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Tag Archives: Shopping

Shop on the go with Debenhams

By Cheryl | Posted in Android, Apple, Application, Mobile, News | April 4, 2011 – 11:57 am

debenhams appMobile shopping has proved a successful venture for retailer Debenhams leading the company to announce that their app, once offered exclusively on the iPhone, will now be available on a number of smartphones.

In October 2010, the department store became the first retailer to offer the fully transactional app to iPhone handsets, allowing users to shop on the go. Since the success of the app and online sales increasing by 82%, the retailer are now offering the app to both Android and Nokia users.

Head of Digital Development, Harriet Williams, had the following to say on the development, “Our iPhone app has already seen 2.4 million shopping sessions with 110,000 customers using the app more than five times. Launching on the Android and Nokia platforms opens Debenhams mobile shopping to another millions more customers, bridging the gap between the high street and Debenhams.com.”

The app includes a ‘Barcode Scanner’, which uses the phone’s camera to take a picture of the barcode, enabling it to automatically check prices and reviews.

Customers can also take advantage of exclusive products and offers by looking out for the special codes in Debenhams advertising and store windows.

Currently there has been no announcement on when the application will be made available to Blackberry users, but if the retailer really wants cater to all shoppers, it would be best not to leave it for too long.

So, what are you waiting for? Download the app and get shopping!

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Groupon

By Cheryl | Posted in Retail, Twitter at 12 | January 7, 2011 – 1:06 pm

groupon logoGroupon was launched in late 2008 and is a deal-of-the-day website.

The site is localised to the United Kingdom, Canada, Brazil and the United States, and has over 35 million users.

There’s been a lot of talk about it lately, so what exactly is it? Groupon offer deals on many things from hotels and restaurants to spa treatments and theatre tickets.

The company offer one Groupon a day for each of its global markets. If a certain number of people signup for the deal it becomes available to everyone, if not the offer is taken away. All deals can be tracked by a countdown on the homepage, were you will also find the number of people who have already purchased the deal.

It’s deals like these that have made Groupon popular with many companies as it reduces the risk of them loosing money and guarantees customers through the door.

The site has around 40 million subscribers for its daily deals and as it is mainly used by young female customers, the daily deals are often focused on health, fitness and beauty markets.

Buyout rumours

In October there were numerous rumours flying around that Yahoo was working on a deal with Groupon to buy the company out. The company was apparently offering $3 billion for the company that was last valued at around $2 billion.
Most recently Groupon was in talks with Google about a takeover thought to be in the region of $6 billion which were later called off at the start of December.

Now a lot of talk has turned to whether Groupon will be a possible candidate for an IPO by 2013.

Just another ‘Manic Monday’… online shoppers set to spend, spend, spend

By Nicola | Posted in Retail, Twitter at 12 | November 25, 2010 – 1:01 pm

Shoppers around the country are set to hit the web on Monday for what is predicted to be the busiest internet shopping day of the year.

A staggering £537 million will be spent on November 29 – dubbed Manic Monday by experts- meaning online cash registers will hit the equivalent of £22.4 million an hour!

In the same study from online shopping and price comparison site Kelkoo, it is also predicted that the busiest day on the high street will be December 18, when more than 10 million consumers will flip into panic mode to buy their Christmas gifts at a total cost of (wait for it…) £1.1 billion, or £764,000 PER MINUTE.

The Centre for Retail Research revealed the research after surveying 50 major retailers.

Already, a number of major brands have begun warning customers that they need to order their gifts as soon as possible, in order to give time for delivery. Online stores such as ASOS, Topshop and Ebay are also offering free delivery to tempt shoppers into buying.

And despite the recession, online Christmas sales are expected to rise to £11.5 billion this year – that is an equivalent to 17p for every pound spent during the festive period.

Kelkoo chief executive Richard Stables said: “This is the most important day in an e-tailers’ calendar.

“Online retailers can see sales rise by up to 60% in the six weeks running up to Christmas compared to the rest of the year, and at no time is this more evident than on Manic Monday, when online sales are forecast to peak at £22.4 million per hour.”

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Try clothes online before you buy

By Jemma | Posted in Retail, Twitter at 12 | October 28, 2010 – 11:58 am

fitsmeFor some, online clothes shopping can be a tedious process with problems with sizes, style and basically not receiving what you think you’ve ordered.

Could this all be a thing of the past? With the news of virtual fitting rooms coming to our screens we should think so.

The creators of this amazing solution are Fits.me. The company is led by Heikki Haldre who has experience in e commerce and Paul Pällin who has background in apparel mass-manufacturing.

How does it work?
Basically they just take your measurements (height, chest size, waist size, etc) and an on-screen mannequin will appear. It will be your exact size so you can try on different items of clothing (e.g. shirt, trousers).

Fits.me has now landed funding worth 1.3 million euros from Estonian Development Fund , so things are looking good for the Company.

At present it only works on male mannequins but the company hopes to bring in a female version by the end of 2010.

With the growth of online shopping expanding daily this could be the start of something extremely popular.

