Jeff Ketner, Author at Ketner Group

5 Things To Do Now To Prepare for NRF

Posted on September 12, 2023 | by Jeff Ketner

I’m writing this blog during the hottest summer on record, and like you, I’m dreaming of cooler weather, football season, the holidays and….

….NRF! The first email for NRF ’24 hit my inbox Aug. 8, and my first reaction was “whaaaat!?” But after 30+ years in retail tech PR, the timing makes sense. After all, now is the time to begin planning your NRF communications strategy, and we’re already starting to work with clients on this.

PR success at NRF can put a vendor in the spotlight and support the sales pipeline in a big way.

As a retail technology vendor, what can you do now to get ready for the Big Show? Here are five brief recommendations for PR success at retail’s most important event.

1. Include PR in your planning

The checklist for NRF is a long one, from booth planning to event logistics, products, sales meetings, marketing support, customer dinners, after-hours events and much more. Don’t treat PR as an afterthought!

Start planning your NRF PR messaging and strategy now, including overarching themes, analysts to brief, potential customer announcements, new products, press announcement schedule, spokespersons (including training, if needed), media and analyst meetings during the show, on-site PR support and more.

2. Brief analysts now

Industry analysts are in high-demand during NRF. Their schedules are incredibly packed, and their paying clients are understandably first priority for in-person briefings.

Because of this, we advise clients to begin briefing key analysts and other influencers in the months leading up to NRF. Schedules are more open in the fall, and it’s an excellent time to update analysts on your company’s product roadmap, customer success and other developments. During these briefings, you can also lay the groundwork for a short meeting or product demo at NRF.

Looking for best practices? Our blog on analyst relations provides valuable insights.

3. Map out your press release strategy

Don’t save all your announcements for the show! Most vendors spend months planning their NRF announcements — why pack all your news into a three-day period? You’ll see more success by making announcements before, during and after the show.

Your company can help build momentum prior to NRF by announcing significant customer wins and other news, helping you get the attention of prospects and media prior to the show. But hold some announcements in reserve. Newsworthy announcements during NRF can create buzz, help drive booth traffic, and land your company on the post-show “best of NRF” lists.

Don’t forget to have hard copies of news releases available to share with media. Some editors receive hundreds of PR emails daily at NRF, so it’s easy for your news to get lost. After the show is a good time for announcements, too; editors’ inboxes are less crowded, your competitors won’t be making so many announcements and your news will have room to breathe.

What if you don’t have announcements? You can still highlight recent data reports, predictions and industry trends that you’re seeing. Your company’s perspectives may shed light on some of the big issues in retail and technology. Don’t hesitate to share them, and be sure to make ongoing PR a key part of your marketing strategy throughout 2024.

4. Plan your media and analyst outreach

Timeframes for media, analyst and influencer outreach can vary widely. In general, start your analyst outreach early, as some analysts will book their NRF calendars several months in advance. Keep in mind, too, that these will be relatively short meetings, which is why it’s important to do in-depth briefings in the fall.

We typically start media outreach for our clients when the first NRF media list is available, usually mid-to-late November. Keep in mind, editors, analysts and other influencers will be attending NRF keynotes and other general sessions, so their availability to meet with vendors may be limited.

5. Show kindness and respect

A mentor of mine once said to treat editors like your best customers. And if there’s one time each year when editors and analysts especially deserve extra consideration, it’s during NRF.

Offer them a comfortable place to sit (their feet will be aching!), bottled water or other refreshments, and realize they may be exhausted from packed schedules and talking to dozens of vendors. Find out in advance what they’d like to focus on during the meeting and be sure to address their expectations. If an editor is accompanied by a sales rep, be sure to give them equal time, too. Be concise, realizing that you may only have 20 minutes before they head to the next meeting.

Bonus tip: prepare to enjoy free beer!

Our Ketner Group team has gained a lot of insight about NRF during the 20+ years we’ve been attending, and it’s always fun to share advice about retail’s biggest event. The checklist above is by no means exhaustive, but it will help get you off to a good start. And as always, contact us if you’d like to talk about PR planning for NRF.

Here’s one last tip: when I asked Dan Ochwat, our senior content specialist and former retail editor, what always got his attention at NRF, his answer was simple: “free beer!” So if you’re looking for the icing on the cake from NRF PR (or the frost on the mug), that may be just the answer.

And with that, let’s all raise a glass to a successful NRF in 2024. Cheers!

3 Reasons Why Speaking and Awards Should Be Part of Your PR Strategy

Posted on July 11, 2023 | by Jeff Ketner

Texans love their H-E-B. The beloved grocer was recently named the Ultimate Texas Brand by Texas Monthly readers, who overwhelmingly crowned H-E-B the winner over 49 other iconic Texas brands including Dairy Queen, Whataburger, Buc-ee’s, Southwest Airlines (that holiday scheduling fiasco didn’t help) and many others.

