On that date new mandatory criteria are set to be introduced. We have now seen some emails issued by Google warning of the possibility of future feed disapprovals and delisting. These are currently being sent out to e-store owners that have yet to include the pre-requisite mandatory data.

The reasoning behind Google’s recent changes is to enhance the end-user experience by making products easily comparable and offering as much information on them as possible. There have been too many instances in the past of poor results in Google Shopping which have been a function of the lack of quality of the original merchant submissions.

Many e-business owners may not have even been aware of this change until receiving an email from Google so now it is vital to take action to ensure the quality of their feed is high enough to continue being listed.

In the long run the changes in merchant and user experience will be beneficial to users and e-businesses alike, but there are some painful moments ahead for companies using outdated Google Product submissions. Fixing any issues before the deadline will be a must for any business bringing in sizeable volumes of Google Shopping clicks.

Some of what Google ask for sounds simple, but if your system lacks key fields of data, and/or your export does not include the information, then it’s important to review this without delay, and certainly well before potential disapproval.

The initial upload for most businesses should just be the beginning of a feed enhancement process. Very rarely is a perfect feed uploaded first time round and even if it is, it may not match the records Google is using to index its own product entries.

The quality and degree of completeness of your submission will affect how much traffic your products attract. Over the past few months we’ve seen drastic increases in traffic and returns from Google Shopping for many clients simply through adding and nurturing the data being submitted. The data quality in the feed is directly linked to the placement of the products which enables in certain cases ensuring that products feature in ’price comparison’ boxes.

By getting each product either placed as high as possible for the highest populated search query and/or entered into a comparison will ensure a higher traffic volume through the channel.

Our new Feed Manager™ Product Optimizer allows clients to review their products as they are positioned in Google Shopping and then find, change and include additional data being submitted to Google with the greatest of ease in order to achieve the best results possible.

Given Google’s recently published articles on listing quality, it is more important than ever before to ensure that your submissions meet that standard – without them your traffic will die away and so will the resulting sales activity.

Now real time adverts are being trialed on 1% of users profiles (more than 5million people)– a service which allows immediate targeted adverts based on what they are posting about, or updating their status about at the time. So if someone posted “I’d like to go to the cinema tonight”, an advert from Vue or Odeon may instantly appear alongside their Facebook homepage.

Similarly, real time targeted advertising has been pioneered by Twitter, which houses promoted Tweets – paid-for brand tweets – next to relevant topics of conversation. Twitter are also trialing geo- targeted adverts, which allows advertisers to narrow down their promoted tweets to users within a specific geographical location, and this is being closely monitored to measure its successes.

This is definitely something that businesses need to be looking into because they could be missing out on something big!

For retailers, gamifying your website might involve embedding small games or activities as part of a page, allowing your customers to use virtual currency, or instigating a virtual loyalty points system gained via engaging with pages or apps within a website. Websites are now looking at adapting some of the gaming tactics in an effort to boost sales and retain traffic to customer orientated websites, particularly those which rely on ecommerce.

User engagement has been proven to increase when game mechanics are applied to websites, although whether this does directly affect revenue or loyalty is as yet undetermined. I think anything that increases site interaction with your visitors has positive implications if used correctly, and your customers will expect you to keep up with all the latest innovations to keep your site and brand fresh and current. It is also a useful measure of what is and is not working on your website, as you can see areas which are particularly low in engagement, as well as finding out more about your most frequent visitors.

The gaming demographic are also a prime target for engaging in online shopping, as statistics show that “gamers” are more likely to be an online shopper, and a lot more likely than a non gamer to review or rate products online *. This means it’s crucial to impress these users, as they are likely to be the ones who are most vocal about their experience on a site.

Great design and interactivity are fast becoming crucial to driving traffic to your website, and offering something different is becoming increasingly difficult to ensure yours stands out from the competition. It could be that adding a little fun to your website in the form of gaming is a new way of setting your website apart from your competitors.

