Over the past few weeks, I’ve research, interviewed and written a case study about one of New Zealand’s largest and oldest retailers - a sort of Sears Roebuck to make a North American comparison. I suggest Sears because the ‘over-a-century-old’ appliance and electronics retailer Bond + Bond built their business - in part - by getting products, which otherwise would only be available to urban dwellers, to the rural communities.

In the case study, Linda Geary (business development manager for parent company Noel Leeming Group) emphasized time and again the reason for building out the website the way they did - the customer.

As she points out (in no uncertain terms):

“The long term holistic view of retail suggests that customers will choose their natural channel at the time of purchase and may change at will using a hybrid or mixture of channels. The point is, it’s the customers choice.”

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Multi-channel retailer talks about customer choice in case study »

As the Book Expo of America tradeshow in NYC winds down, Elastic Path’s ‘Away Team’ of Mark, Ryan and Dave O recap what they’ve learned about the book publishing industry in the midst of period of transition including the challenge of establishing new distribution methods without cannibalizing existing channels - plus random celebrity spotting and show banter.

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Music “That’s no Dream” by Derek K. Miller of Penmachine

Bonus Snapshots After the Break Continue Reading:
Breaking Down the Book Expo - Get Elastic Vidcast #3 »

In London, eTail UK kicks off with Search and Analytics day and Dave O having laughs with Elastic Path’s own expert Jason Billingsley. They discuss search marketing strategies and concerns plus Google’s role in ecommerce, global payments and adaption.

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Jim and Wade of Forge Business discuss leveraging affiliate marketing programs to drive traffic plus sort out how to manage channels, mitigate risk and increase conversions. Additionally, they opine on the search power of blogs and how passionate online writers can increase audience and monetize blogs.

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[Wade and Jim of Forge Business at eTail
Midmarket, photo by DaveO]