CouponCabin.com recently released the results of a survey that found 53 percent of American adult shoppers will spend less than $100 on new fall clothes, and 92 percent of those who purchased new fall clothes last year will not spend more this year.

Rather, adult consumers will try to save money by only buying sale items, using coupons and cutting back on the number of items they plan to purchase. Chief savings officer at CouponCabin.com, Jackie Warrick, said shoppers are still apprehensive about how they spend their money, despite some improvement in the economy.

The report also found that, while still worried about spending too much, 24 percent of respondents say they are still influenced in some way by runway and high fashion trends when shopping for clothes. Warrick said shoppers can pick one fashion investment per season and the other items can be bargain pieces from sales and outlet malls.

Despite anticipated low retail sales this fall, the latest Conference Board Consumer Confidence Index increased slightly from 57.6 in June to 59.5 currently, and the expectations index for the upcoming season increased as well from 71.6 in June to 75.4 in July.

Lynn Franco, director of The Conference Board Consumer Research Center, said while consumer confidence posted a slight gain, customers remain apprehensive about the current business and employment conditions.  

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A recent study from Bizrate Insights and Forrester Research found increased tablet usage is pushing the mobile devices to the head of ecommerce technology.

The study reported a 12 percent increase in tablet ownership since the release of the iPad2, and of the people who do not own a tablet 26 percent plan to purchase one within the next year. Of the tablet owners, 60 percent have shopped online using their tablet, and 78 percent of those shoppers have placed an order on the device. In addition, tablet owners spend 28 percent more per order on average than non-tablet owners, and 56 percent have downloaded a shopping application.

Sucharita Mulpuru, vice president and principal analyst at Forrester Research, said that retailers must take consumer frustrations, such as lack of Flash support, into consideration when deciding on how to target mobile shoppers.

"Whether to go with an app or an optimized site right now depends on three main factors: whether your website relies on Flash or similar technology, whether you can build an app that delivers an expansive customer experience and the likelihood of your customer base to download an app," Mulpuru said.

AdAge Digital reported that the increased tablet usage will cause a shift in ecommerce. Because of the convenience and mobility of tablets, the news source anticipates consumers to use the devices in a more relaxed way than they would a PC or smartphone. Tablets are also capable of displaying retail content similar to a catalog, unlike websites or smartphone applications, thus tablets enable ecommerce sites to replace catalog shopping.  

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Research and Markets recently released its China Retail Industry Report 2010-2011 which found China's top 100 chain enterprises increased sales by 21.2 percent in 2010, and the number of top 100 chain enterprises stores reached 150,000, up 9.8 percent from the year before.

According to the report, 2010 reported department stores averaging a 23.2 percent growth rate and an 18.5 percent increase in sales revenue. while the top five overseas-funded supermarkets opened up 140 new stores. The 21 total overseas-funded enterprises, including supermarkets, department stores and home appliance and catering enterprises, accounted for 21.3 percent of sales revenue of the top 100 chain enterprises.

AFP recently reported that retail sales in Japan rose in June, marking the first increase in sales since the earthquake and tsunami in March. According to the Japanese Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry, sales rose 1.1 percent in June 2011 from June 2010, as purchases of machines, appliances and equipment increased.

Household appliances and electronic products reported a 15.2 percent increase in sales as consumers had to change to digital TV before the mandated July 24th end of analogy broadcasting in Japan. Apparel sales rose 4.1 percent, while food and beverage sales increased 3.2 percent. But automobile sales dropped 17.3 percent as many production facilities are still recovering from the earthquake and tsunami.  

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MediaPost's Laura Patterson recently reported that the top 5 businesses in any industry have a 93 to 95 percent customer retention, and customers who come from a referral have a 92 percent retention rate versus a 67 percent retention rate for customers brought in through advertising.

The news source said that a 5 percent reduction in customer defections can result in an 85 percent increase in profits, which is easily doable as 98 percent of all dissatisfied customers leave without complaint for reasons unrelated to a product. In fact, 67 percent of customers reportedly switch to another company because they did not feel appreciated. The news source cites different steps retailers can do to increase their customer loyalty including selecting a strategy, measuring the efforts and optimizing the results.

