Click on the link below or scroll down for this month’s top headlines and tekservePOS analysis and tips.
• App Infuses Google Android with barcode scanning abilities
• Sears focuses on Web
• McDonald’s to launch in-store TV channel in 20 locations
• A True 'RetailROI'
App Infuses Google Android with barcode scanning abilities
The Google Product Search now features integrated barcode scanningcapabilities for mobile phones that run Android in the United Statesand United Kingdom.
At present the barcode scanning technology works best forelectronics, movies, video games and books, but Google's Mobile teamhas committed to debut more barcodes soon.
Google's Android barcode app can be used to find and compare prices,glean ratings or reviews, and read product details. When a userdownloads the app and snaps an image of a barcode with their mobiles,they are sent to a search page with local listings for the product.Read more at MarketingVOX.
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There was a great statistic presented at last’ VeriFone Security Conference. It takes on average a person six-to-eight hours to realize their wallet is missing, but only one hour to notice their phone is missing. Today’s phones are so much more that just a way to talk, and retailers have an opportunity to use this to their advantage.
If shoppers are going to use their barcodes/phones for comparison shopping like mentioned above, then retailers can use barcodes/phones to get the right deals in front of the shopper.
In a recent article posted on MarketingVOX, “Skycore debuted mDAR (Mobile Delivery, Authentication and Redemption) at the Wireless Enterprise Symposium (WES 2009) this week.
mDAR enables clients to build 2D barcodes, which some believe will ultimately wed the Web to outdoor/print ads and make e-commerce mobile. When the barcodes are scanned, the information stored in them is decrypted. They can be used in grocery stores to give discounts, on print ads to provide more information on a given campaign, or to send users to a mobile sub site.” Read more here.
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Sears focuses on Web
The chairman of Sears Holdings Corp. said Monday that the chain is working to change how customers interact with it online.
Speaking at Sears’ annual shareholder’s meeting, chairman EdwardLampert said the company was upgrading the selection and interactivityof its Web site to help the company emerge stronger than ever from therecession, particularly as competitors slash prices in an effort tosell merchandise.
Initiatives under way this year include boosting Sears’ proprietarybrands such as Craftsman and Kenmore, and highlighting the chains’home-and-garden products and its struggling apparel lines, said W.Bruce Johnson, Sears’ interim president and chief executive. Thecompany also plans to promote some nonproprietary brands, such asWrangler, Adidas, Levi’s and Vanity Fair in Sears stores, and Gerber,Fisher-Price and branded Nickelodeon clothing at Kmart outlets.
But a good part of Sears’ focus this year relates to the company’sonline presence. Sears’ Web sites will offer more than 3 millionproducts in 2009, up from 500,000 in 2008. The company has alsolaunched an online venture that allows homeowners to solicit onlinebids for service and maintenance projects as well as an onlinecommunity at MySears.com, where customers can write reviews, takesurveys and lodge complaints while interacting with Sears employees. Anonline ordering program that allows customers to pick up goods atnearby stores will expand to Kmart locations shortly. -- ChainStoreAge.com, May 4, 2009.
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As seen on tekBLOG:
I will admit, until two weeks ago, I have not been in a Sears store in over 14 years. Growing up in a small, rural area, my parents have always been fans. But when you live in a metropolitan area where there is no shortage of shopping options, Sears is not first to mind. So when my husband announced we were going to Sears to buy a lawnmower, I wasn't sure what to expect.
I have to say, my husband and I were both pleasantly surprised at our shopping experience: great customer services, knowledgeable sales staff and easy and convenient pickup. My guess is that "experience" has always been there and once you see it, you return. But what actually gets customers in the door or to your Web site? Read more here.
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McDonald’s to launch in-store TV channel in 20 locations
McDonald’s Corp. is launching a branded in-store TV channel in 20fast-food restaurants around the country. The pilot program, which willbegin this month, follows two successful trials, with one at thetechnology-inspired Viva McDonald’s location in Las Vegas, and theother at a McDonald’s restaurant in Norwalk, Calif.
Harris Corp., Melbourne, Fla., will manage, monitor and playdigital-broadcast quality content for the McDonald’s Channel.ChannelPort Communications will manage and coordinate the overallimplementation of the channel on behalf of McDonald’s, developing thecontent strategy, identifying content partners and managing the look,feel and monetization of the channel.
The McDonald’s Channel will present entertainment, infotainment,messaging and advertising designed to enhance the customer experience,reinforce the McDonald’s brand and broadcast focused promotionalcampaigns.
After a pilot of several months, it is expected that McDonald’s andits project partners will evaluate the potential for a wider rollout.-- ChainStoreAge.com, May 1, 2009
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This article is interesting considering John’s comments above about retailers engaging in digital media projects. While McDonald’s is taking it to a whole new level, there are many creative ways to use Digital Media. The JC Penny case study found on the sidebar, is one good example as it relates to employee training. From a customer experience standpoint, this blurb talks about integrating mobile technology and digital signage, and since we just talked above about how people are never without their mobile devices, this seems to be a great way to use digital media.
“Steve Gurley, vice president of marketing at Symon Communications Inc., presentation at GlobalShop 2009 proposes quick progress toward more interactive engagement between digital signage and mobile technology. Instead of the passive mode of sending a text message to a location to get more information, the return message will be a call to action for the viewer to take the next step in the experience, like being directed to a site with real rewards for the effort.
Also, he said we’ll see customers and viewers interact with the digital signage and change the signage right on the spot. The idea is that a customer can select something to watch from a menu of options. The customer sends a text message to a computer and the computer plays the new content.” Read more here.
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A True 'RetailROI'
Apparel An economic tailspin. Federal bailouts. Retail bankruptcies.Low consumer spending. Good news may be at a premium these days, but agroup of the retail industry’s information technology executives iscreating hope by focusing on the future—and helping the manyunder-privileged children who could shape it.
There are 400 million vulnerable children across the globe. Some areabandoned or participate in a foster-care program. Others live withtheir families in poverty and are at risk of dying from disease orfamine. Every 5.2 seconds one of these forgotten children will die.
Concerned about these sobering statistics, a band of the industry’sIT leaders decided it was time to make a difference. Pushing aside theturbulent global economic conditions, and equally harsh humanconditions affecting families worldwide, the team created the RetailOrphan Initiative, or RetailROI.
“The not-for-profit organization is dedicated to creating awarenessabout adoption opportunities and providing solutions for thesevulnerable children,” said Timothy Kasbe, senior VP and CIO for SearsHoldings Corp., Hoffman Estates, Ill., and a founding member of theRetailROI board of advisers.
The group, which officially formed in November, is committed toraising funds and awarding them to charities dedicated to needychildren. Some grants will cover orphan care such as food, shelter,clothing, medical services and education; others will assistfoster-care and adoption organizations, and programs that rescuechildren from human trafficking. The foundation is also focused onestablishing grants and zero-percent interest loans for adoption, andsupporting life-skills training for orphaned and vulnerable children.-- Retail Technology Quarterly, May 2009
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