News from Bridge about e-commerce, gift & bridal registries, products, and stores

3:46 PM • Yesterday 71% of Americans would prefer to buy from an independent retailer

71% of Americans would prefer to buy from an independent retailer

3:46 PM • Yesterday

"A 2021 Harris Poll Consumer Shopping Study showed that 71% of Americans would prefer to buy from an independent retailer over a national chain, as long as they were equally convenient and reliable."

~ SpotOn

I believe these survey results. Shoppers want to shop local, but they don't want to sacrifice selection, price, or speed. Consumers will shop with your indie store if you can offer the same selection, price, and delivery speed as, say, Amazon. Is ...
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February 4, 2023 Legos & Business Strategy

Legos & Business Strategy

February 4, 2023

Economist Bent Flyvbjerg encourages us to find our “Lego” in his new book “How Big Things Get Done.” Mr. Flyvbjerg, whose new book is reviewed by Ben Cohen in this week’s The Wall Street Journal, says that most large projects that are completed successfully use a modular approach. Excerpt from The Wall Street Journal:

“That’s the question every project leader should ask: What is the small thing we can assemble in large numbers into a big ...
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February 1, 2023 Tableware Today: 5 Brands Promote Bridge Shop Local

Tableware Today: 5 Brands Promote Bridge Shop Local

February 1, 2023

We're happy to see five brands promote Bridge Shop Local in Tableware Today's February/March 2023 issue.

The brands promoting Bridge Shop Local include:

Bordhallo Pinheiro
Carmel Ceramica
Mary Jurek
Pampa Bay
Vista Alegre

In the advertisement, the brand displays either Bridge’s ‘B’ or our ShopLocal.org logo.

A brand shows the logos so that retailers know they can easily sell the products shown. When a brand offers our Product Syncing service, a ...
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January 31, 2023 New Member Targets 🎯

New Member Targets 🎯

January 31, 2023

When growing our network, we consider what it takes to keep existing members and grow into other industries. Andrew Chen in The Cold Start Problem reports that Facebook famously wanted a user to get 10 friends in a week because then the person would likely use the service. Similarly, Slack said users with about 10 connections tend to become active users. My company currently doesn’t have such new user benchmarks and we need to develop them.

Adding New Retail Members to the Product...
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January 31, 2023 Networks: Let's Tango 💃🏽🕺🏼

Networks: Let's Tango 💃🏽🕺🏼

January 31, 2023

It takes a lot of people to build a bridge, but just two to tango. This applies to the analog world as well as the digital one. In the digital space, I'm using tango to refer to messaging between two people. I believe messaging is a service we can add to our offering to diversify how our company Shop Local grows.

Different Networks Require a Different Number of Users in a Group
Andrew Chen in The Cold Start Problem states that a key difference among network models is the required minimum ...
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January 30, 2023 We Live by This Motto 😄

We Live by This Motto 😄

January 30, 2023

"Complain about the way other people make software by making software."
~ Andre Torrez

I spotted this quote in the book 'Steal Like An Artist' by Austin Kleon. We believe in this motto. Our company has thus far built:

Online store software. (Used by 1,100 stores.)
Online gift registry service.
Product sharing service. (Used by 110 brands, including Baccarat Le Creuset, and Versace.)
Online invoicing service.
Wholesale ordering service.
File

January 28, 2023 For Brands: Save $1,200 on the Unlimited Retailer Pass

For Brands: Save $1,200 on the Unlimited Retailer Pass

January 28, 2023

For Brands:
You can choose a Bridge Pass to grow your businesses and save an extra $1,200 a year. This is on top of the standard $5,317 savings.

Unlimited Retailer Pass
Get everything you need to grow your brand quickly:

Sync your brand's products with an unlimited number of retailers. (Value: $630/month.)
Includes a subscription to the Wholesale Service. Accept wholesale orders via Bridge. (Value: $49/month.)
Includes a subscription to the Brand Concierge

January 27, 2023 Do You Agree Defaults Are Important? ✅ Yes ___ No

Do You Agree Defaults Are Important? ✅ Yes ___ No

January 27, 2023

When you look at your driver’s license, it lists if you’re an organ donor. Twenty years ago, only 20% of people were donors, but today 80% are—thereby saving millions of lives. Did people become more kind? No, the question on the application was changed from opt-in to opt-out. People signing up for or renewing a license are now by default enlisted in organ donation. Lesson: the right default answer in medical care can save millions of lives. Similarly, the right defaults ...
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January 26, 2023 Zola: A Rotten Gift to Indie Stores?

Zola: A Rotten Gift to Indie Stores?

January 26, 2023

Our retailers recently told us that customers are calling and asking about non-existent brides, and brides are asking about non-existent registry gift lists (e.g. wedding registry lists, baby lists).

We investigated the issues and below is what we found.

What is Happening:
We found that many of these purchases are coming from registrants that open a ‘universal registry’ on websites such as Zola or MyRegistry. These universal registry services allow the registrant to add ...
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January 26, 2023 Updated Feature: More Easily View Product Images

Updated Feature: More Easily View Product Images

January 26, 2023

Your Bridge has an updated feature: it's now easier to view products images and browse to other related images.

In the example, we see a Juliska Berry & Thread Classic Dinner Plate. In the product image modal, we can see the new features displayed.

