In-Store Photo Processing

Another benefit to increased broadband speed is the ability to upload pictures. This allows people to send their photos to websites to share with others, publicly or privately, as well as order prints. There are about a zillion companies offering this, and they are creating an incredibly competitive marketplace for photo processing. This hyper-competitive marketplace is spreading to in-store photo processing, at retailers like Wal-Mart and CVS.

The nice thing about the in-store processing is that it is immediate, and that there are no shipping costs. For this reason, I don't expect in-store photo processing to get phased out, like those old drive-thru Photomats.

Those were kind of cool, no?

N.B. - I just did a search for Photomat's and found this cool picture:

http://www.petereudenbach.com/sitespec/sitespec4.html

Break out the barbecue

In New England, the changing of the seasons is quite the event. Not only are the days brighter and longer, but its warmer, too!

But this blog is about retail chain store marketing, not the weather. But retail stores are certainly not oblivious to the changing of the seasons either!

Right now, you'll see loads of sales on sunblock, barbeques, patio furniture, coolers, and the like. There are some great deals available, but use your head, some of the deals might be just hype.

Now that retailers have nailed the timing issues, they need to work on the location issues. Stores next to the beach should have more sunblock and coolers, while stores near the park should have more barbecue equipment. Not only will they sell more, they'll also have happier customers!

Trader Joe's

When it comes to business and retail services - you have to focus.

Trader Joe's is a perfect example of this. They are not a "one-stop-shop". They do a couple of things REALLY WELL. For example, they do a handful of things better than anyone else. And since they only sell their products within their own stores, shoppers have enough reason to go to there AND their regular supermarket.

Their frozen foods are miles ahead of the competition. Whenever I go to Trader Joe's, I stock up on frozen pizza, granola, cereal, and frozen fish.

Go to Trader Joe's and see for yourself. They also have lots of samples to try as well.

Larrin's For Profit Ideas: Judith Levine's: Not Buying It, Part I

Larrin's For Profit Ideas: Judith Levine's: Not Buying It, Part I

Whoa - not buy anything for a year? That's taking it way beyond the "Buy Nothing Day" which seems like a difficult task in itself. So ironic, to learn about someone's experience not buying anything for a year, you have to buy the book! So... are you going to buy that?

Wannabe Entrepreneur: Promo Products Outpace Ad Spending, Now Greater Than Cable, Outdoor, Online Display

Wannabe Entrepreneur: Promo Products Outpace Ad Spending, Now Greater Than Cable, Outdoor, Online Display

This is some interesting information about marketing, and gets you thinking about what promotions are all about. Yes, promoting a product, service or company. But think about the difference between how business-to-business and consumer services use promotions versus consumer product goods and retail uses promotions. Just a thought...

Retail Marketing Consultants

I've been researching retail marketing online with Google recently, and I've found that the one of the key words to use in this industry is "consultant". Use of this word in searches tends to results in higher quality links. So far, I've found:

• http://www.kenbanksmarketing.com/
• http://www.mcmillandoolittle.com/index.html
• http://www.retail-manager.com/

Other searches yielded a lot of fluff, so I'll read through these websites and sum up what I find in the next post.

What does H&R Block do the rest of the year?

Now that tax season is just about over, I'm wondering what H&B Block will do the rest of the year? They have over 11,000 retail locations! Can you imagine how much it costs to run those locations? Tax preparation is obviously an area that can benefit from software and telecommunications innovations, as Intuit has successfully capitalized on.

The situation with H&R Block is not unique. There are many retail sectors that have busy seasons and slow seasons. Just like there are hours of operation and 24 hour stores, we may see seasonal stores that are re-opened and re-branded several times a year.

We've seen more temporary "event" retail operations, yet I doubt these are more than a random trend.

Supermarket Daily Shopping Cycles

I went to the supermarket last Thursday in the middle of the day, and the shoppers there at that time of the day were so much different than during the weekends and evenings.

Supermarkets should track their sales during these two different times of the day and week and identify the different types of purchases that are made. They could then create some portable merchandising displays to be rolled in and out during two cycles to maximize sales.

Does anyone know of any stores that change their merchandising setups throughout the day? If so, please comment. Thanks!

Restaurant Decor

I just had lunch at Not Your Average Joe's. This restaurant has tasty food and a cool atmosphere. The food is consistently good, and the prices are a little high. In my humble opinion, it is the decor that let's them get away with higher prices. Oh yeah, their staff is quality too, so that is a big help too.

Have you been there? What do you think of it?

The Retail Worker

Just found this website dedicated to people who work in the front lines of retail:

http://www.retailworker.com/

Looks interesting, haven't had a chance to fully review it though. When I find the time I will write up a full review.

Increased Retail Sales

All signs point to increased retail sales. Way to go US economy!

I just heard on Nightly Business Report that a new shopping report estimates that retail sales increased 0.6 percent. People are still buying more stuff despite higher gas prices.

USPS Retail

I've always wondered why the USPS doesn't more heavily merchandise their stores. They have to make money just like everyone else. They have awesome products and services:

• Collectible stamps
• Shipping materials
• Shipping services
• Telephone cards
• Post office boxes

They should also have: candy, soft drinks, and other convenience store items, as well as self service photocopiers, computer rentals, and wifi online access.

Sears In-Store Merchandise Pickup

I bought some pliers online from Sears.com this past Saturday (and received three small pliers for free - thanks SlickDeals.net!) and selected to have them picked up in the store to avoid any shipping costs.

The process was almost seamless. I ordered, received an email the next day, signed in at the kiosk in the store, waited approximately five minutes, and my order came through some warehouse doors. I signed a UPS-style hand-held scanner, and then left.

What would I have improved? Let me count the ways:
1. I should have received an immediate email summarizing my order. I didn't receive an email until the order was ready. Maybe they wait because too many customers do not read their emails and assume their order is ready right away.
2. They should include specific directions to where the in-store merchandise pickup is.
3. The in-store merchandising pickup area should be better setup. See the picture above for the one in the store I visited.