Late last month the American Customer Satisfaction Index (ACSI), a firm that provides a cross-industry measure of customer satisfaction, released its 2015 Retail Report. In episode 27 of Total Retail Talks, David VanAmburg, managing director of the ACSI, discusses some of the report's key findings, including why there was an overall drop in customer satisfaction…

In episode 26 of Total Retail Talks, Patrick Cassidy, who leads global digital brand marketing and social media content strategy for New Balance, the athletic footwear, apparel and accessories brand, discusses the company's shift from a point-in-time marketing approach to a consistent, year-round conversation with consumers, and the role content plays in this new strategy.

In episode 25 of Total Retail Talks, we feature a conversation with Meaghan Rose, co-founder and CEO of Rocksbox, a premium jewelry subscription service. Subscription-based commerce — i.e., subscribers paying a monthly or annual fee to have products delivered directly to them on an ongoing basis — is one of the emerging trends in e-commerce.…

In episode 24 of Total Retail Talks, Vijay Ramani, co-founder and CEO of Totspot, a resale shopping app for clothes and accessories for the entire family, discusses why the startup business opted for a mobile app marketplace rather than a traditional e-commerce site as well as the company's plans for its recently secured $1.5 million in…

In today's age of advanced cyber threats and what seems to be near-daily data breaches, retailers have been forced to develop strategies and defense systems to combat fraudsters. In episode 23 of Total Retail Talks, Vincent Damiano, vice president of information security and compliance at Modell's Sporting Goods, discusses the steps his company has taken…

Jay Baer is a celebrated digital marketing strategist, speaker and New York Times best-selling author, as well as the president of Convince & Convert, a digital marketing consulting firm. His advice on customer service has helped some of the world's leading brands, including Nike, Cisco, Oracle, Cabela's, and many others. In this episode of Total…

With the start of a new year, retailers are trumpeting the good deeds they've done the previous year, as well as putting their plans in place for the current year. For example, GameStop recently announced that with the help of its customers, the company was able to raise $2.8 million for St. Jude Children's Research…

Venus Fashion, a retailer of swimwear and fashion, was looking to grow its brand by taking it international. But in order to meet the needs of international customers, the retailer first needed to get a logistics plan in place to efficiently ship its products to foreign lands. In episode 20 of Total Retail Talks, Paula…

Unique Vintage, a retailer of vintage-inspired fashions for women, is successfully using social and visual commerce technology to acquire, retain and reward customers. In episode 19 of Total Retail Talks, Courtney Lear Wallace, director of digital marketing and e-commerce at Unique Vintage, discusses the retailer's visual commerce strategy and why it's paying big dividends.

With consumers engaging brands in a growing number of channels, retailers are challenged to deliver personalized shopping experiences. While they may have the data required to deliver on this need, using that data for said goal is an entirely different story. In episode 18 of Total Retail Talks, Jess Stephens, chief marketing officer at SmartFocus,…