News at Nine
Enter your email address below to receive our FREE Daily Retail eNewsletter
High Street Tracker
- Non-fashion -1.8 %
- Fashion -2.4 %
- Homewares -2.4 %
- Non-store +40.2 %
Application performance monitoring: the new black for retailers
18th May 2012
As multichannel operations become the norm for retailers after centuries of good old fashioned bricks-and-mortar trading, it’s inevitable that there will be some growing pains as consumers and companies alike adapt to the emerging trend. In recent years, new technology has emerged which enables retailers to tweak their online operations to run smoothly, quickly and effectively. One of the most vital, but strangely most often overlooked, of these technologies is application performance monitoring (APM) – a system which allows companies to focus on monitoring and managing the performance and availability of software applications. According to a recent survey carried out by analyst firm Quocirca, which intended to uncover which initiatives have the highest priority, APM came out on top leaving private cloud, virtualisation and customer-facing applications trailing in its wake. Bob Tarzey, Quocirca analyst and co-author of the original report, told CBR that the results were “quite surprising” – a telling insight to how untapped this particular resource is.
The research carried out by Quocirca also found that, despite the importance of application performance management, it continues to cause problems for companies. The survey found that 82 per cent of all chief information officers and 66 per cent of all IT executives agreed that modern consumers expect pages to load quickly when dealing with transactional websites. However, 43 per cent of CIO’s are not confident that their organisations are equipped to meet demand without improving the application performance management they already have in place.
Earlier this year, the UK Customer Satisfaction Index found that business leaders are expected to lose over 10 per cent of their customer base and possibly miss out on a huge £2.23 billion in revenue over the next few years due to less-than-effective IT systems and application management. In an effort to stem these losses, especially in these economically volatile times, companies are now making a renewed effort to provide a seamless online experience for consumers who have high demands and expectations.
Electricals retailer Comet began to use Quest’s ‘Foglight’ application performance monitoring software at Christmas, which proved a roaring success. The software recorded, replayed and analysed customer online interactions as well as reacting to problems in the system instantaneously. According to Computer World UK, Comet architecture and design manager Michael Young said: “We saw value immediately with Foglight during the first week of implementation – it highlighted issues that we were previously unaware of, enabling my team to address them straight away.”
Kevin Norlin, vice president and general manager of EMEA at Quest Software, told My-Retail Media:
“Retailers still have a long way to go to consistently provide the type of positive experience that customers are increasingly demanding, and technology is well placed to help. Customers who expect fast, seamless, error-free interactions with a brand seem to be moving at a faster pace than the enterprise, which is why many retailers are feeling the pressure to catch-up.
“To avoid the risk of losing customers to the competition, it is important for brands to embrace the new culture and mentality geared towards customer experience. Application performance monitoring – with its proactive visibility into the way application performance impacts end users and customers – helps retailers stay in front of potential problems rather than responding reactively. It is the ticket to building the positive customer journey and experience that leads to customer satisfaction and brand loyalty. Positive customer experience is not only the driver for brand loyalty, it is the ultimate make or break of any retailer today.”
Forget keeping up appearances, it’s time to innovate
11th May 2012
Are you an agent for change or barely keeping up? As Clinton Cards becomes another casualty of the switch to ecommerce, it’s now clearer than ever that to stay afloat on the high street, you need to do more than tread water. Yet in the battle for survival, many retailers are abandoning new channels of commerce in favour of immediate results.
This week My-Retail Media spoke to Jamus Driscoll at Demandware, on why making mistakes, experimenting, and above all innovation, will be the game-changers for multi-channel retailers.
"Looking at the wider context, there have been significant changes taking place in e-commerce as a whole," Driscoll said. "It’s no longer just about the web, nor does the entire experience centre solely on a website. What we’re looking at is broad movement to many different consoles accessing the internet. In fact, a recent study by market intelligence group IHS iSuppli found that by 2015, there will be, on average, two internet enabled devices for every human on earth."
Being sharp without sharp discounts: How to increase retail sales without cutting prices
4th May 2012
British fashion retailers are being challenged as never before by the value conscious consumer.
While shoppers still gravitate toward recognisable brands, they are much more discerning about when and where they decide to shop
Many now use the internet to window shop and compare prices, making it all the more important for retailers to provide a special experience when they enter the store. Going forward into the New Year, retailers are looking at ways they can keep retail sales high, without resorting to discounts, and even increase their turnover in the long term.
As any seasoned retailer knows, the market has shifted dramatically during the last 14 years. The Internet provides almost anything, at a reasonable cost, and it’s growing. Smart phones, electronic coupons and group discounts also inform and influence shoppers. Consumers browse online, and then visit shops expecting to make purchases that fit their criteria — whether those be time, value or quality-based.
Preventing shrinkage in the age of multichannel
27th Apr 2012
This week news emerged that UK gross domestic product shrank by 0.2 per cent in the first three months of 2012, putting Britain firmly back into the clutches of a recession. The figures shocked analysts and economists across the City who had expected a meagre, but encouraging, 0.1 per cent growth. On top of this news, last weekend the Financial Times reported that meat theft has increased by 20 per cent as opportunists, cash-strapped families and even organised gangs turn to crime to keep their heads above water. Meat showed an annual inflation rate of 6.1 per cent in March – the second highest of any supermarket item. This rise in price is compounded by the biggest squeeze on income for decades. Household disposable incomes fell 1.2 per cent in 2011 - the steepest drop since the 1970s. Not only this, wage growth in the quarter to March increased 1.4 per cent, which is less than half the rate at which prices are currently rising.
