This document summarizes an industry report on how retailers can adapt to changing consumer behaviors and expectations in the digital era. It discusses how the interactive channel is becoming a central hub for brand experiences. Consumer motivations are shifting towards creation, sharing, and influence online. To relate to these empowered consumers, brands must be "O.P.E.N." - on-demand, personal, engaging, and networked. Several examples are provided of retailers taking steps to become more open by better integrating social and digital features into their brand experiences. The document concludes that success in 2008 will depend on being multi-sourced, facilitating influence spheres, providing a global shopping experience, and integrating ecommerce with social media.

1. O.P.E.N. Watch: Retail Edition
January 2008

2. Role of the Interactive Channel
is Expanding
The interactive channel is
becoming a digital hub—the
catalyst and connector to the
entire brand experience.
With this expanded role, the
retail industry needs to
redefine success and how it is
measured.
2

3. Consumer Motivations and
Behaviors are Changing
Three new chief behaviors of the web-
empowered consumer are to create, share
and influence.
Retailers now have the opportunity to
learn about consumers beyond
transactional information.
3

4. “To relate to this authoritative new consumer
who creates, shares and influences via the
social web, a brand must be O.P.E.N.—
on-demand, personal, engaging and
networked.”
Kelly Mooney
The O.P.E.N. Brand: When Push Comes to Pull in a Web-Made World
4

5. EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
: TBD
What is
OPEN?

6. An OPEN brand…
: encourages consumer involvement in the brand’s messages
and offerings.
: stages and supports experiences that pull consumers into brand
participation in a way that is relevant to their lives.
6

7. Worldview of a Worldview of an
CLOSED Brand OPEN Brand
Targets Consumers Fosters Communities of Consumers
Monologue Dialogue
Awareness Engagement
Push Pull
Guarded Communications Transparent Communications
Created by Marketers Co-created With Consumers
Brand Management Brand Stewardship
7

8. An OPEN brand…
Provides tools for consumers to create, share, and influence both
other consumers and the brand itself.
CREATING Make content in the form of words, pictures or video
SHARING Share content, ideas and opinions for the world to witness
INFLUENCING people’
Affect other people’ s attitudes and actions
8

9. O
…is for On-Demand
P
…is for Personal
E
…is for Engaging
N
…is for Networked
Delivers accessible, Facilitates meaningful Deepens attachment Taps the exponential
self-directed and interaction with many through relevant potential of individual
instantly gratifying markets of one. emotional consumers and online
experiences. experiences. niche communities.
Defining Traits of OPEN
: Efficiency : Acknowledgement : Participation : Self-expression
: Ease : Dialogue : Belonging : Ego gratification
: Control : Customization : Immersion : Portability
: Findability : Privilege : Entertainment : Community
: Instantaneousness : Popularity : Inspiration : Meaningful change
9

10. EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
: TBD
How are
Retailers
OPENing
Up?

11. Sears:
Grant a Wish Widget
O P E N
Brand Messages at
a Glance
Brand-loyal shoppers
had access to store
events and promotions
without having to check
email.
ALSO SEEN AT:
Informational widgets rely on
fresh, real-time content for
relevancy.
11

12. Wal-Mart:
Mobile Campaign
O P E N
Worth the
Text Charge
We gave Wal-Mart
consumers a reason to
smile by alerting them
to Secret In-Store
Specials while they
RI Client
shopped.
Wal-Mart’s Secret In-Store Specials campaign
stimulated online conversation with spikes in
conversation, Consumers will opt in and
conversations corresponding with campaign subscribe to timely, meaningful
releases.* content.
12
* Resource Interactive Holiday Buzz Study with MotiveQuest, January 2008.

13. JCPenney:
Know Before You Go
O P E N
Stocking Up
Consumers knew which
local stores had items
in-stock, and got
driving directions
thanks to “Know Before
You Go” listings.
ALSO SEEN AT: Consumers have a low tolerance
for misinformation and wasted
time. One drive to a store based
on outdated inventory levels will
cost retailers.
13

14. Netshops:
Co-shopping
O P E N
Shop With Me
Consumers could shop
with friends online,
emulating the
traditional offline
experience.
While less-tech-savvy consumer
Digital Millennials are 50% more likely than other groups may not be as quick to
consumer segments to use the web to connect with adopt, Digital Millennials will
others who understand what they care about.* beat a path to the co-shopping
experience.
14
* iCitizen Motivational Survey, Resource Interactive and Harris Interactive, August 2007.

15. Apple:
Predictive Search
O P E N
Search Me
Consumers received
results and
recommendations
before they were
finished typing their
search.
Predictive search is most
73% of retailers say that overhauling site search relevant for consumers when
functionality is an investment priority for 2008.* paired with recognizable
imagery and intuitive
categorization.
15
* The State of Retailing Online 2007, a Shop.org survey conducted by Forrester Research, Inc.

