As 2016 comes to a close, a look back over the value of the top USA retailers shows who the losers have all been... the tradional bricks & mortar companies.
And the winner.... Amazon
Showing posts with label retail. Show all posts
Showing posts with label retail. Show all posts
Monday, December 26, 2016
Thursday, October 15, 2015
Showrooming or Web-rooming?
Physical retailers have been suffering at the hands of eCommere for years. The ability to browser and buy from the comfort of your own sofa (or bed) has been a growing and compelling proposition, especially compared to the madness of Christmas or sale times.
And now, thanks to in-store Internet connectivity and smartphones online shopping continues to grow at the expense of in-store retail. Consumers are increasingly using their mobile devices (mobile phones, phablets and even tablets) in stores to: get product information, check competitive prices and obtain feedback from reviews & social media contacts. They are therefore using the in-store experience to 'showroom' by looking at, touching and even experiencing a range of products only to then convert online.
However this is only part of the story, as the reverse experience is also true. In a recent PWC survey, 70% of the respondents stated that they started the purchase process online, but converted in-store.
This process, now know as “web-rooming" is a growing trend that has benefited from the factors such as:
The graph below, taken from the report, outlines the specific reasons why the respondents prefer to buy products in-store instead of online:
And now, thanks to in-store Internet connectivity and smartphones online shopping continues to grow at the expense of in-store retail. Consumers are increasingly using their mobile devices (mobile phones, phablets and even tablets) in stores to: get product information, check competitive prices and obtain feedback from reviews & social media contacts. They are therefore using the in-store experience to 'showroom' by looking at, touching and even experiencing a range of products only to then convert online.
However this is only part of the story, as the reverse experience is also true. In a recent PWC survey, 70% of the respondents stated that they started the purchase process online, but converted in-store.
This process, now know as “web-rooming" is a growing trend that has benefited from the factors such as:
- a focus by retailers on an improved in-store experience
- better staff training, to help customers purchase rather than put them off
- better and immediate stock availability
The graph below, taken from the report, outlines the specific reasons why the respondents prefer to buy products in-store instead of online:
Monday, September 9, 2013
Retailisation - what it means to be a modern digital retailer
"We want to be more like a retailer"
"We need to think more like a retailer"
"Our business needs to evolve into more of a retail model"
Sound familiar? Well I'm hearing these sorts of quotes more and more often these day, and not just from the obvious brands you would think. But from established product manufacturers and service providers, who realize that they need to up their game and drive people to consideration and purchase/subscription/take-up.
It seems that despite a recent Global economic melt-down driven by over-spending and an economic reliance on spending... retailisation seems to be the way forward. Everyone apparently now wants to be the next Amazon, Zappos or Play.com
So what does it actually mean to think and be more like a digital retailer these days? (Especially the major online or multi-channel retailers, who seem to epitomize this ethos).
Well here's my thoughts:
"We need to think more like a retailer"
"Our business needs to evolve into more of a retail model"
Sound familiar? Well I'm hearing these sorts of quotes more and more often these day, and not just from the obvious brands you would think. But from established product manufacturers and service providers, who realize that they need to up their game and drive people to consideration and purchase/subscription/take-up.
It seems that despite a recent Global economic melt-down driven by over-spending and an economic reliance on spending... retailisation seems to be the way forward. Everyone apparently now wants to be the next Amazon, Zappos or Play.com
So what does it actually mean to think and be more like a digital retailer these days? (Especially the major online or multi-channel retailers, who seem to epitomize this ethos).
Well here's my thoughts:
- A good online retailer never stops looking for ways to improve what they have. This constant & iterative approach to goal optimisation means sites need to constantly change to increase their conversion ratio, average order value and other KPI's. eCommerce giants like Amazon, Argos, Tesco, etc. no longer launch major re-developments once in a while, but have a tried & tested process of smaller changes planned based on analytics & insight. These changes are then implemented in an optimisation road-map as quickly as they can, with the idea of building up a picture of what works and what doesn't.
This is also not just something that done on the homepage of your site, where every product/service wants to get visibility, but on every page / template, including: landing pages, product pages, etc. - Use every opportunity to maximise each individual transaction. From useful up-sell and cross-sell opportunities through to optimised abandoned basket messages or a clever eCRM communication that pulls in dynamic product suggestions based on browsing history... you have the data, use it to persuade and encourage.
