points to all 954 U.S. stores "giving customers what they want, when they want it." 

New Internet and in-store cash card solution offers alternative to credit cards. 

New retail BtoB fashion service will enable fashion retailers and vendors to streamline buying, selling and merchandising operations. 

MEMBER SAVINGS ON ERETAIL RESEARCH

The following reports are now available:

• The eConsumer: An Overview of eCommerce in Europe
• The Virtual Shop: Best Practice in eTail
• The European eConsumer Profile -Volume 1: eConsumer Internet Access
• The European eConsumer Profile -Volume 2:Online Purchasing Patterns
• The Outlook for eBusiness in Automotive
• Advertising on the Internet: Strategies for Success
• B2C eCommerce: Opportunities and Implications to 2005
• Internet Market Place Review
• Best Practice - Online Business Strategies
• Best Practice - Online marketing and Branding
• Best Practice - Online Customer Service
• The UK eConsumer Profile -Volume 1: eConsumer Internet Access
• The UK eConsumer Profile -Volume 2: Online Purchasing Patterns
• The US eConsumer Profile -Volume 1: eConsumer Internet Access
• The US eConsumer Profile -Volume 2: Online Purchasing Patterns
• e-Commerce Vendor Profiles

eRetail Scorecard

Corporate Members of the eRetail Association save 50% on their first eRetail Scorecard analysis report and 20% on all subsequent reports. Custom reports can be requested for any website, including competitors.

eRetail+

Corporate Members of the eRetail Association save 10% off all eRetail+ website design services.

PREDICTIVE TECHNOLOGY
BEYOND COLLABORATIVE FILTERING

RETAIL CONSULTING

Scope of services:

• Retail IT strategy
• IT infrastructure assessment & planning
• Application requirements specification
• Vendor and application evaluations
• Technology selection and implementation projects
• Merchandising and supply chain applications
• Website design for Internet retailing
• Point-Of-Sale (POS) technology selection
• Project management for technology implementation projects

Corporate members of the eRetail Association save up to 20% off these consulting services.

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(If you received this from a friend, you may request your own free copies at any time simply by filling out the form at the eRetailNews website or use this email link.

Be happy,

Nigel Fenwick :)
International eRetail Association
 http://www.eretailnews.com 

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