Why H-E-B? It all boils down to an incredible corporate reputation that’s authentic and well-earned. It’s what every company, both B2C and B2B, strives for.

That’s why building a great brand is a cornerstone of public relations. As a B2B retail tech PR agency, our goal is to help our clients break through the clutter and create the kind of brand reputation that can give them an edge in a crowded field of technology vendors.

Speaking and awards play a vital role in this, and they’re an important part of a well-rounded, strategic PR program.

When your company wins an award or an executive is selected to speak at a conference, it sends a powerful message to customers, prospects, investors and future employees.

1. Build thought leadership

Here are several ways that speaking and awards contribute to a successful PR strategy.

Speaking at a key retail event gives your company instant credibility. When one of your customers or company executives takes center stage at Shoptalk, NRF or another prominent retail conference, you gain a captive audience that’s eager to learn about your solutions and how your company can help retailers improve performance.

Every event has its own requirements for speaking submissions, and while many opportunities are free, some are paid. Our team knows the ins and outs of all the key retail events, and we provide expert guidance to our clients as part of their overall PR strategy.

Awards also build thought leadership for your company and its executives.

For example, RIS News recognized Michael Jaszczyk, CEO of our client GK Americas, as one of its Top 10 Movers and Shaker in Retail in 2022, positioning him as one of a elite group of top retail influencers, and our client SymphonyAI Retail CPG was recently recognized as a top 100 IT company by Inbound Logistics, among many other awards.

These are powerful testimonies of a company’s thought leadership and position as a retail tech provider, and we can share dozens of other examples.

2. Highlight customer successes

Retailers love to hear how your company’s solutions have helped other retailers. There’s no better proof point than a customer that’s willing to share their success with your solutions.

Many speaking opportunities are only open to retailers, but it’s well worth it for retail tech companies to nominate their customers as speakers.

Retailers are eager to learn from other successful retailers, and your executives can attend the event and participate in the discussions that ultimately follow successful speaking opportunities. That in turn can lead to follow-up conversations and ultimately help drive sales.

Awards may focus on specific customer implementations, while others, such as the RIS Leaderboard, are based on real-world customer feedback from hundreds of retailers. This kind of recognition builds credibility and guides retailers in choosing possible retail technology partners. It can pay big dividends, too.

For example, when one of our former clients was acquired by a large technology company, the press release specifically mentioned our client’s outstanding performance in the Leaderboard, which was one of our key strategies for building their brand reputation.

3. Demonstrate growth and momentum

Everyone loves a winner. That’s why prestigious awards such as the Deloitte Fast 50 and the Inc. 5000, which recognizes America’s fastest growing companies, are so important. These are highly selective awards! But if your retail tech company is a leader and growing quickly, awards such as these can validate your success and lift you above the competition. We’ve helped many of our clients win these kinds of prestigious awards.

Of course, speaking and awards don’t exist in a vacuum – they must be part of a multifaceted, strategic PR program that includes media relations, content development, analyst relations, social media and other elements. A great PR program must work synergistically with a company’s overall marketing plan and business goals.

So when your company wins an award or secures a high-visibility speaking engagement, shout it from the rooftop!

Incorporate it into your social media and sales outreach, feature it prominently on your website and include it in sales presentations. In some cases, a significant award may be newsworthy enough for a press release.

Put your company in the spotlight

If you’re looking to build a high-impact, comprehensive PR program, the Ketner Group team would love to talk to you! Download our Retail Tech PR Handbook to learn more about our best-practice approach to retail technology PR, then get in touch with us.

We look forward to hearing from you.

My Interview With Barbara Walters

Posted on April 10, 2023 | by Jeff Ketner

The death of legendary broadcast journalist Barbara Walters in December marked the passing of one of the most influential newscasters in television history. Walters shattered the glass ceiling of a male-dominated world and inspired other high-profile women broadcasters who followed in her footsteps. She became famous for her in-depth, prime-time interviews with seemingly all the world’s most influential people: from world leaders as varied as Jimmy Carter and Fidel Castro to celebrities such as Michael Jackson and Princess Diana.

Walters interviewed me, too—way back in 1965, when she was a reporter for the “Today” show. I didn’t realize it at the time, but it was my first exposure to PR and journalism.

Let’s be clear; she didn’t interview me because I was a celebrity. In 1965, I was a 12-year-old kid wrapping up a two-year stay at the Sahuaro School—a boarding school in Tucson, Arizona for children with acute, untreatable asthma. The school was reserved for the “worst of the worst” asthmatic kids from across the country. It literally saved my life. It also introduced me to a kind, generous young journalist who treated an ordinary kid with the same respect and courtesy she eventually would afford presidents and kings.

Here’s how it happened. Mr. Johnson, the Sahuaro School’s PR director, called me into his office one day and told me the “Today Show” was visiting Tucson and wanted to do a segment on the school (something that I realized years later he had secured with a pitch, just like any other good PR person). “Ms. Walters” wanted to interview three residents of the school, and he thought I’d do a good job of representing the Sahuaro School. He asked me if I was willing to do it, and I said “yes” without really thinking about it. I was too young, of course, to realize that this was a big deal.