- Carry out regular user experience site reviews, but ensure they are done from the perspective of a prospect/customer.
Examples could include: - A new customer looking for product information
- An soon-to-be customer looking for product validation
- An existing customer looking for support or returns information
- A lapsed customer who has forgotten their password.
- A PPC & display budget should focus on those campaigns that deliver conversions and not just visits or other vanity metrics. In other words, deliver a bought media strategy that targets goals using input from you site analytics.
(And if I hear one more senior exec say "we have X number of hits on our site" - I think I'll scream)
Retailisation isn't for everyone. But as more & more sites move beyond just the basics, I'm sure it is an approach that will continue to increase in use.
Friday, March 29, 2013
Jessops back online
To accompany the relaunch of the company and re-opening of two stores... Camera retailer Jessops is back in business online
It is good to see the phoenix arise from the ashes of the collapse of the company earlier this year. The site was a feature-rich online experience and I hope it continues to be a leader in the digital industry.
Good luck Jessops.com it is good to have you back.
Wednesday, February 20, 2013
Multi-channel retail meets Shopper Marketing
For many of us who come from the digital world, the mere existence of a whole area of retail analysis called Shopper Marketing is a bit a surprise.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shopper_marketing
And even those like me who are aware... but talk, write or generally think about multi-channel retailing, tend to focus on digital first and in-store second.
But if the statistic in that above Wikipedia article that '70% of brand selections are still made in stores' is to be believed... then online needs to get realistic about the influence it really has at the point of sale. Now I've no actual evidence to contradict this figure, but it does feel a rather high percentage... given that a lot of people will already have made their choice up about the brands they want before they get to the point of purchase.
Over the last few months I've built up my understanding of Shopper Marketing, having worked alongside an agency that specifically does that sort of thing. I actually have to admit I am actually quite impressed with some of the outputs of their work; producing empirical results from their in-store analysis which puts a lot of website testing to shame. For example, heat maps are carried out on different product aisles in various stores from a selection of viewer angles.
In short, digital user experience practitioners could learn a lot from the effort that goes into store planning (where to put products and how customers get to them).
So it does raise the important issue of how these two disciplines come together to:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shopper_marketing
And even those like me who are aware... but talk, write or generally think about multi-channel retailing, tend to focus on digital first and in-store second.
But if the statistic in that above Wikipedia article that '70% of brand selections are still made in stores' is to be believed... then online needs to get realistic about the influence it really has at the point of sale. Now I've no actual evidence to contradict this figure, but it does feel a rather high percentage... given that a lot of people will already have made their choice up about the brands they want before they get to the point of purchase.
Over the last few months I've built up my understanding of Shopper Marketing, having worked alongside an agency that specifically does that sort of thing. I actually have to admit I am actually quite impressed with some of the outputs of their work; producing empirical results from their in-store analysis which puts a lot of website testing to shame. For example, heat maps are carried out on different product aisles in various stores from a selection of viewer angles.
In short, digital user experience practitioners could learn a lot from the effort that goes into store planning (where to put products and how customers get to them).
So it does raise the important issue of how these two disciplines come together to:
- Understand the roles that in-store and online now have
- Map the Paths to Purchase (both Digital to Store and Store to Digital)
- Grow customer loyalty and retain existing customers
Friday, February 8, 2013
Omnichannel? Please spare me the hype!
Hands up, who is getting really hacked off with the word Omnichannel? Me for one!
Used all over the place right now, but especially by marketing and consulting types (Yes, I know I’m both), the word is frequently mentioned to mean “More than multi-channel”.
But stop and think for a second…. What does “multi-channel” actually mean? Well my definition is the same one that most people in the online retail world have… several channels to market. These include: In-store sales, PC website, mobile website, mobile phone app, tablet app, etc.
So if “Multi” means many… then “Omni” must mean ‘all’ right? And by this extrapolation… “Omni channel” must mean all channels to sale. Which doesn’t make much sense if you think about it, since:
1. Not every channel suits every product or customer (either for influence or transactions)
2. Telephone is a sales channel that a lot of retailers tried, but now most have given up on
I think that the word "Omnichannel" has just been thrown into various conversations and white papers by solution providers looking to distinguish themselves from others in the market merely offering ‘multi-channel’… and that’s just hype for its own sake!
