How E-Commerce Can Influence An In-Store Customer’s Experience

If your retail business is currently struggling amidst the COVID-19 crisis, it might be time to reevaluate your current strategies. For example, perhaps spend less of any budget targeting new customer acquisition and spend more on current customer retention. Why is this the most effective manner of strategy for retail businesses? As seen throughout the infographic paired alongside this post, retailers have reported a 5% to 20% chance of achieving a sale with a new customer compared to a 60% to 70% chance of selling to an existing customer once more. Despite seeing this in real time, a number of retailers neglect adjusting their spend to be more catered toward their existing customers. Rather than new customer acquisition, would prioritizing existing customers be a more sustainable strategy?

Much like any organization, retailers often struggle with developing new and innovative ways to increase their dynamic revenue growth. With the help of the resource accompanying this post, however, retailers should be able to get a leg up on the competition. The resource is centered around an omnichannel strategy that connects online and in-stores sales techniques together to create a customized experience for any retailers’ customers. While most customers find that online shopping feels the most personalized as a result of cross-selling, with proper execution, the same tactics used online can be integrated into physical retail locations. Through these tactics and upselling strategies used by sales representatives in store, retailers can gain a competitive advantage.

Integrating the online and in-store experience through these tactics is very similar to the way in which most retail businesses are approaching their marketing strategies. Known as omnichannel marketing, as more and more customers are capable of interacting with retailers through different online channels, retailers are expected to adapt. Failure to do so could end catastrophically for these retailers. Not only do they have to strengthen their digital marketing strategies, they also have to be equipped with the necessary sales tactics to improve the physical retail experience as well.

Let’s take the typical physical retail location visit into account first. Not only has this experience been limited as a result of COVID-19, the amount of time customers spend in store was lower than most would expect even before COVID. On average, customers will spend 15 minutes to an hour in a retail location. Without a fully fleshed out online presence, that’s the last time a retailer has a chance to interact with that customer until they return to the store. However, with a fully fleshed out online presence, customers can continue to interact with a retailer long after they leave. Through text offerings, digital alerts or even specific in-store promotions exclusive to digital users retailers can draw in more customers to physical retail locations.

Improved connections with customers is only part of what a strong digital strategy provides. Another strength of retailers’ digital strategies comes in the form of personalization. This is largely seen through a customer’s account on any retailers’ website. With the right amount of sophistication, retailers are capable of tailoring a customer’s entire experience based on their activity on the site, their previous purchases and even their wish lists. Some shoppers may even have an easier time finding the right product for them from home, especially those who are hoping to remain safe amidst lockdown restrictions.

As a retail business owner, these techniques can be daunting. Integrating them correctly can be quite the challenge. However, with the help of the infographic featured alongside this post, more and more retail organizations can successfully utilize these techniques. Infographic courtesy of IDL Displays