Like all digital technology and consumer-driven markets, e-commerce has evolved over the years. With the global growth of B2C e-commerce, retailers face new challenges and opportunities. In order to meet customer demands, companies have adapted their strategies to fit current trends. This blog covers the top five trends that have carried e-commerce through 2015 and will continue into the new year.

Once a darling of Wall Street, the Whole Foods brand is facing increasing competition in a rapidly changing marketplace. Some investors have sarcastically nicknamed the company “Half Foods,” because its shares have dropped 31 percent this year. To remain competitive, Whole Foods recently announced plans to reduce its workforce by 1.6 percent, or 1,500 jobs.

Although Whole Foods has struggled recently, the natural and organic foods market has experienced strong, steady growth overall. Last year, retail sales of natural and organic foods and beverages rose 5.5 percent to nearly $53.5 billion. That figure is 53 percent higher than sales in 2009, according to Packaged Facts.

Market researchers respond to rapid-fire deadlines and competing client demands. When one set of projects end, there’s often little forewarning before the next ones begin. To be successful, market researchers have to prioritize effectively and move quickly through their to-do lists.

Although there’s no substitute for hard work, certain time-management strategies can eliminate needless tasks and help you complete projects faster. Curious to learn more? Here are three research strategies to help you save time and improve your overall results.

Companies turn to custom market research because they need specific answers in order to make critical business decisions. The problem is the way we’ve been forced to think about market research from the lens of a project, in large part, due to the way this research is and has been executed.  

By definition, market research projects are episodic in nature, rigid in question format, and take weeks and months to execute so as to deliver the insights they’re framed to address. Internal and external complexities exist to commission, source, and complete market research. Buyers often refer to the process as exhausting and expensive, and respondents find the survey length tedious and difficult to schedule during a busy day. 

In September, construction spending reached its highest level in 7-½ years, according to U.S. News & World Report. On Monday, the Commerce Department reported that construction increased 0.6 percent to $1.09 trillion.

The construction of single-family homes rose 1.3 percent, and the construction of condominiums and apartments grew 4.9 percent.

In fact, the apartment and condominium construction industry has had one of the quickest recoveries within the residential construction industries since 2010, according to IBISWorld.

Bluemercury, a brand that describes itself as a luxury apothecary and spa chain, has made a name for itself by offering customers a personalized beauty shopping experience. Based in Georgetown, Washington, D.C., Bluemercury operates 61 stores around the U.S, with 12 more scheduled to open later this year. So what is the secret to Bluemercury’s success?

“We are really trying to deliver very high customer service,” says co-founder and CEO Marla Malcolm Beck. “If you look at the department stores and the way their cosmetics departments are structured, it is all brand by brand. And employees are paid by the brand. So if you go to the Clinique counter in Macy’s or Neiman Marcus, they are going to sell you Clinique products, period.” 

Many entrepreneurs hope to be the next Mark Zuckerberg. But even with an innovative idea, it’s difficult to launch a successful enterprise on your own. That’s where start-up incubators come in — these innovative programs offer would-be entrepreneurs expert advice, community support, and access to an influential network.

Some well-known start-up incubators are private, while others are sponsored by universities. About 32 percent of North American business incubators are run by academic institutions, according to the International Business Innovation Association.

Every day, I check my Instagram, Snapchat, and Twitter anywhere between five and ten times on my iPhone. I get on Facebook, Poshmark, Pinterest, and LinkedIn probably about once or twice a day. And to be honest, I don’t think I’m on social media that often. I am one out of 75 million millennials living in the U.S., and because most of us have similar social media habits, it’s crucial for businesses to get onto social media if they are going to reach us.

In this new blog series, we provide an inside look at specific publishers on Profound. You'll have the opportunity to learn more about the reports they publish and what differentiates them from other publishers on the market. Today, we’re interviewing MicroMarketMonitor, a publisher that provides in-depth insights into 5,000 granular markets. Learn more about them in the Q&A below.

Oprah Winfrey is shaking up the $65 billion U.S. weight loss market. Last week, she bought a 10 percent stake in Weight Watchers International and joined its board of directors. As a result, the diet company’s stock more than doubled in value.

Oprah’s endorsement comes at a critical juncture for the struggling company, which has experienced 10 straight quarters of declining sales. More and more consumers are turning to high-tech activity trackers and Smartphone apps to manage their diets, and some investors question whether Weight Watchers can remain relevant in an increasingly competitive environment.

Will Oprah’s endorsement help turn around the company’s flagging revenue, or do the problems at Weight Watchers extend too far? In this article, we turn to research firm Marketdata Enterprises for some possible answers.