IMRG Members Monthly Update
IMRG IS PLEASED TO ANNOUNCE THE FOLLOWING NEW MEMBERS:
Amara - www.amara.co.uk
Feature Deco - www.featuredeco.co.uk
CONNET UK- www.uk.company-on.net
New developments within the IMRG community during the last month
TradeDoubler has announced that The Search Works in the UK and France will be rebranded to TD Search, effective immediately, bringing it in line with the rest of TradeDoubler’s TD Search businesses across Europe. The rebranding is the final step in the successful integration of The Search Works into The TradeDoubler Group, following one of the largest acquisitions in the online advertising industry in July 2007. The rebranding also paves the way for future product expansion to leverage the Group’s technology investment under a single pan-European brand. In 2010, TradeDoubler will announce a number of significant developments, including the launch of its single platform to manage holistic digital marketing programmes across the major online disciplines in search, display and affiliate. The single platform will deliver more informed budget allocation, more effective campaigns and even stronger results for customers.
Home Delivery Network has brought forward the announcement of its sub-2kg parcel service - called HDN Lite - as industrial action disrupts Royal Mail’s equivalent second class service. The carrier says that, while the Lite proposition has been in planning for some months and has already been taken up by some existing clients, the prolonged nature of the Royal Mail dispute have prompted it to launch the service now. But HDN Lite, designed to provide retailers with a reliable and cost-effective alternative to Royal Mail for their customer deliveries, will not be generally available until January 2010. The service guarantees delivery within 72 hours and provides full track and trace as standard, allowing customers to follow their parcels both online and via HDN’s dedicated customer service centre. Insurance options, proof of delivery and scheduled returns are also offered within bespoke packages for retailers.
dgm has launched Affiliscape, a revolutionary recruitment tool that provides unparalleled visibility of all affiliates on any affiliate campaign. The depth of the information is unique in the marketplace. Tests against a similar tool resulted in almost 10 times the number of domains uncovered on a single campaign. Available exclusively through dgm, the intelligence gives merchants the power to recruit with unmatched precision. To find out more contact Chris Russell-Smith (e: interested@dgm-uk.com), or call 020 7943 4200.
Ukash is to launch a service that will allow consumers to spend cash online anywhere that MasterCard™ is accepted. In a move that will revolutionise internet shopping for cash consumers, Ukash will provide shoppers with a ‘virtual card’, in exchange for cash, that can be spent in MasterCard merchants worldwide. Ukash has entered into an agreement with Transact Network, a prepaid MasterCard issuer, to bring to the market a ‘virtual card’ specifically to address the needs of the cash customer. This new service from Ukash will enable cash customers to enjoy the benefits and flexibility of internet shopping for the first time. This revolutionary product will be available to consumers Q4 2009.
MetaPack celebrated its 150th customer this month. Go Lives on the IDIS DM were SPC Marketing, Wembley Drum, Beta Fashion, Thane Direct, Route One and Lotnabox. The Royal Mail Strikes have proved the necessity to yet another facet of the system, with companies such as John Lewis, Asos, Shudoo, HIS Textiles and Lighting Direct all speaking out about their contingency plans through the use of MetaPack’s Delivery Manager.
Zavvi have switched their web domain from zavvi.co.uk to zavvi.com to capture a share of the European market. The retailer aims to generate half of its sales from Europe by September 2010.
Bazaarvoice has been named ‘Technology Vendor of the Year’ at the 2009 Retail Systems Awards. The company provides social commerce applications, including its flagship Ratings & Reviews product, to over 600 brands worldwide. Bazaarvoice’s European team has grown to provide social commerce expertise to the country’s leading retailers. Of the top 50 UK online retailers, 34 have reviews. 19 of these retailers are Bazaarvoice clients.
NEOVIA has announces it has been selected by KILO TO GO, the UK's largest cyclosportive organiser, to securely process online payments with its NETBANX payments gateway. KILO TO GO organises a range of cyclosportives across the UK. Cyclosportives are long distance (typically 60 and 100 miles), mass participation leisure cycle rides where the organiser has surveyed, risk assessed and signed the route.
Wilkinson has increased customer conversion rates and average order value on its Wilkinson Plus website by 23% and average order values have risen 16%. The system generates product recommendations for each individual site visitor based on where they have come to the site from, where they go and what they add to their basket and what they go on to buy.