Retailers must decide what the customer loyalty strategy is working to achieve such as repurchasing of existing products or acquisition of new customers. Once the end goal is identified a corresponding strategy can be selected. Measuring results over periods of time will help retailers identify which efforts worked during certain seasons. Once the results have been collected, retailers can make adjustments, invest in new technology and create an improved customer loyalty strategy.

Social media platforms are a valuable tool for retailers looking to increase their customer retention. Social media can enhance relationship management by offering continual customer service to consumers, collecting feedback from both satisfied and dissatisfied consumers and letting consumers feel heard and appreciated through discussions and discounts. Personalized communications can be sent to specific consumers which can then be shared via social media. Retailers are sure to expand their consumer base through the use of these communication and networking tools. 

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Near Field Communication technology is reported to be integrated into all new mobile devices, but Google may be left out of the loop by not joining the U.S. operator consortium Isis, according to Computing.co.uk.

The news source recently reported that by not joining the Isis consortium, Google is left with only one payment processor to support its Google Wallet service – MasterCard. Mobile providers AT&T, T-Mobile USA and Verizon joined the consortium and have announced they will create mobile payment applications compatible with their Isis infrastructure. The payment processors in the Isis consortium include Visa, MasterCard, Discover and American Express.

Isis chief executive Michael Abbott said in a statement on July 19, "By working with the nation's payment networks – Visa, MasterCard, Discover and American Express – we significantly advance the vision of an open and secure platform that provides banks and merchants with a new and highly relevant way to connect with consumers."

The consortium will create SIM-based wallets, so the NFC technology will be accessible no matter which mobile device or network is being used, reported Computing.co.uk. The technology will also be used to create secure mobile versions of their products such as debit cards, membership cards and transport tickets.  

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According to the Fifth Annual Salary Survey from 24 Seven, retail industry employees are seeking higher salaries, more job mobility and quality of life benefits from their employers.

The survey found 68 percent of respondents plan to make a career move in the next year, and almost 50 percent are currently looking for a new job. Growth in the industry is highly anticipated for design, digital and ecommerce positions such as campaign manager, apparel design and visual merchandising.

Celeste Gudas, president and founder of 24 Seven, said the recession has changed job expectations, and employees are branching out to create their own opportunities.

With salary increases seen throughout the industry, the survey reported a 9 percent increase in salaries for employees who have held a position between one and five years, while base salaries for employees in a position for less than 12 months has increased almost 20 percent.

In addition, employment satisfaction has increased due to flexible scheduling and telecommuting opportunities. The top reported reasons for changing jobs were higher base salary, better growth potential and improved quality of life. Workers are seeking not only medical insurance, but other benefits that make balancing life and work more manageable. Because of steady growth in the industry, 62 percent of respondents said they believe their salaries will increase in the next year, while 43 percent expected their bonuses to increase in 2011.

"Companies need to become more attuned to the desires of employees in order to attract and retain talent and remain competitive in this post-recession environment," Gudas said.

According to 24 Seven, one way to increase visibility and share important content while continuing to interact with clients and prospective employees is to become active in social media. Blogging, conferencing and networking can increase the the number of qualified candidates a retailer can attract, as well as reach out to a new customer base.  

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A recent report from Gartner found mobile payment users will reach at least 141.1 million in 2011, with a mobile payment volume totalling $86.1 billion. This is a 75.9 percent increase in volume from 2010.

But despite the rising numbers, the report said the growth of mobile payment is slower than expected. Sandy Shen, research director at Gartner, said mobile payment growth in developing markets is not as strong as anticipated, and that the adoption of NFC technology to be at least four years away.

"In developed markets, companies are trumpeting the prospects of Near Field Communication without realizing the complexity of the service model," Shen said.

Ecommerce Bytes recently reported that Dwolla, a payment company that combines social networks and location-based technologies with online and mobile payments, has started to process $1 million in daily transactions. Chief Executive of Dwolla, Ben Milne, said Dwolla's continued focus on the future has helped them surpass the competition in the mobile payment industry.

