Shopatron Launches API-based Customer Care Program

| MCM Staff

Shopatron has unveiled a Customer Care Suite which includes a new set of APIs available within the Shopatron Developer applications, and a new sophisticated Customer Care Interface.

Recognizing that demanding, tech-savvy customers’ omnichannel expectations don’t end at the point of purchase, Shopatron launched the two platforms to complement its revolutionary order management technology, allowing retailers to intelligently manage the customer experience anytime, anywhere, and by any authorized user.

The Shopatron Customer Care Suite gives retailers the power to intercept customers at any channel–whether it be in-store, online, or at a call center–arming every associate with layers of order information to influence customer interactions. The advanced solutions support unfragmented information sharing that makes it easy for agents to create meaningful connections with customers, improving loyalty to increase sales and improving operational efficiencies to reduce costs.

The Shopatron Customer Care APIs give developers the freedom to plug Shopatron’s comprehensive backend capabilities into a retailer’s point of sale or customer care system of choice, giving users visibility and management of detailed customer and order information.

Furthermore, the refined Shopatron Customer Care Interface and its new user-friendly design connects any agent on any device to a streamlined, branded front-end, granting convenient access to review and modify order data contained within the patented Shopatron Order Exchange.

The new Customer Care Suite management tools promote exceptional customer experiences by allowing retailers to:

• Share detailed order information across channels to improve responsiveness, increase time-to-resolution, and enable customer appeasement and upsell strategies
• Provide store associates, call-center agents, and supervisors with uninterrupted access to Shopatron Customer Care functionality
• Leverage an intuitively designed web-based dashboard accessible from any device, to offer customers a personalized level of service that drives business value across all touchpoints
• Launch in-store save-the-sale functionality by empowering store associates to capture a ship-to-home or in-store pickup order through an API connected POS, in-store kiosk or a web enabled tablet or mobile device
• Integrate omnichannel customer care into a third-party call center quickly and inexpensively through flexible, cloud-based API integration

“Today’s shoppers crave seamless, cross-channel customer service experiences as much as they crave a seamless, cross-channel shopping experience,” said Shopatron Founder & CEO Ed Stevens. “Shopatron’s Customer Care Suite can instantly transform a retailer’s customer support center from a siloed operation with limited functionality into an extension of its physical and online stores. The new tools prime every customer-facing representative with resources essential to turning support channels into sales channels.”

Men's Wearhouse and Jos. A. Bank logos

Men’s Wearhouse To Acquire Jos. A. Bank for $1.8 Billion

| MCM Staff

Men’s Wearhouse and Jos. A. Bank announced that the merchants have entered into a definitive agreement in which Men’s Wearhouse will acquire all of the outstanding shares of common stock of Jos. A. Bank for $1.8 billion. Together, Men’s Wearhouse and Jos. A. Bank will have more than 1,700 stores in the U.S., with approximately 23,000 employees and sales of $3.5 billion on a pro forma basis.

Target, Target Canada, ecommerce, store closings, Canadian retail market, Zellers

Target CIO Resigns after Holiday Security Breach

| Erin Lynch

Target has announced that Beth Jacob, chief information officer, is resigning from her position as part of an “overhaul” of the retailer’s information security and compliance structure. Jacob’s resignation is effective March 5.

Men's Wearhouse and Jos. A. Bank logos

Men’s Wearhouse Announces Non-disclosure Agreement with Jos. A. Bank

| Erin Lynch

Men’s Wearhouse has confirmed that it entered into a non-disclosure agreement with Jos. A. Bank and agreed to exchange certain confidential information and to work in good faith to evaluate a potential combination. It was also announced that Men’s Wearhouse has received a draft merger agreement from Jos. A. Bank.

U.S. Postal Service, USPS, UPS, Parcel Select, shipping and delivery

USPS to End Metro Post Same-day Delivery Program

| Erin Lynch

The Office of the Inspector General has announced that the United States Postal Service will end its same-day delivery pilot program, Metro Post, throughout the San Francisco area due to insufficient participation.

INFOGRAPHIC: A Year in the Life at eBay

| Erin Lynch

With a 13% growth in revenue in the fourth quarter and 13% for the year, 2013 deemed to be pretty successful for eBay. The marketplace currently has 128 million active users and generated nearly $77 billion in gross merchandise volume in 2013 alone. Here is the play-by-play highlights for the year that is eBay.