I don’t remember much about the interview, and I haven’t had any luck over the years trying to get a copy. However, I remember that Walters seemed genuinely interested in my story. She looked me in the eye when she asked questions. She was patient and unhurried. And she listened – just like any good journalist.

A year later, when I had returned home to Wichita Falls, Texas, Johnson wrote and asked me if I would write Ms. Walters a letter to let her know how I was doing. I didn’t realize it at the time, but the school was struggling financially, because they took children regardless of their parents’ ability to pay. Johnson was hoping for a follow-up segment that could help the school, knowing that PR could make a difference.

I dutifully wrote Walters to update her, wondering if she’d even remember me. I started my letter by writing, “I’m not sure if you remember me, but…” And to my surprise, when I received a letter back from her a few weeks later, she started it by saying something that I’ve never forgotten: “Of course I remember you!”

Sadly, that letter is long lost; I’ve looked for it many times, but to no avail. Sahuaro School ultimately closed. Walters went on to become a world-renowned journalist and celebrity in her own right. And I’ve enjoyed a long career as a writer and then a PR professional.

I’ve reflected about my interview many times since Walters’ death. She had a remarkable talent for getting people to open up, and she could always find the real story, the things that matter most.

That’s what PR people are charged with as well. PR is the art of storytelling—discovering the most important stories our clients have to tell and connecting those stories to the audiences that matter most.

As I learned from Barbara Walters, everyone has a story to tell. It’s up to both PR professionals and journalists to listen, treat people with respect and be faithful to their stories. It’s an honorable calling to be a storyteller, one that Walters exemplified as a journalist. And it’s one that I strive to live up to every day as a PR professional.

How To Put the Relationship Back Into Public Relations

Posted on February 7, 2023 | by Jeff Ketner

In my 30+ year career in public relations, I’ve spent a lot of time thinking about relationships. After all, “relations” is one of the two words we use to describe what we do every day. Trusted, long-term relationships between editors and PR professionals are at the heart of public relations excellence.

It’s getting harder to develop and maintain those relationships, though. PR moves fast – really fast – and speed and efficiency reign supreme when we’re pitching, responding to news trends, making last-minute changes to press releases and other content, and juggling a dozen other different priorities.

Most journalists work in a pressure-cooker environment, too; editors and reporters change jobs frequently, publications are typically short-staffed, and the number of journalism jobs continues to decline. It’s not an ideal environment for building relationships.

Yet relationships are critical to our wellbeing, both personally and professionally. It’s one of the most important life lessons that came out of the long COVID-19 shutdown, and it applies to both our personal and work lives.

So how can we keep the “relationship” part of PR front and center? Here are a few ideas.

1. Treat editors as individuals

Each relationship in our lives is unique. Our friends have different viewpoints, interests and quirks, and we respond to these whenever we have a conversation.

Editors aren’t all alike, either, and that’s why they get so annoyed at the “spray and pray” mass pitches that clueless PR agencies sometimes blast to hundreds of media contacts. (That’s not the way we do it at Ketner Group, I’m glad to say. For a funny, insightful perspective on this, check out this Slate article about how an editor decided to respond to every single PR pitch for one day.)

As a retail technology PR agency, we know the stories that retail tech journalists are looking for, and we tailor our pitches accordingly. Every editor has specific needs and preferences, and we do a disservice to them and our clients if we don’t take time to understand them.

2. Be responsive

An editor’s world is just as hectic and fast-paced as ours — sometimes more so, and many writers and editors must generate multiple stories each day. Time is of the essence in responding to media requests and making it as easy as possible for journalists.

Is an editor requesting client input for a time-sensitive story? Then move quickly to evaluate the opportunity, brief your client and meet or beat the deadline.

3. Remember what Mom said about manners

Did your mom always remind you to say “please” and “thank you?” Yeah, same here. Common courtesy goes a long way in every area of life, and that includes the workplace. Did an editor include your client in a story that made you look like a hero for landing great coverage? Then by all means, email them to say thanks.

4. Pass along a compliment

When you read a great story that’s not about your client, email the journalist and let them know how much you enjoyed it. Editors and reporters expect to hear from us when we’re pitching them, but it’s a pleasant surprise to get an email that’s not client-related. It also shows that you’re taking the time to read and appreciate their work.

All of us appreciate positive feedback, and journalists are no different.

5. Set expectations with clients

We’ve all dealt with clients that suffer from The Wall Street Journal syndrome, so setting the right expectations for media success is a vital part of managing the client-agency relationship. It’s important for the editors and reporters that we work with, too.

As PR professionals, we should only approach editors with stories that are newsworthy and relevant to their audience.