NEOVIA has announced it has been chosen by RSA as the standard to process payments for all its brands, including its leading MORE TH>N insurance brand with two million customers. In the initial deployment, NEOVIA will use its payment suite to process card payments online and by telephone for MORE TH>N's consumer-facing insurance services. FULL RELEASE.
Monte Cristo has teamed up with GlobalCollect to process global payments for its Cities XL game. Cities XL, the multiplayer online game (MMOG), lets players create, build, and develop their dream city by taking on the role of a mayor as an avatar. The MMOG features novel real-time construction tools, 25 maps with varying landscapes, and around 500 buildings based on various architectural styles. To process worldwide payments, Cities XL uses GlobalCollect’s Hosted Merchant Link interface. FULL REPORT.
Scotland’s premier outdoor clothing and equipment retailer Tiso Group is adding ratings and reviews functionality to its two websites, Tiso.com and AlpineBikes.com. Bazaarvoice has been appointed to implement the service, along with its customer to customer helpdesk Ask & Answer. Tiso Group, which launched its first outdoor clothing store in 1962 wants to help online customers make informed purchase decisions; Alpine Bikes has seven stores across Scotland and launched AlpineBikes.com in 2008. Additionally, Tiso Group will use customer feedback to help the company’s buying team, enabling it to identify best sellers and products that could be improved.
Avail Intelligence has announced the immediate availability of Avail Express which makes on-site behavioural targeting available to smaller online retailers at purely performance based terms. Features include: - Behavioural Merchandising on your landing pages: - personalised product recommendations: - behaviourally optimised on-site search results. FULL RELEASE.
Ukash has announced that it will continue to expand its online issuing service to a total of 22 countries around the world. Now available in 28 countries worldwide and with over 300,000 physical issuing points, Ukash is the largest global prepaid cash collection network in the world. Consumers in the UK, Australia, Belgium, France, Ireland, Italy, the Netherlands, Portugal and Sweden are able to get Ukash online from their bank accounts having previously been able to obtain it from physical points of sale in these countries as the global alternative payments provider continues to pursue its aim of enabling everybody in the world to spend cash online.
GlobalCollect have released a White Paper featuring case studies from The Financial Times and Rosetta Stone. There is a tremendous growth potential for online merchants worldwide to sell to customers located in markets such as China, India, Europe, or Latin America. However, many merchants are struggling with the “last mile” of offering the right mix of popular and relevant online payments to these international customers. GlobalCollect and Edgar, Dunn & Company have developed a white paper, including case studies about The Financial Times and Rosetta Stone, that describes how leading online merchants address this “last mile” and turn browsers into buyers. To request a copy by e-mail, click HERE.
Ukash has announced a deal with Wallet One [W1] to allow hundreds of thousands of global customers to purchase Ukash vouchers from their W1 online accounts and spend securely online using the Ukash PIN code. W1 makes it easy for customers to buy unique Ukash vouchers from a secure online wallet to spend cash privately and conveniently online at any time and from anywhere in the world. Ukash and W1 also offers the ability for online merchants without a MasterCard or Visa function to appeal to the cash customer and increase online sales. FULL RELEASE
GSI Commerce has announced it has signed a definitive agreement to acquire Retail Convergence Inc. (“RCI”), a Boston, Mass.-based company that operates RueLaLa.com, a leader in the private sale space and SmartBargains.com, an off-price e-commerce marketplace. The acquisition of Rue La La and SmartBargains.com furthers GSI’s evolution as an innovative global e-commerce platform capable of managing all aspects of online sales and interactive marketing for leading retailers and consumer brands.
Ukash has announced that Canada will be the first country in North America to make Ukash e-cash available to consumers. Through a deal with VendTek Systems Inc under its brand Now Prepay, Ukash will be available from 4,000 point of sale terminals in Ontario, before expanding to a total of 15,000 outlets across Canada by the end of the year. Canadians placed almost $12.8 billion worth of orders in 2007.