The product's image modal now has forward and backward arrows. One can navigate between images with using these.
As one scrolls through images, a border is applied to the current image thumbnail at the bottom. This

January 24, 2023 MyRegistry and Zola Are Confusing Merchants--and Sometimes Taking Their Orders

MyRegistry and Zola Are Confusing Merchants--and Sometimes Taking Their Orders

January 24, 2023

Our retailers recently told us that they were confused by strange registry orders. The stores are receiving gift registry orders on their sites but the retailer does not have a registry for the gift recipient at its store. Customers are calling and asking about non-existent brides, and brides are asking about non-existent registry gift lists (e.g. wedding registry lists, baby lists).

We investigated the issues and below is what we found.

What is Happening:
We found that many of...
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See You in Dallas in June 2023 Wednesday, June 21, 2023 - Friday, June 23, 2023

See You in Dallas in June 2023 Wednesday, June 21, 2023 - Friday, June 23, 2023 We'll be there Wednesday, June 21 – Friday, June 23, 2023.

See Dallas show dates:
https://dallasmarketcenter.com/markets/

» RSVP

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See You in Atlanta in July 2023 Wednesday, July 12, 2023 - Friday, July 14, 2023

See You in Atlanta in July 2023 Wednesday, July 12, 2023 - Friday, July 14, 2023 We'll be there Wednesday, July 12 – Friday, July 14, 2023.

Please find more information at AmericasMart.com:
https://www.americasmart.com/en/Markets/Market-Dates-and-Hours

» RSVP

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January 17, 2023 Updated Feature: Your Alert to Customers About Paying via Telephone

Updated Feature: Your Alert to Customers About Paying via Telephone

January 17, 2023

Some Bridge merchants do not accept credit cards online. The merchant calls the customer (after they placed the order) to collect the customer's credit card information. For merchants that do not accept cards online, your Bridge has an updated feature that makes it easier for customers to expect a call from the store. A customer will now see a banner with a green telephone icon on the final checkout page. The banner displays this message:

"After you click the Place Order ...
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January 16, 2023 Le Creuset and Herend in Garden & Gun Magazine

Le Creuset and Herend in Garden & Gun Magazine

January 16, 2023

In this month’s Garden & Gun magazine, a profile on a Houston merchant shows Herend and Le Creuset products. Herend and Le Creuset are Shop Local clients and use our Product Syncing service to market their products to authorized retailers and their customers. View Post

January 15, 2023 Shop Local

Shop Local

January 15, 2023

I spotted this “Say Yes to Local” sign at my local, East Village grocery store. My neighborhood has been inundated with venture capital-backed online grocery delivery services. These services hurt local stores like this one. View Post

January 14, 2023 Good to See Industry Friends in Atlanta

Good to See Industry Friends in Atlanta

January 14, 2023

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January 10, 2023 Amazon may be using empathy for small businesses to help large businesses

Amazon may be using empathy for small businesses to help large businesses

January 10, 2023

I discovered a page on Amazon’s site proclaiming that Amazon supports small businesses. That is news to me and many small businesses which have been attacked by Amazon, its deep pockets, and its army of millions of delivery people and thousands of warehouses. Amazon’s page says it helps small businesses, which it defines as having under 100 employees and less than $49 million in sales. (It says it uses Gartner’s definition.)

I checked: only 9% of small ...
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January 10, 2023 For Sales Reps & Brands: $468 Give-Get Referral Promotion

For Sales Reps & Brands: $468 Give-Get Referral Promotion

January 10, 2023

For Sales Reps & Brands:

I have some great news for you:

I'm giving you a $200 finder's fee when you refer a store.
When you refer a store, the store will receive $268. It will receive $100 towards a wholesale order with your brand and a $168 credit towards their registry service with us. (My company is paying the $100 wholesale order credit.)

Summary: you give a store $268 and you get $200. (Bridge covers the $468.)

Why should your stores use ...
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January 10, 2023 Even the World’s Best Restaurant is Concentrating on E-commerce

Even the World’s Best Restaurant is Concentrating on E-commerce

January 10, 2023

Noma, the world-famous Copenhagen restaurant, is closing to concentrate on e-commerce. Excerpt from the Times:

“Noma will become a full-time food laboratory, developing new dishes and products for its e-commerce operation, Noma Projects, and the dining rooms will be open only for periodic pop-ups.”

This change supports the breath and power of e-commerce, and portends coming changes for our retail industry. It’s not that one can’t eke out a ...
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Bridge in the News

Bridge Helps Indie Stores Rank on Page 1 of Google in 76% of States
October 2022

HFN: Bridge Experiences Record Growth
August 2021

Press Release: Bridge Membership Surges 50%
July 2021

Four Trade Publications Report on Bridge's Growth
July 2020

HFN Editor Praises Bridge
March 2020

Seminars Offer Strategies for Independent Stores
January 2020

Tableware Today Article: Chart Your Future Before Big Tech Does
November 2019

HFN Publishes Jason Solarek's 'Letter to the Editor'
May 2019

HFN Shares Juliska is Joining Bridge
March 2018

HFN Reports Bridge's Product Syncing Service Helps Indie Stores
January 2018

Bridge Brand Conference
June 2017

HFN Magazine: Bridge Crosses $2 Million in Registry Sales
December 2016

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