'Net Features : shopatron

Shopatron Relaunches Brand Around New Innitiative

Allison Howen — Mon, 18 Mar 2013 13:30:00 GMT

There are some big changes brewing over at Shopatron, because the e-commerce service provider has launched its Allied Commerce initiative on the heels of a $4 million venture debt financing it completed in December 2012.

The initiative includes a complete relaunch of the Shopatron brand around the Allied Commerce concept, which is based on branded manufacturers, multi-channel retailers and local storefronts joining together to provide online shoppers with more convenient and affordable fulfillment options.

Additionally, the company is announcing the broad market availability of its Shopatron Retailer solution for multi channel retailers. Shopatron Retailer was first introduced in 2012, the solution assists retailers in efficiently managing their inventory across both online and offline channels, which provides shoppers with more delivery options that helps drive them into local stores. Since the launch, many brands have leveraged the technology, including Cost Plus World Market, Sport Chalet and Intermix. Because of this success, the company also announced the addition of Ken Callahan as senior vice president of retailer sales and accounts.

“As Amazon and others have moved toward local order fulfillment and same-day delivery, we have seen tremendous response from multi-channel retailers wanting to provide shoppers with convenient, cost-saving new options for receiving their online orders. As a result, we expect our Shopatron Retailer customer base to nearly triple in 2013,” said Ed Stevens, Shopatron CEO and founder. “Ken Callahan is a proven builder of world-class sales organizations focused on retail supply chain and order management solutions, making him the perfect choice to grow our Shopatron Retailer line of business as customer demand accelerates.”

Shopatron has also announced further customer growth targets and other new leadership hires within its sales organization, including Justin Manning as vice president of manufacturer sales and accounts.

“With the increased adoption of cross-channel order management and local fulfillment models, we believe we will double our manufacturer client base to over 2,000 brands by year end 2014,” said Stevens. “We are pleased to welcome Justin Manning to the team, as he is exactly the type of customer-driven operational sales leader we need to meet our aggressive goals in this sector.”

Holiday Shoppers In a Mobile State of Mind

Allison Howen — Fri, 16 Nov 2012 18:15:00 GMT

The official start to the busiest shopping season of the year is just a week away, and e-commerce solutions provider Shopatron is forecasting that mobile will impact this season more than ever before.

In fact, Shopatron predicts that mobile online shopping will double this year compared to last year – accounting for 25 percent of 2012’s website holiday traffic. This is because mobile devices accounted for 19 percent of all traffic on Shopatron client sites so far is 2012, and this number is expected to increase as the shopping season hits its peak in November and December. These stats further prove that merchants who don’t yet have a mobile-optimized website are undoubtedly losing valuable traffic.

“Manufacturers shouldn’t underestimate the importance that mobile devices play in purchase decisions,” said Shaun Moores, Shopatron VP of Traffic and Conversion. “Consumers want accurate and up-to-date information on the products they’re looking for, even using mobile devices to check for a specific color or size they don’t see on store shelves. For brands who want to ensure that shoppers purchase their product and not a competitors’, understanding and serving these consumers is critical.”

Merchants should focus on creating a rich mobile shopping experience with a website that includes the same type of features available on the traditional Web, such as a full product inventory, product reviews and a simple transaction process. Furthermore, it is important to include a store locator or map on mobile sites, so that consumers can easily find a nearby brick-and-mortar location to shop at if desired.

“Brands that don’t provide a mobile shopping experience will lose sales this year,” said Moores. “And brands that offer rich mobile options will not only satisfy mobile shoppers, but will see the difference in their bottom line.”

Is In-Store the Future of Online Shopping?

Michael Garrity — Thu, 12 Jul 2012 20:51:00 GMT

Most of us have probably heard at one time or another that e-commerce is going to be the death of traditional brick-and-mortar retail, putting small businesses out of commission and leaving us with nothing more than the occasional convenience store here and there.

Surprisingly, like most extreme predictions made in the heat of a rapidly growing trend, it proved to be mostly inaccurate. And while e-commerce has undeniably had an impact on the retail industry, much of it has been in accord with brick-and-mortar shopping, not opposed to it.

A recently released infographic from e-commerce solution provider Shopatron shows that the majority of customers actually love in-store pickup tied to their e-commerce experience, calling it “the new retail requirement” and touting the benefits for retailers.

According to Shopatron, 80 percent of customers use the Internet to research their purchases, while 75 percent still prefer to buy their products at a store. And, in terms of measurable add-on sales justifications for the implementation of an in-store pickup option, the infographic shows that over 30 percent of Shopatron merchants that offer it saw additional in-store sales during the pickup, Ace Hardware had a 33 percent lift, and REI noted a 35 percent of in-store pickup orders result in additional in-store sales.

By offering this option, businesses are able to drastically broaden the range of products that they are able to sell online, as logistically some items were nearly impossible to offer with delivery. In-store pickup allows customers to receive their items while being assisted by experts that “can handle complicated licensing requirements, assemble, install, train and answer questions about the purchase.”

Of course, it doesn’t hurt that a pickup option also increases online conversions, in addition to improving add-on sales figures and allowing businesses to sell more on their websites. It’s also useful for consumers, as it does away with shipping fees, makes in-store returns easier and fulfills their orders faster.

Businesses have two ways that they can provide in-store pickups. One is to fulfill an order from store inventory, which greatly expedites the pickup process, but limits what can be sold to only those items available in the store. The other is a ship-to-store method, in which items are shipped from a vendor or distribution center directly to a merchant’s brick-and-mortar location.

So the question is, are you offering an in-store pickup on your e-commerce site yet?