If we take time to educate our clients and set proper expectations for working with media, they’ll understand what an editor really cares about, and we can tailor the PR outreach accordingly. It makes the editor’s job a lot easier, and it ultimately helps our clients get the coverage they hired us for.

Take PR beyond the transaction to the relational

These suggestions are just a starting point for developing good working relationships between journalists and PR professionals. I’m convinced, though, that we need these simple reminders more than ever.

Most editors we know work remotely on very tight deadlines and are bombarded with pitches, press releases, follow-up emails and Zoom meetings — while working hard and fast to produce great news content.

PR professionals can help by respecting journalists’ preferences, meeting deadlines and adding fresh insights and perspectives to the stories that they’re covering. If we do our job right by focusing on relationships, it helps moves PR from the transactional (“you do something for me, I’ll do something for you”) to the relational (“we’re working together to help achieve both our goals, and we’re doing it in a friendly, collaborative way”).

By focusing on relationships, we can make put a personal, thoughtful touch to what we do every day and make PR work better for journalists, clients and those of us who do it every day.

Do you work for a retail tech company that’s looking for a more effective way to work with editors and improve your earned media? Contact Ketner Group today; we’d enjoy talking to you about how to build better PR relationships.

20 Years at Ketner Group! An Interview with Catherine Seeds

Posted on November 29, 2022 | by Jeff Ketner

I’m usually not nervous about interviewing someone, but this blog post is a bit different. After all, it’s about my business partner and our agency president, Catherine Seeds, who celebrated her 20^th anniversary at Ketner Group earlier this month.

This agency absolutely wouldn’t be the same without her. Catherine dares to dream big, she’s fiercely loyal, and she always, always has the best interests of the team at heart. I’m thankful for her leadership and friendship.

Catherine and I sat down for an interview recently, and we could have talked all morning; this interview is only a part of our conversation. But it sheds a lot of light on what makes Catherine tick (spoiler alert: Walt Disney plays a key role), the challenges and opportunities of running a PR agency, and her vision for the future of Ketner Group.

Here’s to the next 20 years!

20 years working at a PR agency is almost unheard-of these days. What’s inspired you to be part of Ketner Group for all these years?

One of my inspirations is my dad. He worked at John Deere for 35 years, and after retiring from John Deere Corporate, he worked for them again managing a dealership in Marble Falls. He’s very loyal and steadfast, and I get a lot of that from him. When I met you and Terry (my former agency partner), this felt like a place I could be for a long time.

One of the other things is that Ketner Group has always been open to change, for example, changing from a B2B technology PR agency to focus entirely on retail technology. There is so much innovation in retail, and we’ve had the opportunity to not only work for great people but also be part of an industry that’s fun and exciting.

Our team is a big part of it, of course. They’ve always inspired me to keep doing bigger and better things.

You’ve made so many contributions to Ketner Group, and you’ve continually challenged us to dream big and step outside our comfort zone as an agency. Looking back at your first 20 years, what are you most proud of?

This is a hard one—there are so many things I’m proud of! Opening the New York office was big. But even more important, we’ve started thinking bigger as an agency. Ketner Group used to be thought of as a small Austin agency that catered to startups; we didn’t look at things on a global scale. I’m proud that we’ve been able to slowly change Ketner Group into an agency that’s nationally recognized.

I’m also very proud of our team—past and present. We’ve always brought in the right team members at the right time. It’s been a collaborative effort of so many people over the years, both inside and outside the agency, that have encouraged and helped us to do more than we’ve done before. Our team has grand goals, and they are a huge part in helping us achieve those goals.

What are the biggest challenges you’ve had to overcome?

I can think of over 100 challenges that I have had to overcome in my 20 years at Ketner Group! I keep using the word lucky, but it is so true. I have been so lucky to have an amazing partner in Jeff Ketner and a fabulous leadership team that have all worked together to solve whatever challenges come our way. We will continue to face challenges, but we will do so as a team, just like we always do.

On a personal level, one of the biggest challenges is being a working mom. I am blessed to have a fabulous husband who’s a true partner, and we always do things 50-50. But being a working mom has its challenges. Over the years, there have been plenty of late nights, working on weekends, trips on which I missed things. But these were small sacrifices, and my husband and kids are extremely supportive of me and my work.

As I said in my blog last year about parenthood at KG, Ketner Group has allowed me to have the best of both worlds, and my children get to see first-hand the aftereffects of a family-first and employee-first company. More importantly, they know that it is possible to have a successful career and be there for them no matter what. I have always been so grateful for that.

Who inspires you as a leader?

Walt Disney has always inspired me! There are rumblings that he was a micromanager and had a short temper, which is not like me, but he had a grand vision for what he wanted to accomplish. Disney has famously said, “Disneyland will never be completed, as long as there is imagination left in the world.” I just love that quote!

We’ve done a lot of things at Ketner Group that I’m proud of. But there’s so much more we could be doing. I’m always trying to think of what’s next.

