I have just attended a
business breakfast that was hosted jointly by the Balmain/Rozelle and
Leichhardt/Annandale Chambers of Commerce. There was a very interesting
speaker, Brian Walker (aka the Retail Doctor) and I thought what he had to say
would be of interest to many of my followers, as well as to local retail
precincts in general.
There was a lot of
information that I won’t (or can’t) attempt to convey in totality – merely to comment
on what stood out most to me, and my interpretation of it. For more information
from the source please go to www.retaildoctor.com.au.
Multi-channelling
The whole retail landscape
has changed dramatically over the last decade. However, and despite the protestations
of Gerry Harvey and others, online sales account for only 7% of retail sales.
Brian estimates that in five years this will have gone up to 12-15% - hardly
signalling the demise of the bricks and mortar store. Shopping online has had a lot of media
attention but that doesn’t mean online-only retailers are sitting pretty – one
of the biggest, Amazon, has only recently started to turn a profit.
There are multiple facets or
channels in the whole shopping experience. These range from the more
traditional high street shopping strip, large shopping malls, catalogues and
mail order to websites, e-commerce, blogs, or social media. These are
constantly evolving and changing – for instance there is a move in Australia
from malls back to a community ethos of high street shopping.
Each method appeals to
different demographics in different ways and there are not many retail
businesses that can just stick to one or even two channels – unless perhaps
they are in some sort of monopolistic position.
Cross-channelling
The proportion of customers
who research before buying is very high, particularly for high ticket items –
whether this is online before buying in-store, in-store before buying online or
any permutation thereof, not forgetting the research (or sale) may be done with
the competition.
Research will also be done
with other customers, past and present. This can be face to face or
increasingly through online reviews and social media. The latter cannot be
underestimated, as previously word of mouth was one-to-one, now it is to the
whole world and sometimes can make or break a business.
So not only should a retailer
use multiple channels, but these channels must be complementary and guide an
existing, new or potential customer to the ultimate goal of a sale.
Shopping experience
Good customer service,
pricing and good staff are not really unique selling points – not many
retailers would admit to falling short on any of these. Rather they are just
expected and are prerequisites to being fit for business and growth. What
businesses can compete on successfully is providing an experience.
Customers are people who have
five senses to which you can appeal. Online you can (currently) only appeal to
two, sight and sound. Of course there are many other ways to attract a customer
such as having a unique product, appealing to vanity or fashion, or just good
marketing (“you can’t afford not to have this product!”).
Whatever the strategies or
channels used the experience needs to be about the customer – but keep it real!
