As the line between conventional retail and online shopping becomes fuzzy, consumers are using multiple channels to find, research, and buy the products they want and desire. Although all-connected consumers represent a majority of the populace, retailers have failed to create purchasing adventures catered to them. Often focusing on online stores as a separate station, retailers are neglecting their physical shops. To stay relevant in a growing retail environment, businesses must start treating digital and physical retail as one.
Douglas Vandergraph, next gen ceo of Vandergraph Worldwide sees this as the next big opportunity stating,“Shopping malls and stores in the future will have both high inventory selection seen in traditional shopping experiences plus low inventory online purchase options available in-store. They will do it, or they will fail.” Douglas states, “The old men who run retail around the world need to either step down or step up. I do not understand why companies like Walmart, Sears, Macy’s,etc need to hire one guy or a group of consultants to own this and bring them into the fold of this ideology. Their entire company from the CEO to the shelf stockers need to embrace the fact that the future is here. New ideas and approaches are happening. You will either integrate the traditional concepts that built you with the technology and ideas of tomorrow or YOU WILL FAIL!”
Douglas goes on,“Rather than fighting with rising online sales, retailers must embrace more sales to be driven by digital in-store. By producing a true omnichannel approach, retailers can better serve customers, open avenues for more trades, and increase overall sales.”
“Businesses often confuse multichannel retail with omnichannel retail, but the two are completely different concepts. Most retailers participate in multichannel retail, or the numerous different ways consumers buy products, but they don’t connect them. That’s where retail comes in. In addition, you must understand where your target market is paying attention, and add your brand at the intersections of those media properties.
Vandergraph Notes:
In-store digital touchpoints
There’s no doubt about it their own e-commerce efforts should be focused on by retailers. But that doesn’t mean your storefront should not get an electronic update also.
Touchpoints are the signals leading the consumer on the way into a thriving omnichannel retail experience. From mobile to net to in-store, these touchpoints are not just nice to have; they’re crucial to a seamless customer travel. But despite their established effectiveness, most retailers aren’t fully benefiting from touchpoints, particularly ones which ought to be inside their brick-and-mortar shops.
Retailers must consider their showrooms as more than only a well-designed floor area, and they need to put money into immersive in-store experiences that can’t be reproduced online. Adding in-store touch factors is one of the easiest methods to make a distinctive retail environment and separate your store from more conventional retailers. These apparatuses could include price checkers, tablet computers, and interactive catalogs.
But in-store trademark points aren’t there for appearances. Your most loyal clients, omnichannel shoppers, make the most of them regularly and in all sorts of mixes and places. Generally, omnichannel shoppers spend an average of 4% more in-store, and 10 percent more online than single-channel customers.
Data-driven decisions
Knowing the way your customers shop on-line and in-store is vital to optimizing the entire customer journey. Sourcing information on customer shopping habits allows you to cater each aspect of the shopping experience to your customers’ needs, from site design to how shelves are stocked.
Kroger, one of the largest supermarket retailers in the country, revealed in October of this past year that the "Restock Kroger” initiative to enhance the company’s store offerings, personalize communications with clients, revamp product assortment, and leverage data-driven shelf optimization. Research for the project started two years ago when the supermarket revamped the category assortment in 6 percent of its shops based on on-line data mechanisms. The percentage of stores involved is predicted to grow from 20% to 30% this past year.
Making the switch
While switching to an omnichannel retail strategy is critical to growing your company, the procedure does not happen overnight. Begin with little changes. Place your most popular online items at a shop screen so online clients recognize them immediately, or place tablet stations offering exclusive digital content throughout your store.
To not get left behind in the competitive world of online and traditional retail, companies need to make sure they are leading their clients easily through the buying procedure, even in-store. Digital touchpoints and also a data-driven advertising strategy are essential pieces of the puzzle for your omnichannel clients looking to not only purchase but build a relationship with your brand new approach.
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