Still, it could be worse… I recently heard someone say “there is no channel”, which is either a Buddhist/Matrix reference or a way to further differentiate themselves from the growning Omnichannel mob.
Used all over the place right now, but especially by marketing and consulting types (Yes, I know I’m both), the word is frequently mentioned to mean “More than multi-channel”.
But stop and think for a second…. What does “multi-channel” actually mean? Well my definition is the same one that most people in the online retail world have… several channels to market. These include: In-store sales, PC website, mobile website, mobile phone app, tablet app, etc.
So if “Multi” means many… then “Omni” must mean ‘all’ right? And by this extrapolation… “Omni channel” must mean all channels to sale. Which doesn’t make much sense if you think about it, since:
1. Not every channel suits every product or customer (either for influence or transactions)
2. Telephone is a sales channel that a lot of retailers tried, but now most have given up on
I think that the word "Omnichannel" has just been thrown into various conversations and white papers by solution providers looking to distinguish themselves from others in the market merely offering ‘multi-channel’… and that’s just hype for its own sake!
Still, it could be worse… I recently heard someone say “there is no channel”, which is either a Buddhist/Matrix reference or a way to further differentiate themselves from the growning Omnichannel mob.
Friday, January 18, 2013
Russell & Bromley finally gets going with eCommerce
I’ve been fairly critical of shoe retailer Russell & Bromley in the past, mainly because their online property has been poor. So I was surprised and somewhat pleased to hear that they have eventually launched an eCommerce site.
But hardly setting the world alight, Russell and Bromley have decided not to launch with an all singing and dancing multi-channel tablet-optimised site… but have gone for a very mediocre online trading site instead. Using Venda’s Software-as-a service cloud offering (BTW: shouldn’t that be shop-as –a-service) they have finally put women’s shoes, men’s shoes and handbags for sale via their site.
So given my criticisms of their site before; I thought I’d provide my initial thoughts on this Internet retailing launch by one of the last High Street entrants:
Design :
It’s not that I dislike the creative approach they have taken… OK, perhaps I do slightly… but what I would have liked from a brand that clearly sets itself up to be of high quality is a site that oozes prestige and refinement. Instead we get a ‘me too’ formulaic & grey-on-grey site that fails to impress. Model shots are scare & aren’t particularly good quality and product zoom functionality was hard to find (and even non-existent on some product detail pages)…perhaps the only saving grace is the high quality of the actual product photographs.
Usability:
Grey text on white backgrounds (or sometimes vice versa) is never good for on-screen legibility. But add in the use of serif fonts and a small point size and you’ll have even a hearty share of the good-sighted users squinting at the screen. It’s therefore unsurprising that there’s no obvious accessibility page/ statement anywhere…
Even the navigation seems to be missing a forth menu item, perhaps they are waiting for another product category to come online soon?
Technology:
With no 360 product spin (surely a useful way of showcasing women’s and men's shoes these days?) , no video and no further useful fit functionality the site hardly cuts new ground. Yes, with a Google Page Speed of 92% the site is fairly optimised, but I have the feeling that’s more down to Venda’s platform and system than anything else.
Content
With no blog, short & basic product descriptions, no user generated reviews and no text on the category landing pages… R&B is showing how not to use content to sell product. Maybe it doesn’t need to and the products sell themselves?
But hardly setting the world alight, Russell and Bromley have decided not to launch with an all singing and dancing multi-channel tablet-optimised site… but have gone for a very mediocre online trading site instead. Using Venda’s Software-as-a service cloud offering (BTW: shouldn’t that be shop-as –a-service) they have finally put women’s shoes, men’s shoes and handbags for sale via their site.
So given my criticisms of their site before; I thought I’d provide my initial thoughts on this Internet retailing launch by one of the last High Street entrants:
Design :
It’s not that I dislike the creative approach they have taken… OK, perhaps I do slightly… but what I would have liked from a brand that clearly sets itself up to be of high quality is a site that oozes prestige and refinement. Instead we get a ‘me too’ formulaic & grey-on-grey site that fails to impress. Model shots are scare & aren’t particularly good quality and product zoom functionality was hard to find (and even non-existent on some product detail pages)…perhaps the only saving grace is the high quality of the actual product photographs.
