Retail's love-hate relationship with mobile device-equipped customers: More than a third of people will walk into a brick-and-mortar retail store, scope out a product, then buy it online for less. But plenty are not. Blessing, or curse?
Just my 15%
Tuesday, February 12, 2013
Retail's love-hate relationship with mobile device-equipped customers
Good post on the changing dynamic in the retail world because of mobile devices. What is interesting to me is that the brick-and-mortar retailers themselves are looking at this change as a challenge/problem while start-ups and tech savvy entrepreneurs are looking at it as an opportunity. It's all about your mind set.
Retail's love-hate relationship with mobile device-equipped customers: More than a third of people will walk into a brick-and-mortar retail store, scope out a product, then buy it online for less. But plenty are not. Blessing, or curse?
Just my 15%
Retail's love-hate relationship with mobile device-equipped customers: More than a third of people will walk into a brick-and-mortar retail store, scope out a product, then buy it online for less. But plenty are not. Blessing, or curse?
Just my 15%
Sunday, February 10, 2013
USPS to Expand Package Delivery to Sundays - Eccommercebytes.com
USPS to Expand Package Delivery to Sundays: In a surprise announcement, the US Postmaster General revealed during an interview on Saturday that the postal service would soon expand package delivery to Sundays. Eccomercebytes Post
Now, this would be cool if they could get their act together so online retailers could rely on them.
Just my 15%
Now, this would be cool if they could get their act together so online retailers could rely on them.
Just my 15%
Could Google save the USPS!
The USPS is asking for help. Yes, we all know they need help, but this time they are actually asking for it. A recent post on Postandpostal.info mentions that "The world’s largest mail delivery company has issued a request for information seeking industry ideas on how to develop a dynamic routing strategy for its competitive products – package mail, Express Mail and Priority Mail."
So where does Google fit in? Well Googlers are brilliant for one thing ... they have also mapped out just about every nook and cranny of the United States for Google Earth and Google Maps. It doesn't seem like a stretch that the bright minds behind those two apps can come up with a dynamic routing system for the USPS and a profitable one at that.
The USPS is used to driving by every house in the neighborhood because they all get mail each day, but not all of them get packages and the current system of routing packages is inefficient. The USPS needs a system similar to UPS and FedEx where the route is created each day or multiple times a day based on the packages needing to be delivered.
If the USPS could develop or license a dynamic routing system (from Google), they could speed up delivery of parcels and cut costs at the same time and if (that's a big if) they could also train their staff to scan 100% of packages on delivery they would be a much more viable competitor to UPS and FedEx and provide online retailers with another viable option for delivery of their packages.
Currently many online retailers choose the USPS for light weight packages as well as packages that are not delivery time sensitive. Larger packages and packages that need to arrive in a certain time frame are typically sent by UPS or FedEx.
I suggest Google because they already have more than half of the job done with Maps and Earth and because without an outside vendor of their stature the USPS will never figure this out.
Just my 15%
So where does Google fit in? Well Googlers are brilliant for one thing ... they have also mapped out just about every nook and cranny of the United States for Google Earth and Google Maps. It doesn't seem like a stretch that the bright minds behind those two apps can come up with a dynamic routing system for the USPS and a profitable one at that.
The USPS is used to driving by every house in the neighborhood because they all get mail each day, but not all of them get packages and the current system of routing packages is inefficient. The USPS needs a system similar to UPS and FedEx where the route is created each day or multiple times a day based on the packages needing to be delivered.
If the USPS could develop or license a dynamic routing system (from Google), they could speed up delivery of parcels and cut costs at the same time and if (that's a big if) they could also train their staff to scan 100% of packages on delivery they would be a much more viable competitor to UPS and FedEx and provide online retailers with another viable option for delivery of their packages.
Currently many online retailers choose the USPS for light weight packages as well as packages that are not delivery time sensitive. Larger packages and packages that need to arrive in a certain time frame are typically sent by UPS or FedEx.
I suggest Google because they already have more than half of the job done with Maps and Earth and because without an outside vendor of their stature the USPS will never figure this out.
Just my 15%
Thursday, February 07, 2013
Props to John Donahoe and Marissa Mayer!
It looks like my last post on the blog was in July of 2011 and today it is Feb. 6, 2013 -- My how time flies when your having fun. While I've been away much has happened in the world of ecommerce and I wanted to take a quick minute to highlight two big changes.
eBay is on a roll and it looks like Yahoo is as well. Congrats to John Donahoe and Marissa Mayer on what looks to be two significant turnarounds.
eBay
In the past, I was a frequent critic of the changes that eBay was making and it turns out that over time they have for the most part been positive. I like the fact that they acquire companies and don't always have to assimilate them into the Borg (eBay Marketplace) GSI, Milo and Magento are just a few of the acquisitions that seem to be thriving in the eBay family but who maintain their separate identities. It worked for Paypal and Stubhub why not for the others.
Sure, smaller sellers are still not thrilled with the changes but with GMV growth greater than ecommerce the increase in sales should help lessen the pain.
John Donahoe and team has done a pretty good job turning this ship around. Just look at the price of their stock.
Yahoo
While I still have no clue what Yahoo's "ecommerce" plans are, Marissa Mayer does look like she has stabilized this Internet "Icon". There finally seems to be a vision and a direction for the company that was missing for so many years. I'm looking forward to watching the company again and seeing if the turnaround will continue to gain momentum or fade. (full disclosure I do own shares in Yahoo)
I would like to see a definitive plan for Yahoo Stores and their Small Business unit and hope that they can be more than just a display ad business.
This feels good to be blogging again after so long. I may just decide to make this a habit once again.
Just my 15%
eBay is on a roll and it looks like Yahoo is as well. Congrats to John Donahoe and Marissa Mayer on what looks to be two significant turnarounds.
eBay
In the past, I was a frequent critic of the changes that eBay was making and it turns out that over time they have for the most part been positive. I like the fact that they acquire companies and don't always have to assimilate them into the Borg (eBay Marketplace) GSI, Milo and Magento are just a few of the acquisitions that seem to be thriving in the eBay family but who maintain their separate identities. It worked for Paypal and Stubhub why not for the others.
Sure, smaller sellers are still not thrilled with the changes but with GMV growth greater than ecommerce the increase in sales should help lessen the pain.
John Donahoe and team has done a pretty good job turning this ship around. Just look at the price of their stock.
Yahoo
While I still have no clue what Yahoo's "ecommerce" plans are, Marissa Mayer does look like she has stabilized this Internet "Icon". There finally seems to be a vision and a direction for the company that was missing for so many years. I'm looking forward to watching the company again and seeing if the turnaround will continue to gain momentum or fade. (full disclosure I do own shares in Yahoo)
I would like to see a definitive plan for Yahoo Stores and their Small Business unit and hope that they can be more than just a display ad business.
This feels good to be blogging again after so long. I may just decide to make this a habit once again.
Just my 15%
Monday, July 11, 2011
Sunday, June 19, 2011
Margins Narrowing, Amazon Faces a Well-Financed Campaign to Force it to Collect Sales Taxes - YCharts - Information, Not Opinion - Forbes
Margins Narrowing, Amazon Faces a Well-Financed Campaign to Force it to Collect Sales Taxes - YCharts - Information, Not Opinion - Forbes
States look to Internet taxes to close budget gaps - Yahoo! Finance
Just my 15%
States look to Internet taxes to close budget gaps - Yahoo! Finance
Just my 15%
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