Webrooming, show rooming, omni channel, multi-channel, there seems to be a never ending number of buzzwords being touted around in the retail space. With all of these new terms, it’s clear that the retail sector is in a midst of a major transition. We’ve covered a few recent retail trends on our blog, but it’s clear to us that in all cases technology has been a catalyst for innovation. One of the major shifts we’ve seen is that consumers have been turning to new digital channels to consume information, shop and find inspiration.
What retailers are currently facing is the challenge to deliver a seamless experience to shoppers across all touch points such as online, in-store and mobile. Customer’s high expectations, coupled with the ubiquity of these technologies, has created demand for retailers to ensure they are serviced consistently across all channels.
The option for consumers to use every sales channel for any given transaction is defined by the term “omni channel.” Most retailers have made steps towards implementing a “multi channel” strategy, meaning each channel works independently. A good example of omni channel vs multi channel would be buying something online and then picking it up in store, instead of having it shipped to your house. Seems easy to implement, but retailers are still struggling with being able to interact with each customer in the exact same way across several channels. Connected consumers are who retailers will need to cater to and in order to keep up with the competition and stay relevant. They’ll have to embrace new technology to implement an omni channel presence.
So what can’t retailers do to make sure they keep up with the pack?
Get Mobile
This is the most obvious recommendation, but likely the most pervasive and important. Ensure that your digital channels, especial your website looks beautiful on mobile. Consider ways to harness mobile technology to interact with your market while they are on the go. Social apps now allow you to target mobile only users. Custom mobile apps are allowing for brands to provide additional value to their consumers beyond a website and 3rd party software is piggybacking mobile’s capabilities to help push notifications while shopping. Retailers now have a plethora of mobile tools to choose from… don’t ignore the opportunity to interact with your consumer on their most preferred device.
Get Personal
Once consumers connect with a brand and build a relationship, they are fiercely loyal. Retailers looking to cement their relationships with their following and drive repeat purchases need to use the data available to them to personalize messaging to different segments. Find out who you’re customers are: Are they students? Moms? Teachers? Create unique offers to cater to different segments to build stronger bonds.
Be Consistent
Consumers have an enormous amount of data at their fingertips. When it comes to prices, they are the first to make sure they are getting the best deal. There’s nothing more infuriating to a customer that sees a price online and visits your brick and mortar location only to find a difference in prices. If you’re running a sale or campaign, do your best to launch it on all platforms and make it accessible to every consumer.
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