KATHERINE REYNOLDS LEWIS September 12, 2012 Andrea Mohin The New York Times Quick Tips: If you are monitoring only your traffic, you are wasting money. Place your phone number prominently on every Web page. Try to attract leads that are ready to buy and not just exploring. When potential customers search the Internet for Botox or laser hair removal in the greater New York City area, Verve Medical Cosmetics has long been easy to find. But the company’s Web site has been more successful attracting visitors than it has been converting those visitors into new customers, according to Michele Bracci, the company’s director of marketing and the wife of its founder, Dr. Stephen Bracci. So the Braccis decided to give the site a face-lift. They redesigned it last year to emphasize the qualities they believe make the business stand out from other nonsurgical medical aesthetics companies. They added before and…

Sep 12, 2012 CSNews Consumers are managing restaurant checks by cutting back on beverages and ordering only food at main meals. However, restaurant chains are now focusing on driving beverage-only occasions. According to The NPD Group, restaurant chains are driving incremental beverage-only occasions during other times of the day with the introduction of new beverages and beverage marketing efforts. In June 2012, the total restaurant visits were flat compared to the 2-percent decline in visits that included both food and beverage, reports NPD’s CREST foodservice market research. “Consumers are responding to new beverage introductions and the aggressive promotion of beverages, and as a result beverage-only has become a significant growth opportunity for the foodservice industry,” said Kyle Olund, director, foodservice product development at NPD. “There is, however, a complexity to beverage-only foodservice occasions and it’s important for foodservice operators and manufacturers to have a full understanding of the foodservice beverage…

MICHAEL M. GRYNBAUM September 13, 2012 New York Times The New York City Board of Health voted on Thursday to approve Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg’s measure to limit the sale of large sugary drinks. Seeking to combat rising obesity rates, the New York City Board of Health approved on Thursday a ban on the sale of large sodas and other sugary drinks at restaurants, street carts and movie theaters, enacting the first restriction of its kind in the country. Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg, who proposed the measure, celebrated its passage on Twitter. Seeking to combat rising obesity rates, the New York City Board of Health approved on Thursday a ban on the sale of large sodas and other sugary drinks at restaurants, street carts and movie theaters, enacting the first restriction of its kind in the country. the measure, celebrated its passage on Twitter. “NYC’s new sugary drink policy is…

NACSonline September 13 2012 NACS Daily News Coca-Cola’s Dasani Drops is a new addition to water flavor enhancer products. MONTEPELIER, FRANCE – Next month, Coca-Cola will launch a new line of water flavor drops under its Dasani brand, allowing customers to customize their H2O, Beverage Daily reports. Dasani Drops are zero-calorie beverage enhancers housed in a 1.9-ounce bottle (each bottle includes 32 servings) that allows consumers to customize their water in the desired strength. Coke will market the drops as a means of providing a “delicious, sweet way to enjoy drinking water throughout the day” and a “flavorful, fashionable accessory for busy moms and health-conscious people alike”. “Dasani Drops give people a new way to enjoy drinking water by pumping-up the taste of Dasani with a simple squeeze of the easy-to-carry bottle,” said John Roddey, vice president, water, tea and coffee for Coca-Cola North America. Coke will not be the…

Melissa Kress September 13 2012 CSNews JERSEY CITY, N.J. — Convenience stores take on different forms throughout the world, but regardless of where they are located, the key drivers of success remain the same. As noted by the presenters during today’s Nielsen webcast entitled “Global Convenience Market Symposium,” value for the money and additional services are the deciding factors in whether a c-store succeeds anywhere. However, other factors pop up on the must-have list depending on the region. For example, in South Africa, shoppers are looking for an inclusive, one-stop shopping trip, while in Taiwan, shoppers are seeking innovation. In addition to this similar recipe for success, convenience retailers worldwide have several traits in common. Convenience is a premium channel with a younger target group that is a perfect avenue to launch new products, according to webcast moderator Mark Wohltmann, senior manager of the Convenience Competence Center at Nielsen. What…