I’m also inspired by female leaders! And in Austin, there are plenty of fabulous women to look up to. I love how Elizabeth Christian and Kendra Scott are always giving back and going beyond what’s expected. Their leadership inspires me to do more in my community. I’ve been on the PTSA board at Cedar Park High School (Go, T-Wolves!) for several years now, currently serving as president, and volunteer regularly with my son at the Leander ISD Clothes Closet. I’ve seen firsthand what happens when you participate in something that is bigger than yourself – it is a great feeling!

What do you enjoy most about your job?

I like the things that are the scariest! I loved the miniseries “The Offer,” about the producers of the original Godfather movie. As the series indicates, making the Godfather movie was riddled with problems—budgeting issues, fights about casting, and the mob! The producer of that film had to constantly deal with challenges, but he never wavered and kept pushing forward.

This show spoke to my soul, ha! It occurred to me that in my role as president, I’m basically a movie producer. (Minus the mob of course!) Our job as leaders is to keep calm and work with our teams to solve problems one step at a time. I love facing challenges head on, and I especially enjoy mentoring my team through these challenges.

What are your goals for Ketner Group over the next few years?

We have ambitious goals. First, we want to continue branding Ketner Group and establishing ourselves as a nationally recognized firm that is the go-to agency for retail technology. When retail tech companies think of hiring an agency, I want Ketner Group to be top-of-mind.

I also want to figure out the best way to maintain a hybrid work environment. We will always have some remote employees, and we’re investing to make sure we still come together as a team. We’re working hard to find the best ways to continue building a great company culture.

Announcing the Retail Tech PR Handbook: 3 Key Takeaways

Posted on September 27, 2022 | by Jeff Ketner

Retail technology is evolving at at an increasingly rapid pace, and that’s good news for retail tech companies. According to IHL Research, this acceleration creates a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for technology companies, as retailers embrace new solutions.

Now is the time for retail tech executives to seize the day and capture attention through strategic PR and communications initiatives.

The question is how?

Enter our eBook! Today, we’re excited to announce the launch of the Retail Tech PR Handbook.

As experts in retail tech PR, we wanted to give our clients an all-encompassing resource that covers everything we’ve learned over our 20+ years experience in this fascinating industry.

The eBook is a blueprint on how to create and execute fantastic retail tech PR strategies. And in celebration of its launch, we’re offering three key takeaways below.

1. Do your homework.

Before launching your PR program, assess if your company is prepared.

Some key questions to ask include: What are your PR goals? Do you have the marketing resources and people needed to help manage your PR strategy internally? Are you ready to commit to PR for the long run?

Successful PR is an integral part of your overall marketing mix. Doing your homework will ensure that you’re prepared to dedicate the right internal and external resources.

2. Craft a compelling story.

Storytelling is at the heart of media relations, which relies on convincing an editor to write about your solutions by crafting a strong, compelling narrative. In turn, these editors’ publications influence who will buy your products.

We recommend evaluating your messaging and value proposition for clarity before executing your media strategy. We also recommend selecting a great partner to help you craft your compelling story.

3. Create a PR plan.

PR plans are like driving directions for a road trip: you need to know what turns to take to arrive at your destination. You also need to leave some wiggle room for stopping for gas along the way. Some of those turns and exits will come soon, others won’t happen until much further down the road.

Your PR plan should include PR activities that are built into the plan well in advance to make the most out of long-lead time opportunities, such as trade shows, awards, product launches, research projects and any seasonality to your retail brand.

In addition, your PR plan should incorporate pit stops, or the necessary wiggle room set aside each month for unplanned activities like incoming media and analyst relations requests, company news, and more.

Keep learning about retail tech PR

Ready to learn more about how to create a top-notch retail tech PR strategy? Fantastic!

You can download our eBook here. Happy reading!

importance of pr during recession - exec

Give PR a Seat at the Executive Table, Now and Always

Posted on August 23, 2022 | by Jeff Ketner

It’s been a long, hot summer—and an uncertain one for marketers who are grappling with the impact of an inflationary economy and fears of a possible recession.

Companies are scrutinizing marketing budgets more closely, and CMOs are increasingly being asked to justify their spend. Faced with conflicting data, disappointing earnings report and negative economic news, marketers may have tough decisions figuring out how to allocate their budgets.

That’s when PR becomes even more important than usual, because it’s one of the most cost-effective, credible ways to reach your audience and support your marketing funnel. As one PR agency owner wrote in Forbes:

“Through any time of crisis, there is one critical part of any business strategy that should never be forgotten: public relations.

“Why public relations? Because when so many others aren’t surviving the storm, it lets the public know that you are still standing, communicating and being active, and that you will still be there when things get better. PR is one of the most budget-conscious, effective and resourceful ways to keep your name out there during a recession. The third-party endorsement that PR creates is a voice that carries through and resonates with audiences long after the depression has passed.”

