The other day, I was asked by a reporter what sites or trends did I think online retailers should be watching.  Here was my response:

One of the big trends I’m watching right now, especially for my retail clients is QRCs.  Quick Response Codes are on the rise and I think they will change how retailers can engage with prospective buyers.  A great article on what can be done with these things was written by fellow blogger, Dan Smigrod.

Coupled with Mobile Commerce, QRCs might very well change the landscape of how retailers can use the mobile web and the sites that are looking to engage consumers and emulate the “in-person” buying experience.  Sites like  GoTryitOn.com and ChicTopia.com are good examples.

Two other types of sites that are worth mentioning are Groupon.com and the penny auction sites. Groupon should be important to retailers because it has grown in popularity incredibly fast (I believe they were recently offered to be purchased for measly $1B, just last week). Of course, this is the new social internet and good ideas will grow faster than anyone could have ever imagined.  Groupon’s success creates an amazing geo-targeting tool for retailers online and offline.  Groupon’s concept — driving down prices by driving up demand through a group buying process — is a concept that retailers should take note of and perhaps even plan on emulating,  especially given their very early success.

Another trend I find interesting and am keeping tabs on for my clients is these Penny auction sites, such as Beezid.com, Swoopo.com, Quibids.com. They have also seen exponential growth in the last 12 months, probably in large part because of sagging world and U.S. economy. I think retailers should take note of the business model in particular, and perhaps look at these sites as partner and/or distribution channels for their clearance items.   These sites may also become viable channels for new products looking to establish an online brand for themselves. Retailers or product manufacturers who ignored eBay, Amazon and Overstock.com as distribution channels for items most certainly have regretted it.  The same might be true for the penny auction sites who are taking the Internet by storm and really challenging eBays and Amazons, especially in this economy. Where these auction sites will end up, I’m not sure, because I’m not sure consumers actually understand how much they are really paying for their “penny” bids.  But the model and the current popularity certainly should be watched.