• Promo, Tuesday, June 16, 2009 11:01 AM

Coldwater Creek seemed to have a pretty good idea, Patty Odell reports, but it's blowing it to smithereens in the execution.

The retailer sent postcards to customers inviting them to "become part of the Coldwater Creek team" by calling an 888 number. The plusses are obvious, Odell says. The recipients already know the brand and are probably already spreading the good word about it by word of mouth. They'll require less training than recruits who shop elsewhere.

But, Odell reports, after one caller left a message at the 888 number, the weeks turned into a month with no return call. The explanation may be that Coldwater Creek was simply overwhelmed by job seekers in this trying job market, she says. But she'll never know because the company didn't return her call either.

"That same customer that once shopped, showed off her clothes to friends and talked up the brand, is likely telling a very different story" now, Odell writes.

Read the whole story at Promo »