Aquascutum vs Burberry: Why the best brand won
20th Apr 2012
On one hand we have Aquascutum, a quintessentially British brand famed for its trench coats and rich history which began trading in the 1850s. On the other we have Burberry, a label which boasts much the same. Despite these similarities, the last five days have seen the former sink into administration whilst the latter reported an 11 per cent rise in sales and an expected 2011 profit of £372 million.
The question of why Aquascutum failed when many other British brands have experienced roaring successes is a complicated one, but one of the most important factors in the divergence is how the respective brands adapted to meet the needs of their clientele.
Burberry has been in the process of a renaissance for the majority of the last decade. Ever since Danniella Westbrook, the ex-cocaine addict and television personality, was photographed in head-to-toe Burberry check and baseball caps adorned with the same pattern became synonymous with ‘chav’ culture, the brand rightly decided the time had come for a complete overhaul.
Are you listening properly? How retailers can turn down the hype and tune into what matters
13th Apr 2012
It’s no surprise we’re having trouble listening. With 95 million tweets sent each day and 4 million per hour, it’s a wonder you can hear at all.
Yet as social media becomes an integral part of a retailer’s brand, tuning out the racket and into what matters has never been more important, and making sense of the noise still remains a major challenge for many retailers.
Speaking to Alex Fovargue, Retail Specialist at SAS, My Retail Media explored the stumbling blocks retailers are still coming across with social media, and how to spot the conversations that really matter.
As retailers develop their social media strategies, we’re seeing more innovation than ever in how these platforms can be utilised towards a common brand message.
Fashion's fairy godmother: How e-commerce changed the way we shop for good
8th Apr 2012
Eighteen years after the first e-commerce transaction is thought to have been made in 1994, we take stock of what the industry looks like as it comes of age.
According to the latest figures by the European Commission, around EUR 6 trillion now changes hands each year through e-commerce. After a hesitant start, the fashion industry has become one of the champions of online retail, creating consumer experiences that other sectors would later follow.
The early innovation of companies including Net-a-Porter and Asos paved the way for fashion retailers looking to explore multi-channel expansion and virtual stores. Concepts that were once inconceivable, such as buying designer clothing without once trying it on or feeling the fabric are now second nature to a fashion industry intent on pushing the boundaries of online consumption.
Set up by former fashion editor Natalie Massenet in 1998, Net-a-Porter is regarded as a touchstone for fashion retail and its digital progress.
Retailtopia: The shape of retail in 2020
30th Mar 2012
Given the amount of negative press surrounding the British retail industry at present, you’d be forgiven for thinking that it really is as doomed as it sounds. Retail consultant and television personality Mary Portas today expressed her disappointment after the government accepted “virtually all” of the 28 recommendations she made last year. Portas today said: "I would have liked greater central intervention in critical areas such as change of use, parking, business rates and the sign-off of new out-of-town developments." From a broader perspective, shop vacancy rates are on the increase and each month sees a new retailer slip into administration, crushed by rising rents and mounting debts. On top of this, the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development recently announced that the economy has shrunk for a second successive quarter – the technical definition of a recession.
Chancellor’s Budget hits retailers where it hurts
26th Mar 2012
Aside from widespread concern for the rising price of pasties, My-Retail Media takes a look at how the Chancellor’s Budget 2012 will impact retailers already struggling to stay afloat.
For many companies, George Osborne’s Budget is unlikely to bring around a boost in business needed as consumer confidence continues to flounder. A short-term relaxation of Sunday trading restrictions during the Olympics is unlikely to buffer the alterations made to VAT concerning hot food, or the complete omission from the Budget to deal with a much-campaigned cut in fuel duty.
To make matters worse, just one day after the Budget was revealed, the Office for National Statistics announced spending rates have now fallen behind that of inflation, as consumers are forced to cut back on purchases. Despite an improving food sector, clothing and footwear sales worsened, with household goods reporting a particularly weak February.
BRC Director General, Stephen Robertson, said: "The headlines from [the] Budget do nothing immediate to change the tough reality millions of families are dealing with. It's good the Chancellor's done something to help households' abilities to spend by raising personal tax allowances but disappointing it won't take effect for another 12 months."
Starbucks: a step too far?
16th Mar 2012
It’s been a busy week for Starbucks. With a new latte recipe to get a hold of, Jimmy Carr training (and tweeting) as a barista, they’d be forgiven for not remembering the name of every customer to walk through its doors.
But that’s exactly what the coffee house chain wants to do. The retailer that made the venti-extra-hot-no-foam-skinny-latte possible is now going back to basics, and on first name terms, using customers’ names to differentiate between drinks instead of their orders.
“We know what our customers drink, but now we want to know who they are.” Laurence Winch, Starbucks’ UK and Ireland ambassador told fans of the chain this week over Youtube.
Forming part of a policy that’s been in place in America for years, baristas will now write a customer’s name on their cup and use it to call a customer when their drink is ready for collection.
As a small army of cappuccinos and lattes pile up at the end of any Starbucks counter at rush hour, the move certainly makes sense logistically, but will patrons in the UK find the new strategy endearing or forcefully familiar?
