The way we shop is changing. We throw the term ‘shopping savvy’ around consistently in retail and media but do we even know what it means anymore?
It used to relate to those shoppers that knew what size they were in certain stores and where the best deals were, but now a shopping savvy customer is looking for a retail experience on a whole new level. With next day delivery, social media sharing and scan to purchase apps, the world of retail and technology have never been greater bed fellows. The idea of a retail space not having some form of intergrated digital technology is nothing more than horrifying and those high street giants with poor online form are drastically missing out on the 360 consumer, that wants everything at their finger tips.
We began to see a shift to this more 360 approach when Net a Porter started retailing straight from the catwalk pieces to a fashion hungry consumer, but even pre order is now outdated. We want to order now and have it in our closet by next week, at the very latest. This demand from consumers for better shopping experiences is really forcing brands to rethink their strategy and workout how they can merge their platforms. Essentially it is all about omni platform experiences – a model that incorporates all aspects of your consumers life and breaks down the barriers put in their way by modern technology. After al you don’t want anything to stop them spending.
Marketing gurus RPM had spotted this pattern in the market and created a blue print as it were called ‘Enhanced Retail‘ for dealing with this new tricky customer. A customer that is ever disrupted by modern technology.
RPM believe there are 6 key factors to retail experiences:
1. Compelling narratives and experiences make the store count
2. Enable richer, more bespoke self-service solutions
3. Empower staff to become experts
4. Integrate mobile with the fabric of the retail estate
5. Everywhere is a store so bridge digital and physical touch points
6. Understand new data and new insights.
By understanding these 6 key retail points and working out how you can integrate them into your business your company will be ready to deal with those tricky consumers who don’t simply want you to just sell them product, they want you to pull out all the stops.