Keep in mind that this was written during the height of COVID-19. Anything we face in the coming months—and economists are deeply divided about the prospects and severity of a recession—will pale in comparison to what we all survived in 2020.

PR helps fill your sale funnel, regardless of the economy

Companies will soon begin their 2023 marketing planning, and PR should continue to be top of mind for a full-funnel sales and marketing program.

“PR has always been thought of as a ‘top of funnel’ contributor,” according to Cision, “but this association does not fully encapsulate the impact PR has throughout the buyer’s journey in today’s digitally-driven landscape.”

That’s because earned media can be used in so many ways in the sales funnel. Content from earned media can be amplified through social media, shared in nurturing campaigns, and used throughout the sales cycle. PR can also help gain the attention of retail industry analysts and other important influencers in the retail ecosystem.

Ketner Group’s focus on retail technology has helped our clients realize the potential of each of these elements of a well-rounded PR program. Time and again, we’ve seen the power of PR to help our clients gain recognition as thought leaders, increase engagement with prospects and help drive leads.

That became critically important during COVID, when much of retail was particularly hard hit. Our team moved quickly and worked closely with our clients to devise new strategies to reach retailers. We saw an increased emphasis on content and a renewed appreciation for earned media and the credibility it carries.

Our best advice for retail technology marketers: Always give PR a seat at the table

Our retail technology clients realize that PR should always be considered a key part of the marketing mix, no matter the situation. New technology solutions have fueled much of the retail resurgence since 2020, and our clients reaped big rewards by continuing to invest in PR and marketing.

What should be your strategy for PR and marketing in the coming months? Simply this: Continue to give PR a seat at the executive table. PR is at its best when used as part of an overall company strategy, not just an afterthought.

Despite concerns about a potential recession, the outlook for retail remains healthy. After all, consumer spending is steady, inflation is trending down and consumer sentiment is rising.

This is all good news for technology companies. Retailers will continue to seek new solutions to improve profitability, increase consumer engagement, implement new fulfillment models and better manage their supply chains; and that’s just the beginning. A retail analyst friend of mine expects retail technology spending overall to increase next year.

If you’re a retail technology company, you can’t afford to miss out. Ketner Group has specialized in retail technology PR for more than 20 years, and we know retail like no other PR agency.

Looking for a PR partner that knows your business? We’d love to hear from you. Get in touch today to find out how we can help you reach retailers and support your marketing goals.

From Electric Cars to Customer Journeys: Talking Retail with IHL’s Jerry Sheldon

Posted on June 21, 2022 | by Jeff Ketner

One of the things I love about working in retail technology PR is the chance to develop friendships with so many of the clients, editors and analysts we work with at Ketner Group.

That’s certainly the case with our friends at IHL Group, who helped me learn my way around the retail tech world 20+ years ago.

I recently had the chance to interview IHL analyst Jerry Sheldon about the current state of retail, what’s ahead for the rest of 2022 and why he thinks electric cars could be a disruptive force in retail.

Following are some excerpts from our conversation. Enjoy!

Inflation and recession are the top concerns for the U.S. economy. How is this impacting retail, and what are some of the other headwinds facing retailers in the second half of 2022?

The impact of inflation on consumers is a tale of two cities. If you’re above the median income, your stock portfolio has been hit, but inflation isn’t impacting your day-to-day quality of life.

However, if you’re below the median income, the rising price of gas, food, and other essentials has a significant impact.

In addition to inflation and fears of recession, there are the uncertainties of supply chain challenges, the war in Ukraine, chip shortages and the lockdown in Shanghai due to COVID. As a result, retailers will face a number of headwinds in the coming months.

You’ve expressed concerns about how the lockdowns in China could affect retailers and retail sales for the remainder of the year. Can you elaborate?

As Shanghai reopens, it’s going to take time for manufacturing to get back to normal.

There is a huge backlog of container ships queued up at the port waiting to be loaded, along with pent-up demand to get product to the U.S. In an effort to catch up, shipping levels will be much higher than usual, which will create a logjam at ports of entry.

What happens when all those container ships arrive at in Long Beach? We have rising gas prices, a shortage of long- and short-haul truckers, and limited capacity to unload these container ships.

I’m concerned about the impact of all this on Back-to-School shopping. Schools have re-opened, so there will be a lot more kids returning to the classroom and demand could easily exceed supply.

Inflation will likely continue to be a problem. The food sector has been hit hard with inflation, there’s a massive shortage of cars, and now inflation could spread to the apparel sector.

I hope all this can be rectified before the Holiday shopping season.

IHL has always been a big proponent of unified commerce. Why is it so important for retailers in the post-COVID era?

We published research on unified commerce and optimized customer journeys in January 2020, and then bam! Here came COVID. It’s ironic to see how our findings played out.

During COVID, big box stores had a huge uptick in revenue, and we saw some amazing comps. But if you look at gross margins, they only slightly improved.

