Multichannel Surfing

Something stood out in my mind Saturday as I stood alone in an aisle at my local Home Depot. Merchants with mobile sites are discovering that customers are actually surfing for product information while they are in the store. So with no one to help me find the right submersible pump to replace my old and burnt-out pal, I figured I’d surf for product specs on my smartphone.

The good news was Home Depot did a great job optimizing its Website for m-commerce. The bad news is the optimization was pure aesthetic. While the fonts were clear and simple to read (and there was an option to make the fonts larger or smaller), the product selection on my search for submersible pumps brought me a bunch of items that were not on the rack in front of me. more

It’s always weird to get an e-mail saying “You have received an e-greeting…” I immediately delete them, assuming they’re spam, and then I wonder if someone really sent me an e-mail card and will now think me rude for not acknowledging it.

I got one this morning and was about to hit delete, but then I started thinking maybe someone sent me an Easter card. What to do? more

Who says nothing in life is free? Multichannel Merchant is previewing in-depth research on Marketing, Catalogs, E-commerce and Operations & Fulfillment with a free, four-part Webinar series on March 30.

No, you don’t have to attend all four Webinars, but you can register for all in one shot. And no, the Webinars won’t take up your whole day, since each is only 30 minutes. What’s more, these won’t be all charts and graphs—you’ll get real-live, expert commentary. more

The U.S. Postal Service Board of Governors today approved management’s request to move forward with its five-day mail delivery proposal and to file a request for an advisory opinion with the Postal Regulatory Commission on March 30. more

It’s always interesting to check out a conference for the first time, and it’s always fun to come to Las Vegas. (Though I’ve also found it’s even more fun to leave Las Vegas.)

So I was happy to be covering the Merchant Risk Council’s E-Commerce Payments & Risk Conference on March 16-18. The only problem? more

Postmaster General John E. Potter testified today before a Senate subcommittee and said moving to five-day mail delivery is “absolutely necessary to ensure financial viability” of the U.S. Postal Service, “both now and into the future.” more