Webcredible has announced that Marks & Spencer's newly launched website has equalled WHSmith in offering its customers the best user experience out of the top UK high street retailers, in the run up to Christmas 2009. The 2009 Online High Street Report from Webcredible, revealed that Marks & Spencer's new website scored 83% for usability, a big rise of 15% moving it to joint 1st in the report, from joint 9th in 2008. However, the biggest improvement was seen with Boots, which saw its website usability score increase from 64% to 80%, pushing it up to joint 4th in this year’s report from joint 17th place last year. Boots was joined in 4th place by Woolworths which, since moving to an online only business model, has improved its website usability score from 65 to 80.
Elastic Path Software has announced that its platform will be used to integrate Virgin Media’s online sales channels. Virgin Media offers a range of services across broadband, TV, phone and mobile and will have the control and flexibility to provide customers with a fully integrated online experience. The Elastic Path platform allows Virgin Media to maintain control over ecommerce initiatives and deliver innovative ecommerce solutions with a faster time to market. It offers the rich out-of-the-box features of a packaged solution, such as dynamic bundling and multiple price lists, as well as the full development environment to build in house. FULL REPORT
UK’s top brands met for Bazaarvoice’s second annual Social Commerce Summit in London. 235 of the UK’s largest brands met for the second annual Bazaarvoice Social Commerce summit on 7 October, to hear how the customer voice is driving the country’s £46.6bn online shopping sector. Talks from Argos, B&Q, and QVC demonstrated how product reviews, customer stories, and customer-to-customer helpdesks are turning leading brands into ‘customer-centric’ organisations - influencing decisions from buying, merchandising, design, manufacturing and marketing departments all the way to top-level management. Some of the winners of Summit’s Award ceremony included: The Body Shop UK for Best Use of UGC in email. Halfords for Best Proof of Social Commerce ROI, QVC UK for Best multi-channel Use of Reviews, eSpares for Best Use of UGC throughout the organisation and Argos received the Social Commerce Achievement Award.
Star Vault AB has selected GlobalCollect as Payment Service Provider for its Latest Online Game. To facilitate secure payments for gamers around the world for its game Mortal Online, Star Vault AB has partnered with GlobalCollect. A Massively Multiplayer Online Role Playing Game (MMORPG), Mortal Online is currently in public beta and planned to launch throughout Europe and the United States in Q4. To enable online players to pay for the license and monthly subscriptions, Star Vault has signed an agreement with GlobalCollect to process credit cards, direct debits, and alternative payments in Europe and the US. Additional countries will be added as the game is being rolled out further.
Home Delivery Network has extended its service to the rest of the world after agreeing a partnership with global distribution group TNT. The partnership agreement will allow HDN’s clients to expand their online shopping services further. HDN already delivers to every postcode in the UK and will now have the capacity to help its clients reach consumers at home in more than 200 countries. HDN has already successfully launched the service with a number of clients and it is now being extended to other clients who will be able to increase their sales volumes by reaching customers in areas where they were previously unable to deliver.
Adobe Systems is pleased to announce its recent acquisition of Omniture. By combining Adobe’s content creation tools and ubiquitous clients with Omniture’s Web analytics, measurement and optimization technologies, the company will be well positioned to deliver solutions that can transform the future of engaging experiences and e-commerce across all digital content, platforms and devices. To learn more about the acquisition, please visit: http://www.omniture.com/en/company/adobe_faq.
New research from eBay Advertising looks into the eBuyer’s mind. The research, of over 5,000 UK & European online consumers, looks at their purchase behaviour, motivations, attitudes and response to different types of advertising. The study also reveals 86% of UK online shoppers are shopping the same or more online overall compared to six months ago, citing trust (78%) and selection (70%) and value (70%) as the key reasons. FULL REPORT
GSI Commerce has introduced TrueActionTM, the new face of its full-service agency. Formerly known as gsi interactiveSM, TrueAction has provided digital marketing and design solutions to industry-leading retailers and brands including the NFL, GNC, kate spade, and Christopher & Banks. The new moniker reflects the company’s focus on offering innovative marketing solutions that have driven millions of dollars in e-commerce transactions.
WEBINARS
Various relevant webinars can be found on http://www.elasticpath.com/events where you are also able to subscribe for upcoming events, including ‘Key Trends in B2B eCommerce’ which will be taking place on Tuesday 17 November.
SPECIAL OFFERS FOR IMRG MEMBERS
Omniture are offering a series of free Seminars ‘Taking advantage of all your data to maximise customer acquisition and conversion’ If you've gone to the expense of collecting behavioural and demographic data about the visitors to your web site, you can see and hear what they are doing as they interact. Isn't it time to show them that you're listening? Omniture would like to invite you to a FREE half day briefing to show you how.