* http://www.interpretllc.com/new-media-measure-interpretations.php?rid=49

Online reviews are valuable because they can help a business discover what it is doing well, and highlight areas where it may need to improve. Great reviews will also drive sales, and the reassurance of their peers is particularly valuable to a younger demographic – reports of personal experience speak to people much more than biased adverts.

Recent research shows that 53 % of shoppers have decided against making a purchase based on a negative online review – that shows the potential that reviews have to lose retailers half of their potential business! Half of those asked also indicated that online recommendations are the most influential factor in their buying decisions, more so than any advertising campaign or promotion *. Elsewhere, further research has showed that retailers that embrace reviews and recommendations into their online strategy can show expect an uplift of up to 18%, which is an unprecedented potential in the current climate **. I think this illustrates the true potential of how managing reviews effectively can establish increased customer confidence, increase traffic and improve return customer figures.

Meanwhile whilst negative reviews are unfortunate, but the way in which it is dealt is key. The catch with social media means that brands need to be transparent, as on sites like Twitter, all users can see your responses. A good reply is invaluable to send the message to customers that your brand cares, but each answer must be considered to help to reinstate your brand’s message.

There have been examples in the past of brands who have responded to customer criticism inappropriately, and the result has been a public relations disaster. It is without doubt that the Internet is a powerful tool, and has given everyone a voice, and many resources with which customers can communicate directly with companies and brands. The democratic nature of reviews may scare many retailers, but handled correctly, it can be invaluable to drive sales and really project the right image and give a voice to your brand.

* http://realbusiness.co.uk/sales_and_marketing/social_media_smes_must_wise_up

** http://www.realwire.com/releases/8bn-up-for-grabs-in-UK-online-retail-sales-social-commerce-data-shows

The most unique angle of social media is its ability for consumers to speak directly to an organisation – it suggests transparency to customers and when used correctly will help to reinforce a strong image for a brand. I understand, like many others do, that social media is a key way for businesses to listen to what people want and if they are savvy, adapt accordingly. It also allows you to speak directly to your target audience and this means it’s important to get it right with your brands social media representation. Social media isn’t a fad, and it won’t disappear – in a few years it will be so deeply engrained in every aspect of our lives that it will become a second language.

It can also help businesses gain global recognition, and reach customers in more obscure locations. The benefits are countless – the challenge is applying the right technology to make keeping your social media up to date as easily and time effectively as possible. There are a number of new innovations which optimise communication opportunities with minimum input from the organizations themselves. Our own Social Media Manager was developed with this at the forefront of its design – an innovative piece of software which automatically sorts, loads and precisely schedules a bank of tweets and posts to minimise the effort required to keep social media such as Twitter and Facebook up to date. Social Media Manager is an integral part of Feed Manager and is specifically designed to incorporate daily information about our clients’ products, across multiple social media platforms.

Innovations like these are the best way of using social media as a retail business – they are simple to use, and our service simplifies and shortens the business effort required. I believe that it is vital for businesses to assess their social media, and use the available means to make it as effective and successful as possible.

It is likely that the trends from last year will continue, as consumers move away from traditional presents – the gifts sector (including hampers, chocolates and flowers) last year declined by a third* -and towards more sophisticated non perishable gifts such as lingerie and perfume, which last year showed a strong annual growth. The plus points of buying these items online are numerous – price comparison is particularly effective for beauty products, reliable postage services mean good timings, and buying lingerie online means many men are able to avoid the embarrassment factor of choosing it on the high street!

I believe it is seasonal opportunities such as these which mean people may stray from the sites they frequently browse, to make purchases from etailers that they may not have used before. This provides a great opportunity to make a real impression on new customers, and deliver a great service, which is likely to ensure returning custom and repeat spends. It seems that shoppers’ love affair with the online sector looks unlikely to end anytime soon!

http://www.uk.capgemini.com/news-centre/news/pr2085/

The history of loyalty schemes has a proven track record of success, however by combining incentives with mobile phones and social media, companies will be reaching out to consumers directly through channels they know and use on a daily basis. There is potential to reach customers at every stage of their purchasing journey – to drive footfall, to raise brand awareness, to ensure repeat custom and tailor a personal discount.