Usability:
Grey text on white backgrounds (or sometimes vice versa) is never good for on-screen legibility. But add in the use of serif fonts and a small point size and you’ll have even a hearty share of the good-sighted users squinting at the screen. It’s therefore unsurprising that there’s no obvious accessibility page/ statement anywhere…
Even the navigation seems to be missing a forth menu item, perhaps they are waiting for another product category to come online soon?
Technology:
With no 360 product spin (surely a useful way of showcasing women’s and men's shoes these days?) , no video and no further useful fit functionality the site hardly cuts new ground. Yes, with a Google Page Speed of 92% the site is fairly optimised, but I have the feeling that’s more down to Venda’s platform and system than anything else.
Content
With no blog, short & basic product descriptions, no user generated reviews and no text on the category landing pages… R&B is showing how not to use content to sell product. Maybe it doesn’t need to and the products sell themselves?
Friday, January 11, 2013
Let Jessops survive online
The retail world was again hit with more doom and gloom on Wednesday, as it was announced that the troubled photography chain Jessops had gone into Administration. Having managed to avoid a similar situation in 2009, when its bank HSBC swapped debt for equity, the Administrators were called in as Jessops became the first large retailer of 2013 to topple. However today things went from bad to worse as PWC closed all the stores and put the following holding message up on the website:
As a Multi-channel retailer, with a presence on the High Street and online, it may well not survive. However as an online could surely be some possibility that it continue:
Or to put it another way... even if the Administrators redirected the URL to the Cameras landing page on amazon.co.uk via an affiliate arrangement, they would still get around 5% of every subsequent sale!
Customer NoticeA gloomy forecast for the year ahead, as well as increasing completion from online traders, has been given as the cause. But is there still life in the Jessops brand and proposition?
The Jessop Group Limited (in Administration)
Edward Williams, Robert Jonathan Hunt and Matthew David Hammond of PwC were appointed as joint administrators of The Jessop Group Limited on 9 January 2013. With effect from 11 January 2013, Jessops online and retail stores have ceased trading.
I hope so. As a previous customer in the store, I found it to be a really positive shopping experience, staffed with friendly and knowledgeable people.
As a Multi-channel retailer, with a presence on the High Street and online, it may well not survive. However as an online could surely be some possibility that it continue:
- The brand still exists in the hearts and minds of its customers
- The domain name still has a lot of clout online
- A global ranking of: 17,441
- A GB ranking of: 472
- And 1,682 in-bound links
Or to put it another way... even if the Administrators redirected the URL to the Cameras landing page on amazon.co.uk via an affiliate arrangement, they would still get around 5% of every subsequent sale!
Monday, June 18, 2012
Aggregator Maturity
Recently I've been posting my thoughts on the online aggregation services, including the more mathematical Herfindahl Index.Last month I was attempting to explain to someone how aggregation got more technically complex as the product or service became more complex and I quickly drew out a table that explained it. So now I have put it up online to shame and to get feedback.Aggregator Maturity
View more PowerPoint from Hayden Sutherland
As always, I see this as 'work in progress' and never a definitive completed concept.
As always, I see this as 'work in progress' and never a definitive completed concept.
Thursday, March 15, 2012
Multi-Channel competency and innovation
Over the last few months I've been speaking to clients about two different principle facets of Multi-Channel retailing:
- Continue to improve what you're doing
- Find new ways to do what you're doing
"Don't just do things better. Do better things"And in an instant I had the key way to integrate my two disparate facets (Thanks Sir Terry!)So here's my presentation, which brings together my current thoughts on this subject. It's not complete, in fact it is a long way from it.... but I'm putting it up to collective scrutiny, with the aim of getting your feedback to develop it further.Multi-Channel Innovation & Competence
View more PowerPoint from Hayden Sutherland
Monday, March 12, 2012
Augmented Reality for retail
A couple of weeks back I was told about an innovative 'Virtual fashion mirror' from Cisco. As well as being covered by the BBC, Cisco also blogged about it here:
http://blogs.cisco.com/retail/cisco-styleme-virtual-fashion-mirror-inspires-sales-across-all-age-groups
Although this immediately gained the interest of the techie press and the online fashion community, a little digging found that this technology is still in its infancy and that the actual technology isn't available right away.