Take a look http://fits.me/

Yahoo bids to get its cool back…Move over Facebook and Bing

By Nicola | Posted in News, Twitter at 12 | September 22, 2010 – 11:59 am

yahoo logoYahoo, formally known as the world’s most visited home page, is bidding to ‘get its cool back’ according to its chief products officer with the use of a new product strategy to make the web more personal.

Having gone head-to-head with the likes of Facebook and Bing, who it lost its number two search engine spot to in the US, Yahoo has started to go down a steep hill, which has seen its page views slipping and a number of product launches failing to excite the world’s press.

But there is one man who believes he can change all that. No, not Superman, Batman, not even Captain America… it is a guy called Blake Irving.

After just 100 days in his new job, he has decided to unveil what he believes to be a fool proof plan to get Yahoo back to its former glory.

He said: “You are going to see things that happen fast, that are innovative and that make customers and advertisers delighted. Yahoo in three years is a global series of web experiences across a variety of different devices that gives people what they want; the content, the folks that they care about.”

“There is a bunch of bringing cool back to Yahoo saying a lot of the things that you want to do on the web are here.”

So there.

In fact, in the next few months as part of his plans, Yahoo will be showcasing a number of new products. These will include:

  • a version of Yahoo mail that is faster, has an improved user interface, blocks spam and integrates with Facebook and Twitter
  • a fresh layout in Yahoo Search that presents more content around entertainment and news searches
  • a Yahoo iPad and tablet app due for release in 2010/2011
  • revamped ad formats
  • connected TV partnerships with video-on-demand content sources, social networks, games and shopping




    • Talking to BBC News, Mr Irving said: “I think in the next 15 years more than half of users will be accessing services through mobile devices. I see it with my own kids who are just as comfortable typing on glass as they are on a keyboard.

    “It’s going to be a different world and a huge percentage of what Yahoo will do, will not be on PCs.”

    Makes sense really?

    Irving looks like he is already getting the backing of the remainder of Yahoo’s committed fans, who have continued to stick with the brand when the ‘new guys’ came on to the scene.

    And even his new colleagues are loving his ideas.

    Yahoo’s chief technology officer Raymie added: “You have to be committed to building leading edge experiences and that is what we at Yahoo are doing and I think all these mobile connected devices represents a tremendous opportunity for us to recommit ourselves and to engage and delight users.”

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    Online Scams

    By Jemma | Posted in Internet, website | August 20, 2010 – 11:32 am

    scamcardOnline scams are not an irregular occurrence and they are vastly becoming a more serious issue. Most people are aware when they are trying to be scammed, but what about people that aren’t?

    Facebook dislike button
    A recent scam included the infamous Facebook ‘dislike button’, which tricked users into allowing an application to access their profile and post spam messages on their account.

    I’ve won!
    There is always an amazing prize to be given away and guess what, YOU’VE won it. Don’t be fooled. If you haven’t entered anything, you definitely haven’t won anything.

    Lottery wins are one of the most common email scams and if you respond to these mails it asks you to pay a fee to cover expenses for the ‘winnings’ to be delivered. You could also become a victim of identity theft.

    Spam attack
    Most people agree that getting ‘spam’ is annoying and a lot of people have lost money to bogus emails that have arrived in there inbox. A few ways to protect yourself are:

  • Don’t give out personal details e.g. credit card details to companies you don’t know and trust
  • Read the small print – don’t sign anything without reading it thoroughly.
  • Resist the urge to ‘act now’ despite the offer, it’s important to take your time.
  • Basically if it sounds too good to be true it probably is….
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    Online Shopping – Useful or just for the Lazy?

    By Jemma | Posted in Retail | July 20, 2010 – 1:44 pm

    Online shopping is becoming more common these days, and there are a lot of benefits that come with shopping from the comfort of your own home.

    The facts…
    Online sales are growing every year within the UK retail sector and companies have realised that it’s a great way to promote their products in a new market that may not have been available to them before.

    Looking at the sales statistics for new retail businesses, you will see that online sales account for around a quarter of their business revenue. As of 2010, 25% of UK shoppers are now prepared to spend £1,000 or more on a single transaction, and it looks like that this trend will carry on for the next few years.

    Are there any issues?
    The jury is still out on the purchase of food online. Some customers have complained that the food delivered is not as fresh as if they would have purchased it from the shop themselves.

    However on a positive note, for people with no transport or circumstances that prevent them from going shopping, this is a fantastic way of getting their groceries.

    As with most things where a online transaction is used, you have to be careful while shopping online and always go to sites you know are genuine. One way of ensuring this is by always looking for “https” or a small padlock in the tool bar on any site used to enter sensitive information.

    What are the positives?
    For me, in terms of retail shopping, you can’t go wrong.  You can browse leisurely through different shops, e.g. clothes, shoes, gadgets etc, without the hassle of queues. Sizes can cause a slight difficulty but if you know your size, chances of getting it wrong are limited.

    You may also find that buying online could save you a bit of cash, with a lot of companies now offering a percentage off their product if you buy from their website store (I’m not complaining!)

    My personal experience of online shopping has always been positive but online transactions seem to be a sticking point with some people (mention possible fraud and they will run away screaming)

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    In my opinion the positives completely out-way the negatives and as time goes by I think people will start to agree.