16. Amazon:
Timely Product Launch
O P E N
Sparking Ideas
Amazon’s timely launch
of its portable eReader
product may have led
to piqued interest and
discussion during the
holiday season.
“Retailers can take a hint from technology companies–
launch with a test-and-learn mentality. Innovation that
test- and- mentality Customers will become
invites consumers to be part of the development process accustomed to on-demand
is a great example of an OPEN brand.” content on portable devices.
— Laura Evans, Executive Director, Retail Practice, Resource Interactive
16

17. Barneys:
Green Campaign
O P E N
Easy Being Green
Barneys’ “Green
Holiday” extended to
merchandise,
promotional materials
and philanthropic
opportunities.
Know if going green is a
74% of consumers say they buy environmentally lifestyle change for your
friendly products, and 55% say they make a “special consumers. Trivializing the
effort” to patronize retailers with green reputations.* trend could backfire if the
campaign is perceived as
being insincere. 17
* KPMG and the Gordman Group, “2007 National Shopping Behavior Survey,” December 2007.

18. Bath & Body Works:
Reviewer Badges
O P E N
Badge of Honor
We gave top reviewers
notoriety by creating
badges for Bath & Body
Works, raising the bar
on ratings and reviews.
RI Client
ALSO SEEN AT:
Badges distinguish loyal
consumers, whose expertise
may influence other shoppers’
purchase decisions.
18

19. HP:
Gift Guide
O P E N
Take Out
the Guesswork
Personality-based
profiling served up a
tag cloud with the
recipient’s personality
traits and
corresponding gift
suggestions.
RI Client
ALSO SEEN AT: Retailers that go beyond
rehashing their gift catalogs
and truly “get to know” the
recipient will keep shoppers
coming back.
19

20. Neiman Marcus:
Bundling
O P E N
Dynamic
Outfitting
Thank you, Neiman
Marcus! Shoppers got
the experience they’ve
been waiting for, with
outfit bundles that
could be itemized for
easy purchasing.
“Neiman Marcus has always provided Like a virtual closet, consumers
cross-sell opportunities but never in such a
cross- should have the option to pick and
playful and compelling format.” choose what goes in their shopping
— Nita Rollins, PhD., Innovation Consultant and Co-Author of The bag, whether it’s a single item or the
OPEN Brand, Resource Interactive entire outfit.
20

21. QVC:
On-site Video
O P E N
Cross-
Cross-Channel
Video
Consumers found the
expected QVC TV
shopping experience
right on the product
page.
“QVC uses video the right way— built into the Extending offline assets online
consumer experience—providing relevant content to satisfies existing consumers
facilitate a purchase decision.” and gives new consumers a
—Tricia Reisch, Senior Strategist, Retail Practice, Resource Interactive taste of the offline experience.
21

22. PINK:
Facebook Page
O P E N
Get Face Time
We helped Victoria’s
Secret PINK foster
community with their
Digital Millennial
consumers by creating
a Facebook page to
drive traffic to the
brand’s site.
RI Client
“The PINK consumers are tech-savvy Digital Relevance is key. Retailers that
Millennials who are using the social web and mobile are mindful of their consumers’
messaging on a daily basis. For the PINK brand to be motivations will succeed in this
on Facebook is the epitome of consumer relevancy.” space.
— Mila Goodman, Director of Retail Strategic Services, Resource Interactive 22

23. Home Depot:
Light Up the Neighborhood
O P E N
Home Away
From Homepage
Consumers were
encouraged to upload
pictures of their home
decked out for the
season, then vote on
RI Client their favorites.
“The competitive nature of neighbors is brilliantly Support (and encourage) what
leveraged on the Home Depot microsite. The consumers are already doing
one-
one-upmanship of consumer vs. consumer naturally by providing a destination for
gives way to transactions online.” interactivity.
— John Kadlic, Executive Director of Business Development and Marketing,
Resource Interactive 23

24. Circuit City:
City Center
O P E N
Create a Hub
The site features
blogs, forums and
photo galleries,
allowing users to serve
up relevant topics—all
within the brand
experience.
Keep transparency in mind. If retailers
are pushing content out to consumer
Approximately 57% of adult Internet users are online networks, it should be clear it’s
social network users.* coming from the brand.
24
* eMarketer, “US Adult Online Social Network Users,” December 2007.

