Large retailers have large challenges. Like educating and informing customers. Maintaining a share of voice with customers. Building relationships.

At JCPenney, those challenges are being met in part by JCPToday, a customizable desktop widget created by T3 in conjunction with Skinkers and WTG. Skinkers is a market leader in information broadcast technology. WTG is a UK-based business solutions company.

Like a trusted advisor or shopping buddy, JCPToday — introduced in May 2007 to a significant test group of opt-in e-mail customers — offers a wealth of information to customers who register and download the widget. From product-of-the-day picks to helpful links and exclusive editorial content and offers, the widget puts options at the customer's command.

Delivering on a promise
"The great promise of digital marketing is providing closer connections between people and brand," says Jay Suhr, T3 senior vice president, creative services and account planning. "JCPToday does that in an engaging way. It's a perfect example of the expanding definition of digital creative. It's not about marketing. It's about providing relevant functionality."

In designing the widget, T3 adhered to a discipline of best-practice while pioneering, says Kate Donaho, T3 group creative director.

"We knew that for JCPToday to work as a customer development tool — for people to be willing to deepen their relationship with JCPenney enough to put this on their desktop — it had to serve up more than promotional messages.

"So we were very disciplined in rolling it out: Engage, don't interrupt. Balance promotion with valuable content. Keep it fast and light.

"The result is a mix of marketing and content, all in a fun, friendly package. It provides content morsels, little bites of trend stories or special offers customers can look to when they're hungry for a pleasant diversion."

Content on command
JCPToday was created to deliver a wide range of exclusive content in a deceptively simple package for an audience that is not entirely tech savvy.

Customers who download the widget have quick access to four main areas:

• Messages: The most current news and offers, plus any individual reminders that have been set.
• Product of the day: A featured product that links directly to its jcp.com product detail page. Highlighted products are archived for a week for easy access.
• The Scoop: Updated twice weekly to give customers fun features about trends and shopping at JCPenney. Feature copy is archived for easy access.
• My Stuff: Everything users need to customize JCPToday, including a preferences tab and calendar.

Subtle alerts notify customers when new content has been added. More personalized content based on registration data and preferences is under development.

The adoption rate of JCPToday has been encouraging, considering its soft launch.

"JCPToday has proven to be a great tool for highlighting the breadth of JCPenney's products and building relationships with customers," says Jennifer Dillahunty, T3 account director. "The client has given us a lot of freedom to create an unobtrusive, easy-to-use tool and we're committed to delivering relevant, robust content and getting the word out about its value to customers."

Check out the desktop application/widget at www.jcptoday.com now.