Tag: USA

Jupiter Research Study Finds Multi-Channel E-Commerce Expansion Vital To Online Retail Success

Posted by | May 7, 2008 | |

ChannelAdvisor, the leading provider of e-commerce channel management solutions, today announced the results of a JupiterResearch study on marketing and sales strategies for online retailers. Sponsored by ChannelAdvisor and conducted by independent research firm JupiterResearch and Internet Retailer, the study provides in-depth insights into the fundamental issues driving multi-channel online retailing.

Seventy-five percent of online retailers surveyed cited multi-channel expansion as a key component in their marketing strategies. Ninety-eight percent report they market on at least two online channels.

“The results provide actionable information for retailers who are evaluating online programs including paid and organic search, and comparison shopping engines,” said Brad Wolansky, Vice President Global E-Commerce of The Orvis Company. “We partnered with ChannelAdvisor for solutions to help us manage our paid search and comparison shopping engine initiatives and they have provided good value including higher ROI and predictable rates of success.”

The recent findings deliver a unique perspective on how online retailers are capitalizing on the full spectrum of e-commerce channels and explore the benefits and the challenges of expanding their reach. It also focused on the area of third-party outsourcing and how to measure its success. Those retailers who choose to outsource should look to their e-commerce partners to develop performance metrics that demonstrate their long-term worth including lifetime customer value, product margins and customer retention.

“This survey suggests that ChannelAdvisor has a unique opportunity to help retailers assess where they in the multi-channel life cycle and the implications for moving forward,” said Scot Wingo, CEO of ChannelAdvisor. “Clearly, going multi-channel is the first step. To be truly successful, they need to define what they expect from their e-commerce solution providers in terms of marketing spend and efficiencies to judge the overall profitability of the relationship.”

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What's not in store: Merchants hold back imports

Posted by | May 7, 2008 | |

Latest industry report shows sharp drop in volume of shipments of retail goods, with weakness expected to flow through summer.

A significant drop in volume of imported retail goods into the United States is providing fresh evidence that a slowing economy has pinched American consumers’ ability to shop freely, according to an industry report Wednesday.

In-bound container traffic to the U.S. was down 4.8% in March from February, which traditionally is the slowest month of the year for retail-related imports, according to the latest joint monthly Port Tracker report from the National Retail Federation (NRF) and forecasting firm Global Insight.

That figure represented the lowest monthly volume since February 2006.

What’s more, the NRF forecasts that growth in-bound container traffic will remain at or below last year’s levels through the summer months “due to the underlying weakness in consumer demand in the U.S. economy,” said Jonathan Gold, vice president for supply chain and customs policy with the NRF.

Looking forward at year-over-year figures, Port Tracker estimates a 3.2% dip in April, a 4.8% fall in May, a 7% drop in June, and a 2% decline in July. In September, in-bound container traffic is finally seen rising by 3%.

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Deutsche Post names new Head of ailing DHL U.S. unit

Posted by | May 6, 2008 | |

Deutsche Post AG replaced the head of the DHL Express unit’s unprofitable U.S. operations as the company tries to turn the business around.

Ken Allen, 52, previously Chief of DHL Express in eastern Europe, the Middle East and Africa, is taking over from Hans Hickler, Chief Executive Officer Frank Appel said at the annual shareholders meeting in Cologne, Germany, today. Hickler will remain on DHL Express’s global management board, said Nicole Mommsen, a company spokeswoman.

Appel is faced with reorganizing DHL’s U.S. express- delivery unit and is under pressure to decide whether to dispose of the company’s majority holding in the Deutsche Postbank AG retail bank. Bonn-based Deutsche Post will present a plan for the U.S. business by the end of May, Appel reiterated today. The CEO also stuck to earnings targets for this year and 2009.

“U.S. express business remains unprofitable and thus not satisfactory,” Appel said. Deutsche Post is reviewing all options for the unit, though a pullout from the U.S. market is “not an option.”

Deutsche Post fell as much as 22 cents, or 1.1 percent, to 20.59 euros in German trading and was down 0.2 percent as of 11:50 a.m. in Frankfurt. The stock has declined 12 percent this year, valuing the company at 25.1 billion euros (USD 38.9 billion).

DHL is the fourth-largest shipper of packages in the U.S., with 5.9 percent of the market, according to data compiled by SJ Consulting Group Inc. UPS is the biggest with 52 percent, followed by FedEx’s 30 percent and the government-owned U.S. Postal Service with 12 percent.

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FedEx IT Executive Receives 2008 Ones to Watch Award from IDG’s CIO Magazine and CIO Executive Council

Posted by | May 5, 2008 | |

Sherry Aaholm, executive vice president of Information Technology, FedEx Services, is a recipient of the 2008 CIO Ones to Watch awards from IDG’s CIO magazine and CIO Executive Council. This prestigious honor is bestowed upon 20 rising stars in information technology (IT) who bring leadership, innovation and value to their organization and are primed to become future CIOs. Ms. Aaholm will accept her award at the CIO Ones to Watch awards ceremony held on May 19, 2008, at The Sheraton Boston in Boston, Massachusetts during CIO magazine’s Leadership Event.

“The Ones to Watch honorees are, variously, great technologists, project managers, information architects and risk managers. The one thing they all have in common is their ability to lead,” says Abbie Lundberg, CIO editor in chief.

All Ones to Watch honorees must be nominated or endorsed by a CIO. Nominations were submitted between September and November 2007 and reviewed by a judging panel of 30 leading CIOs.

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USPS launching competitive expedited mail prices

Posted by | May 5, 2008 | |

From May 12, prices for Express Mail, the US Postal Service’s premier overnight service, will be lower at the weights and in the delivery zones used by most customers. Also, the Postal Service will offer price incentives for both Express Mail and Priority Mail, its two- to three-day shipping service. Online users and commercial Priority Mail customers will see lower prices, while high-volume Express Mail shippers will get quarterly rebates and price reductions. These savings are now possible due to a recent change in federal law.

All Express Mail and Priority Mail customers can save money by going online to purchase postage, including customers using Click-N-Ship at usps.com. Express Mail customers will receive 3 percent off the published retail prices and Priority Mail customers will save an average 3.5 percent. Customized contract pricing will also soon be available for large commercial customers.

Also on May 12, guaranteed overnight delivery through Express Mail will be available to thousands of additional locations.

The Postal Service does not impose fuel surcharges, hidden surcharges or surcharges for residential delivery, Saturday delivery or address correction.

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