The latest podcast is from Gary Copping – K3's Business Development Manager. He talks about multi-channel retailing in the context of an economic downturn. The news is good – on line retailers now have more opportunity to get into stores. However, he warns that all retailers will have to get better at meeting customers' expectations for consistency of product, offer and service across all channels. Gary talks about the techniques and technologies that retailers can adopt to ensure joined up retailing.

Q. Where do you see the greatest potential for growth in your business?
A. By continuing to develop our Multichannel Retailing strategies and expanding further into Europe.

Q. What’s the secret to doing business successfully on line?
A. Simple...always deliver on your promises, give the customer a perfect buying experience, get the items
delivered as soon as humanly possible and pull out all the stops to resolve any situation which may have gone wrong - even if it is not your fault!

Q. What is your biggest seller online?
A.  At this time, Personal Handheld Digital Recorders are proving to be very popular.

Q. What’s the first thing you say to any potential IT suppliers?
A. How will your product or service help us to give our customers a better buying experience?

Add the RSS feed too, and keep an eye on who is faring best in the world of eTail.

The astute amongst you will have noticed that we can now be found on LinkedIn. Like most social networking sites, LinkedIn has it’s own distinct personality, its press blurb reading: “LinkedIn exists to help you make better use of your professional network and help the people you trust in return. Our mission is to connect the world’s professionals to accelerate their success. We believe that in a global connected economy, your success as a professional and your competitiveness as a company depends upon faster access to insight and resources you can trust.”

Phew! But don’t let this marketing speak put you off. In essence it’s saying that LinkedIn is a networking site for business professionals. It’s clean, simple, puts you in touch with the people you want to talk to, it’s not overloaded with applications and is low maintenance: all good reasons for us to like it.

We’re also enjoying microblogging site Twitter. Twitter is not only a great method of updating followers on our own latest news, but it offers a wealth of information in the form of other ‘twitterers’ posting links and idea sharing. It gives an immediacy of information that allows us to build a real time picture of what is happening in any given area. While some log in to share what they had for lunch, (we don’t, it’s not that interesting), Twitter can also be an important information gathering tool and a friendly way to connect with others working in your field. According to co-founder, Jack Dorsey, Twitter is what you make it.

And then there is Facebook. While many of the movers and shakers of the retail industry may not be clicking merrily through Facebook with Retail Business Solutions on their minds, by putting ourselves on Facebook we're trying to make K3 both accessible and searchable. Facebook is the most favoured networking site and the second most visited website in the UK, so, perhaps, in terms of the ‘warm waters of social networking’, Facebook is the beach where the beautiful people hang out; it is where you go to see and be seen.

Where do you like to work the net?

ENGAGE will be held on the 19th of March at the Four Pillars Hotel, South Cerney, Gloucestershire. Speakers include K3 customers Digital Village, iForce  and The White Company. We're also very excited to have as partners for this event Agiles, Cenium, Equisys, Handpoint, Lanham Associates, LS Retail, Microsoft, Miracle , Protouch, Servebase, SmartFundIT, SQL Perform, TargIT and Toshiba.

Being the kind hearted souls they are, the K3 Marketing Team has worked hard to make sure the cost is lower this year, and they've also come up with a 2For1 deal.  All the information can be found on the event microsite. Feel free to get in touch with them about coming along.

Or, of course, you can just keep coming back here.