To view the full infographic, click here.

Increase Sales with Retail-Integrated E-Commerce

Michael Garrity — Mon, 18 Jun 2012 16:00:00 GMT

A new study from e-commerce solutions provider Shopatron has found that 73 percent of brands increased their overall sales – both online and in stores – through retail-integrated e-commerce.

A retail-integrated e-commerce model allows branded manufacturers to sell directly to consumers on their websites and then pass those orders to their authorized, local retailers for delivery to the customer. According to the survey results, the model strengthens retailer relationships, boosts retailer stocking and increases sales.

Over half of the 200 surveyed branded manufacturers said their online sales increased since launching retail-integrated e-commerce, with 10 percent stating that their online sales more than doubled.

The benefits of the model are also mutual, as over 65 percent of the 1,300 retailers surveyed noted improved profit numbers and customer acquisition, and 23 percent of them said that the model actually increased both statistics.

Furthermore, 59 percent said that they now stock more brands that send them sales using retail-integrated e-commerce, and 70 percent are prepared to or have already stopped buying from brands that continue to sell direct-to-consumer.

The full results of the survey can be found here.

Retail-Integrated E-Commerce Improves Sales

Michael Garrity — Thu, 04 Aug 2011 21:00:00 GMT

E-commerce technology company Shopatron recently released the results of its “2011 Retailer eCommerce Study,” which shows that retail-integrated e-commerce continues to grow in popularity and boost sales for both brands and retailers.

Shopatron is considered the world leader in retail-integrated e-commerce and uses a patent-pending solution that allows brands to sell online and pass those sales directly to their authorized retail partners for fulfillment.

The company’s survey was answered by almost 1000 of their retail partners and it gives some real insight into how the growing world of e-commerce affects a consumer brand’s online and in-store sales. Analysis of the study would seem to say that those branded manufacturers who are considering direct-to-consumer e-commerce may want to think again.

Let’s break the survey down by the numbers:

- 46% of retailers claimed that they buy more from brands that send them orders generated online. Meanwhile, 36% of retailers said that they actually sell more of a brand in-store when they are able to bump up stocking to fulfill those online orders. These results reveal a correlation between retail-integrated e-commerce and the impact that it has in how much brands sell, both online and through their retail partners.

- 52% of the surveyed retailers buy or consider buying brand that send them orders, which they receive through Shopatron’s retail-integrated system. This is important for brands looking to expand distribution, especially considering that a number of the retailers said they immediately place an opening order after a brand launches with Shopatron.

- 62% of the participants verified that the additional sales they make through retail-integrated e-commerce have impacted their profit. This many be the most telling, and important, data of all. It’s not a shock that 59% of the retailers said that Shopatron is either “important” or “very important” to their business.

- 64% of the dealers said that they would likely reduce how much they buy from brands who sell direct to consumers. This number is up 13 points from a similar survey conducted by the company in 2009. This shows how quickly retailers are adapting to the retail-integrated e-commerce format, as well as how enthusiastic they are about it. In addition, 10% of respondents said that they would completely stop buying from brands that sell direct.

Shopping on the iPad

Administrator — Wed, 23 Jun 2010 14:51:00 GMT

E-Commerce solution provider Shopatron has some data that might get you even more excited about the iPad possibiliites.

An analysis of its data collected since March 2010 indicates that average conversion rates for non-optimized stores on mobile devices (including iPhone, Android, and iPod devices) average just 0.37% - significantly below PC conversion rates. The iPad, however, performed much better as an eCommerce platform than mobile phones, with an average conversion rate up to 2.04%. For some stores the iPad conversion rate was as much as double the conversion rate from personal computers.

While this could be attributed to first adopters being heavy online shoppers, it might also be that the user experience on the iPad is that much better than smartphones.

“In finalizing an upgrade to our mobile browsing experience to enhance purchasing behavior from phones, we began by analyzing the current environment,” commented Mark Grondin, SVP of Marketing at Shopatron. “We were surprised to find that the iPad performed so well. Because shopping on the iPad is so much easier, we believe that is can perform an important role driving mCommerce into the mainstream. And as more consumers become comfortable with researching and purchasing products on the move, Shopatron will be there for our member brands.”

In-Store Pickup All the Rage

Pete Prestipino — Mon, 15 Sep 2008 16:08:00 GMT

While I would argue that it might just be the coolest name in Ecommerce, it is also an interesting solution available to ecommerce/brick-and-mortar merchants. Shopatron announced the laucn of Confident Order Exchange (Coex) Freedom, a service which enables manufacturers and retailers to accept orders online and provide standard shipment, express shipment or pickup at a local retailer. Coex Freedom also enables ship-to-store capabilities and local installation services. Retailers participate in Coex Freedom as order fulfillment partners for manufacturers.

“It’s becoming increasingly evident that online shoppers desire the freedom to receive their goods as they see fit,” said Ed Stevens, founder and CEO of Shopatron. “Coex Freedom gives manufacturers and retailers the ability to offer customers choice and convenience. With options including direct shipment to the buyer’s home, shipment to someone else or buying online and returning in-store, consumers can shop in ways that fit their lifestyle.”

A recent Harris Interactive Study found growing interest in using in-store pickup services as the holiday shopping season nears.

32 percent of online shoppers have picked up orders in store and of those, almost 70 percent cite no shipping fees as the primary reason for doing so.
73 percent of those who have not used in-store pickup expressed interest in participating if given the option. Among all U.S. adults, 48 percent are at least somewhat likely to consider it for holiday purchases.
Of the shoppers who have already picked up online orders, 80 percent are considering doing it again during the 2008 holidays.