25. eBay:
eBay To Go
O P E N
Don’
Don’t Stop
the Sale
eBay keeps consumers
thinking about bidding
with an auction
countdown widget for
use on blogs and social
networking sites.
Reminders are helpful, but
Facebook users have installed nearly 13,000 widgets retailers that allow consumers
765 million times.* to purchase directly from
widgets are ahead of the curve.
* Ketchum and USC Annenberg Strategic Public Relations Center "Media Myths & Realities: 25
A Public of One - 2007 Media Usage Survey, December 2007.
,

26. Amazon:
Customers Vote Campaign
O P E N
Cast Your Vote
Evolving last year’s Customers
Vote campaign, Amazon
encouraged consumers to
vote on products they
wanted to receive a deal on.
Habitual site visits
commenced as consumers
checked the site to see if their
product won, creating an
event out of the experience.
“Amazon continues to succeed by allowing the Making an event out of a
consumer to be the driving force of the experience— promotion keeps
with features like Listmania, Askville, and of course, consumers visiting daily.
Customers Vote.”
— Edd Johns, Executive Director of Strategic Services, Resource Interactive 26

27. Target:
TargetLists
O P E N
Make Your List,
Check It In-store
In-
Consumers were able
to create shopping lists
online, then access
them via in-store kiosks,
creating a seamless,
cross-channel
experience.
Only 21% of U.S. online shoppers said they were Understand how consumers
going to use wish lists this season.* are creating lists offline.
27
* Shop.org, “2007 eHoliday Mood Study” conducted by Shopzilla, 12/10/07

28. GAP:
GapTidings
O P E N
Create It and
Pass It On
Consumers were
encouraged to create their
own video greeting (or
personalize a standard
message), then send it to
friends and family, and
rate other consumers’
greetings.
Providing consumers with tools
When it came to online gift-giving conversations during to send greetings within a
the holiday season, GAP was the third most talked-about brand environment is even
retailer, with almost 1,100 conversations
conversations.* more meaningful when there’s
still a link for easy shopping. 28
* Resource Interactive Holiday Buzz Study with MotiveQuest, January 2008.

29. Online Gift-Giving
Conversations
29
* Resource Interactive Holiday Buzz Study with MotiveQuest, January 2008.

30. Retailer Buzz and Sentiment
30
* Resource Interactive Holiday Buzz Study with MotiveQuest, January 2008.

31. EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
: TBD
2008:
What’s
Next?

32. The New Standard
The digital experience
standard will be WeCommerce The New Standard
established by the most
influential consumers—
the social web- Beyond Instant Multi-sourced,
What’s
empowered consumer. Gratification Next? Multi-faceted 411
The Global Sphere of
Shopping Experience Influence
32

33. Multi-sourced, Multi-faceted 411
Consumers will seek a new
authoritative voice—the WeCommerce The New Standard
combination of social
networks, peers, like-minded
consumers, experts and Beyond Instant Multi-sourced,
What’s
brands. Gratification Next? Multi-faceted 411
The Global Sphere of
Shopping Experience Influence
33

34. Sphere of Influence
Brand loyalists will have an
increased craving for time- WeCommerce The New Standard
sensitive scoop, which, if
satisfied, will make them the
new brand stewards. Beyond Instant Multi-sourced,
What’s
Gratification Next? Multi-faceted 411
The Global Sphere of
Shopping Experience Influence
34

35. The Global Shopping Experience
Consumers will want the
global shopping WeCommerce The New Standard
experience—a killer app that
will allow them to seamlessly
shop across retail sites. Beyond Instant Multi-sourced,
What’s
Gratification Next? Multi-faceted 411
The Global Sphere of
Shopping Experience Influence
35

36. Beyond Instant Gratification
Consumers will continue to
change the dynamic of WeCommerce The New Standard
supply and demand by
expecting real time
personalized and portable Beyond Instant Multi-sourced,
What’s
experiences. Gratification Next? Multi-faceted 411
The Global Sphere of
Shopping Experience Influence
36

37. WeCommerce
The web-empowered
consumer will demand a WeCommerce The New Standard
digital social shopping
experience—the culmination
of more convenient and Beyond Instant Multi-sourced,
What’s
relevant shopping, consumer Gratification Next? Multi-faceted 411
inspired features and
expanded social networking
The Global Sphere of
capabilities. Shopping Experience Influence
37

38. EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
: TBD
How to
OPEN
Up…

39. How to OPEN Up
: Listen to, learn from, and join online conversations.
: Know the influencers within and beyond your brand.
: Provide appropriate tools for creating, sharing, and influencing.
: Integrate eCommerce with social media marketing.
: Use OPEN metrics to measure your success.
39

40. ARE YOU ?
40

41. THANK YOU.
Email your questions to Sara Saldoff at ssaldoff@resource.com,
or call 614-621-2888
www.resource.com
This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative
Works 3.0 United States License. To view a copy of this license, visit
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/3.0/us/ or send a letter to Creative Commons, 171
Second Street, Suite 300, San Francisco, California, 94105, USA.