"We've been constantly blowing up the old payment models to discover the insights that are enabling us to craft a new payment network based on possibilities of tomorrow's technology, not 1970s antiquities," Milne told the news source.  

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According to a recent survey by CyberSource, protecting their brand from internal and external threats is the main reason companies invest in Payment Card Industry data-security standard compliance. The survey found 69 percent of organizations surveyed reported their main reason for spending on payment security is brand protection, followed by 26 percent investing to avoid fines.

With hackers being the most anticipated source of an internal data breach, the survey found one-third of respondents stated they believe their own employees would be the source of a data leak, while another third said hackers would be the source, and the final third ranked employees and hackers as equally likely sources.

Digital Transactions reported that a recent wave of security breaches could explain the transition from worrying most about fines to security breaches. While the news reports on external hackers breaking into databases of large, high profile companies, internal threats tend to go unacknowledged.

Rosa Luis, solutions manager for CyberSource, said data is not totally safe behind a simple firewall, as employees may still be able to access it particularly in smaller companies. The survey found 45 percent of level 2 organizations said call-center sales staff had access to account numbers, and 34 percent of level 1 organizations did as well. Of Level 1 organizations survyed, 32 percent reported sales staff could see raw card data, while 24 percent of level 2 organizations had visible data.

According to Small Business Trends, small organizations must invest in PCI compliance as a security breach would end up costing much more in the long term. The news source recommends any small business should first limit access to cardholder information and keep anti-virus software up to date. All cardholder data must be encrypted and remain in that state, and the number of places sensitive cardholder data is held should be reduced to a minimum to avoid any type of slip up in security. Because ensuring the security of data remains constant, the news source also recommends that a third party be used to store data, send encrypted data to payment processors and send a newly encrypted data set back to the business.  

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The NPD Group recently released its annual back-to-school study of consumer purchasing intentions that found consumers plan to spend about the same this year compared to last year, but they may start a bit later into the sale season.

According to Marshal Cohen, chief industry analyst for the NPD Group, the results indicate that consumers remain cautious about their spending. Shoppers who were once influenced by fashion and trends are being replaced by consumers hunting for value. The study found value is determined by the item's price, quality and brand name for consumer confidence in the product.

"While the differences in the numbers aren't all that dramatic there are dramatic indications of changes in consumption patterns," Cohen said. "The study's results clearly point out that consumers will be shopping later, looking for value, and searching out lower priced items."

The most recent Kronos Retail Labor Index found that hiring in the retail industry remains to rise, but the number of applicants is declining. According to the survey, the ration of hires to applicants rose to 3.7 percent in June, up from 3.2 percent in May. In addition, the number of applicants was the lowest number received since November 2007 and almost 17 percent lower than the same time last year.

Chris Varvares, senior managing director and co-founder of Macroeconomics Advisers, told Convenience Store News that the recovery in hiring has slowed in recent months due to the deceleration in payrolls and slowed growth in retail sales.  

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BT Expedite research found U.K. retailers report 23 percent of spending goes to improving online and mobile solutions, up from 17 percent last year.

The survey found 25 percent of retailers plan on replacing head office systems, an increase from 8 percent last year, and 15 percent of retailers will replace their merchandise planning system.

Richard Lowe, CEO of BT Expedite, told Retail Gazette that despite budget cuts due to low consumer confidence, retailers are holding IT spending constant for 2011.

"But there's a positive indication of an increase of retailers planning to upgrade key business systems to keep pace with the continuing shift to multichannel retailing, as well as the growth of mobile internet access and mcommerce," Lowe said.

A Forrester report found that 91 percent of retailers have a mobile strategy in place or in development, and 72 percent of retailers say they will increase social network spending in 2011.

But the research found 62 percent of retailers reported unclear returns on social marketing.

Sucharita Mulpuru, vice president and principal analyst at Forrester Research, told Computing UK that retail executives should anticipate modest results from social commerce efforts. First sites should provide basic store information and easy check-out options to consumers. Then the retailer can develop the relationship with the consumer.  

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