The reason is, you had a big shift in how customers were shopping, and retailers had to support a number of fulfillment models that weren’t profitable. (Note: see chart below). There were significant erosion in profit margins, which creates a big opportunity for technology vendors.

Order management, for example, became very important because retailers had to quickly determine the most profitable way to fulfill an order. Do you fulfill it from your store? Do you fulfill it from your warehouse? How do you ship it?

The importance of mobile devices in retail continues to grow. Can you briefly describe the shift you’re seeing in mobile usage?

Mobile is an interesting example of how retailers are adopting technology. Mobile 1.0 and 2.0 were embraced in particular by smaller retailers that adopted mobile devices as their transaction platforms.

Then with COVID the customer journeys changed, with more curbside, ship from store, etc., and mobility helped support this.

So while we saw a significant shift to mobile POS for SMBs, the really big adoption happened in the enterprise space, helping Tier 1 retailers support the new customer journeys. That’s why we’re calling it Mobile 3.0, which we reference in our report on enterprise mobility.

The past few years have seen significant increases in retail IT spending. As retailers implement new technologies, what are some of the pitfalls to be avoid?

Retailers need to be careful to not overlook security. Every internet or network connected device is a potential entry point for bad actors.

All the IoT devices in stores today are potential entry points into the network, and if they’re not secured properly, it can be problematic. There are potential pitfalls in something as simple as electronic shelf labels.

In our research, we have found that there were a lot of security holes that were opened up as a by-product of bringing devices onto the network in a pretty rapid fashion during COVID.

Looking ahead, what are some of the retail trends you’re thinking about long-term? What’s going to be different 5 years from now?

Electric cars will have a profound impact on retail. Supercharging an electric car takes 30 minutes. How does that affect road trips and where you might stop because of supercharging? How does that affect customer visits and dwell time at gas stations, shopping malls and grocery stores?

How retailers accommodate electric cars could be a big differentiator; this could also give consumers a reason to return to shopping malls. Whereas a gas station can accommodate only a handful of cars, malls could have hundreds of charging stations. Why should consumers queue up at a gas station with limited charging stations when they can go to an air-conditioned mall with numerous restaurants and retailers?

Shopping malls could potentially disintermediate gas stations and provide shoppers with the kind of customer experience that creates long-term loyalty. Electric cars have the potential to impact nearly every retail vertical.

Deep in the Heart of Retail: Ketner Group’s New Home

Posted on April 19, 2022 | by Jeff Ketner

Moving into a new home is a lot of work—boxes to pack, movers to coordinate, juggling a seemingly endless array of details. However, it’s also a cause for celebration, full of excitement and new possibilities.

That’s certainly the case at Ketner Group these days. We moved to a new office in Austin last month, and it already feels like home. Our Austin team feels we’re right where we belong, in the middle of one of the best retail developments in the country.

Ketner Group’s Austin office is located in the Domain, the landmark mixed-use retail development that has helped make Austin one of the most desirable retail markets in the country.

With Ketner Group’s focus on retail technology PR for 20+ years, it’s the ideal location. Our clients have been on the forefront of retail tech trends for over two decades, and many of the most innovative brands in the business are right outside our door.

Austin’s Domain is retail at its best

Remember how the so-called retail apocalypse was supposed to put an end to physical retail? The Domain is a prime example of why that prediction never came true. Experiential or destination retail has been all the rage in the industry the past few years, and the Domain is a case study of experiential retail at its best. People actually love to work shop, dine and live here.

Here’s a quick rundown of the numbers:

38,000 residents, making the Domain its own mini-city.
Well over 2 million square feet of office space, with major employers such as Meta, Amazon, Indeed, Vrbo and hundreds of smaller companies.
Over 50 restaurants and nearly 200 luxury and exclusive retail stores and brands, with more on the way.

Austin is on every list of the fastest growing metro areas in the country, and retailers are paying attention. Last month Gucci opened a store at the Domain, joining other top retail brands including Neiman-Marcus, Nordstrom, a flagship Restoration Hardware, and many more—running the gamut from A (Apple) to Z (Zara).

As a local real estate analyst said, “if you’re a retailer I don’t know of a place you’d rather be than in Austin.”

An ever-changing retail innovation lab

For Ketner Group’s Austin team, the Domain is a retail innovation lab that showcases the best in modern retail, and it’s right outside our door. As an agency that lives and breathes retail technology PR, it’s the ideal location.

On a recent Tuesday afternoon I visited the Herman Miller store at the Domain and was immediately greeted by an employee who was busily sketching store layouts and designs. She’s a staff architect at Herman Miller and is using as the store as inspiration to study and imagine new store concepts.

Herman Miller calls its Domain Store an “experiential retail concept,” one of only a handful of company branded stores. The staff was friendly, accommodating and excited to work at the Domain. One associate I talked to has lived at the Domain for several years and is glad to be able to walk to work.

With thousands of high-tech office workers within walking distance, it’s a smart location for the iconic office furnishings designer and retailer.