A personalised and targeted voucher based upon browsing activity or registered interests means a relevant voucher which is far more likely to be used. In the same way that supermarkets tailor their vouchers based on the purchasing history of customers, it is likely that this will continue but move to a paperless email or downloadable voucher.

Similarly Smartphone and tablet Apps are being used to target customers with information to increase their loyalty and spending, as well as driving footfall into stores and providing easy mobile enabled access to online stores. I believe that any form of virtual loyalty will be proven to be an extremely effective marketing tool in driving business to both the high street and etail if used effectively.

Mobile phones, iPads and interactive digital media is undoubtedly the future of advertising and brand awareness, and utilising this tool now means that building on its potential in the future will be immeasurably easier.

While the technology is undoubtedly imminent, for it to infiltrate shops could take years – it would be a gradual process which would happen over many years. Although some places have been trialing the technology, it has been mostly coffee outlets, and they can only take payments under £15, and their successes have been moderate.

While it may be easy for the manufacturers of smart phones to introduce the technology to all their upcoming model designs, retailers on the high street are unfortunately probably not in the position where they can afford to deploy new, and albeit slightly unnecessary technology. Following the VAT rise, retailers are already struggling to absorb the costs to their business; installing new technology is hardly likely to be a priority.

I also imagine there will be many questions raised about security – there are risks that the signal could be infiltrated, and there are also worries that losing your phone could now be akin to losing your wallet – thieves and hackers may have access to your banking details. Similarly, there are concerns from retailers that similarly to the elevated cost of accepting card payments to retailers, there will be similar costs incurred by the retailer for accepting mobile payment.

While there were similar concerns with online shopping in its infancy, it is established enough, and has proven secure technology which mean it is trusted as well as safe. This also misses the key benefit of new retail related technology – it is unlikely to be cost efficient and does little for the retailer.

There are however, plenty of positive results coming through for mobile phone shopping, which allows payment online, is still convenient and available “on-the-go”, and works to drive footfall and loyalty into stores as well as revenue online.

With use of smartphone and tablet PCs rising all the time, it seems very likely that this will play an important part of online shopping activity, once the security aspects are more comprehensively covered off.

The key question that retailers will need to ask themselves is how can this opportunity be maximised? Mobile enabled sites are emerging rapidly as many of the retail giants are realising how serious mobile commerce should be taken. One department store has launched a mobile optimised website on the back of a 660% increase in mobile sales*, proving their certainty in its value as an ecommerce tool. The Christmas weekend showed traffic increases of 50-100% for many mobile enabled sites, and start of the Boxing Day sales meant the 26th was the busiest for mobile traffic **, proving that the opportunities are already there for the savvy etailer.

Research has showed that customers are using their smartphones and tablet computers to access competitors website whilst in stores to ensure they are getting the best deal, and this exhibits that price comparison is a key benefit of portable online access. Although the sales of PCs decline in direct correlation with the increase in tablets and smart phones, there is no doubt that this trend will slow down online sales. In fact, it is increasingly clear that tablet PCs are set to be an important part of the future of retail, whether it be through using internet or mobile enabled sites. I believe that mobile and online purchasing will continue to grow at an explosive rate, and is likely to continue to leave the high street floundering. Christmas has demonstrated that the difficulty with the high street is their vulnerability to set backs beyond human control, such as extreme weather conditions, and the plus point of online shopping is that it can be done anywhere and anytime.

However it is not all bad news for the high street, as I believe it likely that positive experiences whilst shopping online may also increase a customer’s loyalty to the brand or store. As smartphones and tablet PCs continue to move into the mainstream, all the signs suggest that online shopping will follow suit.

*http://www.internetretailing.net/2011/01/house-of-fraser-launches-mobile-site-as-mobile-sales-grow-660/** http://www.internetretailing.net/2011/01/uk-retailers-experience-50-100-increase-in-mobile-traffic-over-christmas-weekend/