Morning briefing
Increasing relevance to maximise customer acquisition from advertising and search
Focusing on how to dynamically target visitor acquisition campaigns, from SEM and SEO to email and display. Improve response rates and decrease acquisition costs across all your acquisition channels.
Afternoon briefing
Optimising visitor conversion leveraging the data you already have
An extensive look at how to use site data to improve visitor conversion, from testing and targeting your content through to product promotion strategies using site search and merchandising.
Dates are: 17 Nov. London and Stockholm; 19 Nov. Helsinki; 24 Nov. Manchester and Madrid:
25 Nov. Amsterdam: 26 Nov Paris and Copenhagen: 2 Dec. Munich: 3 Dec Hamburg: 10 Dec Paris
MyRetailHeaven.co.uk, the UK’s first virtual online mall, is offering IMRG retail members (CEO, COO, Ecommerce Director, IT Director, Multi-channel Manager, Marketing Director) the opportunity to take part in an innovative Ecommerce Pilot Project launching in time for Christmas 2009. MyRetailHeaven.co.uk is unique in that it will host a range of UK High Street retailers under a single E-roof; hence, transferring key elements of the “traditional” mall online. MyRetailHeaven.co.uk will offer customers a one-click shopping experience, where customers simply: “Register Once. Checkout Once. Pay Once.” For further information and to receive a
FREE copy of our most recent White Paper entitled: “Online Retailing Can be Feast or Famine…But, It Doesn’t Have to be that Way! Could an Online Virtual Mall be the Answer: The Results of a 2009 Survey”, please contact: Dr. Michelle Commosioung on 0207 887 6280 or michelle.commosioung@myretailheaven.co.uk
Dr. Michelle Commosioung is an Economist, Lecturer (University of Hertfordshire), CEO and Founder of MyRetailHeaven.co.uk
For more information, click
HERE.
European Card Acquiring Forum 2010 - Date: 24-26 February 2010 - Location: Berlin, Germany
Venue: Grand Hyatt Hotel, Marlene–Dietrich–Platz 2, 10785 Berlin, Germany
Strategic presentations based on case studies, delivered by and for merchants, acquirers, schemes, processors, psp’s & industry experts. Round-table discussions in smaller groups for brainstorming and problem solving. Excellent networking opportunities in a true business atmosphere
Special occasion for 2010: ECAF Awards Ceremony
IMRG Discount: IMRG Retailers can attend the conference for only 500 Euros for the 3 days, which is a 250 Euro Saving. Quote IMRG200902 when you register.
Website: www.europeancardacquiring.com
MyRetailHeaven.co.uk Event: How can you fast track online purchases this Christmas?
One of the most challenging aspects of online retailing is to ensure the “stickiness” of customers (customer retention rates) long enough to convert them into buyers (conversion ratios). After all, If you are an CEO, COO, MD, Ecommerce Director, Head of IT/ IT Manager, Head of Online Marketing, Business Development Manager, Sales Director, or CFO; in this seminar you will learn how to significantly increase your online retail revenue, reduce transaction costs and fast track online purchases.
Date: Thursday, 19th November 2009
Time: 9:00-11:30am
Hosting the Event: MyRetailHeaven.co.uk
Venue: Berkeley House, Berkeley Square, London W1J 6BD
Cost: This is a FREE event
Networking and Refreshments
PLACES ARE LIMITED. BOOK NOW!
CALL 0207 887 6280 Email: info@myretailheaven.co.uk
e-Commerce Summit 2010 – 28th / 29th January 2010 – 81 Newgate Street, London
Discover the winning formula for traffic, conversion and spend in online retail – save up to £250 as a valued member of IMRG. Priority code, please quote: IMRG
Covering the most critical issues for online retail, the Ecommerce Summit by Retail Week and Drapers includes content tailored for you, case studies, one-to-one clinics, interactive voting and more. Download the event guide
here See the full lineup of speakers and more details at
www.retailecommercesummit.com.
Save up to £250 when you register before 6 November as an IMRG contact – book your ticket by calling +44 (0) 20 7554 5806 or emailing retailconferences@emap.com – quote IMRG to claim your discount.