Sharp Quattron TV’s Add Yellow But Their Marketing Makes Me Blue
- Jun
- 08

You might think that the big players have seemingly unlimited funds that allow them to execute plans that cover the marketing spectrum, but that doesn’t mean their spend makes sense.
What would you do if you were Sharp? Do you think you can win by driving customers to the stores alone? Or do you win by converting customers that are already in the store by locking down the aisle? How did Sharp get to their strategy?
read moreUnderstand Retailer Private Brand Strategy By Watching Football
- Apr
- 21
- Posted by Ben Smith
- Posted in Blog, Brand Case Studies, By Ben Smith, retail, Why You Need Leverage

I never pass up a good analogy to help myself understand a complicated story, and spice up a boring one. The growing use of private brands (or private label) by retailers has become the key story of this new era in retail marketing. There are so many different stories and perspectives floating around, I think what gets lost in the buzz is the underlying reason of why retailers have turned to private brands. So what does retailer’s private brand strategy have to do with the NFL?
read moreWhat If Radio Shack Becomes Best Buy Mobile?
- Mar
- 26
- Posted by Ben Smith
- Posted in best buy, Blog, By Ben Smith, radio shack, retail, Why You Need Leverage

THIS IS AN EXCERPT. TO READ THE FULL ARTICLE, CLICK ON THE TITLE:
So the rumor is out there – Radio Shack could be on the market, and Best Buy’s name has been tossed out as a suitor – we wanted to share our perspective on what it could mean. Best Buy and other retailers are known to be taking learnings from European Retail and applying them in the US. Best Buy’s own acquisition of Carphone Warehouse in the UK in 2008 could serve as a model for a potential acquisition of Radio Shack. While there are approximately 61 Best Buy Mobile stand alone stores in the US today, there are over 6,000 Radio Shack locations when you combine company owned stores, franchies, and wireless kiosks.
read moreHome Depot Builds Something Too Big To Ignore
- Mar
- 22
- Posted by Ben Smith
- Posted in "How To" Get Leverage, Blog, Brand Case Studies, By Ben Smith, Can't Be Ignored, Examples of Leverage, Home Depot, marketing, retail
- 1

EXCEPRT: TO READ FULL ARTICLE, CLICK ON TITLE:
WATCH & LEARN – HOME DEPOT DECLARES BLACK FRIDAY IN APRIL:
The fight for Retail Leverage doesn’t end with brands duking it out in the aisles. Retailers take it outside, fighting their own battles. If you think unemployment, the real estate market, and tight credit has hurt sales for your brand, imagine how that rolls up to create a desperate environment for the retailer. While the home improvement sector in retail is still fragmented, the two resounding leaders are Home Depot and Lowes.
Home Depot, in a bid for some Retail Leverage of its own, and in an effort to drive year over year sales growth, has declared “Black Friday Is Back”, creating their own retail big event.
To read more, click on title.
read moreBest Buy Is Your Best Strategy To Gain Retail Leverage
- Feb
- 08
- Posted by Ben Smith
- Posted in amazon.com, best buy, Blog, By Ben Smith, Challenger Brand Strategies, marketing, retail, walmart

THIS IS AN EXCERPT; TO READ FULL ARTICLE, CLICK ON TITLE.
SUMMARY:
Well the dust has settled and results from the Q4 holiday season are in. I realize that some of our readers are in the CE community and have ready access to retailer share. Note that I’m not quoting anything from NPD that I have access to for my job. I’m linking to a couple of public sources to point out that you can get a good idea of what is going on with a little digging (or you can get it from us)! The data I’m sharing is from consumer surveys conducted by 2 different firms, so take it with a grain of salt – it isn’t cash register data, but provides valuable perspective on where consumers look to purchase their electronics.
1) AD AGE ARTICLE SHOWS BEST BUY GAINING GROUND (WITH 33% SHARE)
2) RETREVO PULSE ARTICLE SAYS BEST BUY LOSING GROUND (BUT WITH 40% SHARE)
TAKEAWAY: CONSUMER ELECTRONICS STILL REVOLVES AROUND BEST BUY
Best Buy is the dominant player in Consumer Electronics, a king maker that has influence with consumers beyond whatever its share actually is (33% – 41%). Even as Walmart and Amazon grow share in the CE space, it is ultimately because people get more comfortable NOT making their purchase at Best Buy. If you are a CE manufacturer, not having your products at Best Buy robs you of credibility with consumers and key influencers. If you are an agency with clients who sell products at Best Buy, you need to know as much about Best Buy as your clients because it is your best route to success. If the products you sell can’t succeed at Best Buy, you will have little leverage wherever else you go to peddle your wares. Conversely, succeeding at Best Buy paves the way for success in other channels. Best Buy does the heavy lifting for other retailers that sell consumer electronics. They just have to look at what Best Buy assorts as a baseline and start from there. So get it right in the first place and base your plans on success at Best Buy. Retail leverage will flow from there.
How I Learned To Love Hi-Lo Pricing (And Get Better Circular Ads)
- Feb
- 03
- Posted by Steve Marzio
- Posted in Blog, By Steve Marzio, Challenger Brand Strategies, retail

THIS IS AN EXCERPT.
CLICK ON THE TITLE TO READ THE FULL ARTICLE:
5 HI-LO TACTICS TO TAKE TO HEART:
1) Launch high with instant rebate (sleeves out of your vest)
2) Price drop to original planned level (back to the future)
3) Price drop plus discount (price drop on steroids)
4) Vary Level of Instant Savings Based On Opportunity (keep your powder dry)
5) Never Ending Closeout (the McRib of closeouts)

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