Directly across the street is the first Texas location of The RealReal, the popular online marketplace for authenticated, resale luxury goods.

The RealReal exemplifies one of the retail trends that are most prominent at the Domain—online brands that have opened physical stores. It’s a colorful, well merchandised boutique that invites shoppers to stick around and browse.

Harmonized retail with an Austin vibe

The best retailers today are moving beyond omnichannel to what our friend Steve Dennis calls “harmonized retail,” putting the customer at the center of the experience regardless of where and how they shop.

The Domain is a successful case study in harmonized retail—a totally immersive experience where you can work, live, shop and dine.

No wonder it’s on the radar screen for the best retailers in the business. Even as it’s grown, though, the Domain has managed to retain an “Austin vibe,” even offering its own version of Austin’s famed Sixth Street entertainment district.

Our team loves the opportunity to explore great restaurants and retailers that are just a short walk from our office. Like many PR agencies and professional services firms, we’ve adopted a hybrid office model that gives everyone an opportunity to work from home, a coffee shop, the office—whatever works best for them.

However, there’s an extra incentive to show up at the office now. Ketner Group’s Austin team is thrilled to be in our new home at the Domain. Reach out to schedule a time to come see us and we’ll show you around!

NRF Wasn’t the Same This Year, But the Show Goes On for Retail Tech Companies

Posted on January 25, 2022 | by Jeff Ketner

Our CEO and founder Jeff Ketner started going to NRF about twenty years ago. It’s always been the event for building relationships in the retail tech industry. But this year, like last year, was different. His latest video discusses the shift in the landscape and how tech companies can respond. Prefer to read than watch a video? We’ve included a transcript of his discussion below.

The show goes on for retail tech companies

Hi, I’m Jeff Ketner, founder and CEO of Ketner Group. NRF may have gone haywire, but every marketer knows that the show must go on. And that’s what we’re talking about today.

As a retail technology PR agency, we’ve attended more than 20 NRF Big Shows. Before COVID, there was always a buzz of excitement. Our clients were there, we managed countless press and analyst briefings, and it was an annual celebration of all things retail.

This year was different. With Omicron raging, NRF attendance was off by as much as 2/3. Most of our clients stayed home. We did, too. It felt strange. On the other hand, retail is back. It’s healthy, and that’s good news.

Retail sales in November and December grew more than 14% compared to 2020–far exceeding the most optimistic expectations. Retailers overcame huge challenges last year dealing with inflation, supply chain disruptions and the continuing impact of COVID.

Much of the success retailers have found can be attributed to their technology investments. Which begs the question, without NRF, how can retailers find their next big tech initiatives?

For technology vendors, strategic marketing and communications is more important than ever. One important way to get the word out is through media and analyst relations.

Give media and analysts news they can use

In the past, retail tech companies looked to NRF as a opportunity to make an impact through media relations. Ketner Group has managed hundreds of 1:1 meetings over the years.

Those in-person press meetings at NRF didn’t happen. However, the media still needs to hear about your new products, customer wins and trends you’re seeing in the industry. And there’s no better time than now. Retailers are finalizing their IT priorities for the year, and they’re looking to retail and business media as key resources to help guide decisions.

A retail technology-focused PR agency like Ketner Group can help you break through the noise and get your story out to the media that matter most. With a great story and the right agency support, the resulting media coverage can help get the attention of prospective customers.

It’s the same with industry analysts. They rely on PR firms to help them stay current on the changing technology landscape. Analysts are key influencers with retailers; time and effort here can make a difference in bringing tech vendors to the attention of analysts.

If you write it, the leads will come

What about all the sales leads you didn’t get this year?

For many retail tech companies, NRF has always been the #1 source of leads for the year. That’s something that’s hard to replace, so now is the time to double down on new, creative content initiatives to develop and nurture leads.

Thought-provoking content is important. You own it, and you control the message. It gives you the opportunity to engage readers with your viewpoint on some of the biggest issues they’re facing. Your content can include press releases, bylined articles, case studies, blogs and LinkedIn articles, as well as long-form content such as bylines and white papers.

Content marketing is essential for engaging retailers as they research technology vendors. It can help replace some of the leads you would have received at industry events, and it’s a critical part of your marketing strategy.

The great technology reset

With or without NRF, marketers have lots of opportunities to help their companies make an impact in 2022. According to our friend Greg Buzek of IHL Group, retail is in the midst of a once-in-a-generation technology reset; you can’t afford to miss out.

This represents a huge opportunity for technology vendors—and a specialized retail technology PR firm like Ketner Group can make a difference. We’ve focused on retail technology PR for over 20 years. Our understanding of the industry makes us experts in retail tech marketing, and we’ve developed invaluable relationships with key retail tech influencers – both media and analysts.

2022 will be an exciting year in retail and technology. And with proactive PR and creative content in your marketing playbook, your company can play a big part in it.

Thanks for listening. We’d love to hear from you! Reach out to connect with us.