Now Microsoft have demonstrated their Holoflector, a large translucent mirror with an LCD panel behind it, connected to a Kinect camera
.
http://www.geekwire.com/2012/video-microsoft-research-holoflector-augmented-reality-mirror
Is this the future of retail?
http://blogs.cisco.com/retail/cisco-styleme-virtual-fashion-mirror-inspires-sales-across-all-age-groups
Although this immediately gained the interest of the techie press and the online fashion community, a little digging found that this technology is still in its infancy and that the actual technology isn't available right away.
Now Microsoft have demonstrated their Holoflector, a large translucent mirror with an LCD panel behind it, connected to a Kinect camera
.
http://www.geekwire.com/2012/video-microsoft-research-holoflector-augmented-reality-mirror
Is this the future of retail?
Thursday, February 23, 2012
Don't declare the death of F-Commerce just yet
News that several major retailers have recently shut down their Facebook stores has led to a lot of predictions about the death of f-Commerce (the term used for eCommerce on the World's biggest social networking platform and therefore the most visited website).
See this article on Bloomberg for a touch of hype generation (and link baiting... dammit):
One Forrester Researcher was also quoted as stating:
“There was a lot of anticipation that Facebook would turn into a new destination, a store, a place where people would shop. But it was like trying to sell stuff to people while they’re hanging out with their friends at the bar.”
People please...... before we go around proclaiming the end of social commerce, can we please get a bit of perspective here?
Yes, it is true that some big US retailers such as Gap and Nordstrom have closed their Facebook retail channels. But it is still very early days for f-Commerce and a lot of companies
are still finding their feet with this stuff. Its currently the same as
web-based selling was back 10 or so years ago.
Back then customer confidence
was low and the methods and tools & best-practice are still being
learnt.
It is also true that users have a big security issue with using their credit cards via Social Networks:
And even less trust Facebook stores to prevent fraud.
However the race hasn't been run yet. Given the speed of change in both the eCommerce and Social Networking space, I wouldn't declare the death of f-Commerce straight away. In fact Gap have stated: “We will continue to evaluate if this is something we want to bring back in the future”
My suggestion is therefore to ask yourself one simple question
"does your Facebook store make a decent ROI without cannibalising other sales channels?".
And if the answer is "Yes"... then I suggest you keep it going.
Tuesday, June 14, 2011
Retail website homepage weights – why are they so bloated?
I have been working on client eCommerce sites recently and noticed that some competitive ones were very slow to download. Assuming my Internet connection was the problem I looked to stop any other online services that might be running (e.g. Skype, downloads, etc.)… Only to find I didn’t have anything else downloading.
So I loaded-up Firebug (a brilliant and free debugging tool that plugs into Firefox) and checked the size of the homepages I was looking at.
Here’s what I found:
Site: http://www.johnlewis.com/
Total file size: 573k
Onload time*: 7.55s
Site: http://www.marksandspencer.com/
Total file size: 1.5Mb
Onload time*: 13.63s
Site: http://www.hsamuel.co.uk/
Total file size: 1.3Mb
Onload time*: 16.28s
Site: http://www.debenhams.com/
Total file size: 1.1Mb
Onload time*: 8.16s
Site: http://www.goldsmiths.co.uk/
Total file size: 1.1Mb
Onload time*: 7.44s
Site: http://www.bhs.co.uk/
Total file size: 720kb
Onload time*: 7.39s
Site: http://www.morrisons.co.uk/
Total file size: 1.1Mb
Onload time*: 7.22s
Site: http://asda.co.uk/
Total file size: 866k
Onload time*: 9.33s
Note: This isn’t an exactly scientific test, being conducted once on a PC with network traffic. But even as indicators of total file size and download time, they do start to paint a pretty interesting picture.
However these figures pale into mere insignificance when compared with the weight of the George Style Blog http://georgestyle.george.com/ set up to accompany their support of Graduate Fashion Week. This homepage tops the scales at a whopping 2.8Mb (or to put it another way, not just one but two entire old HD floppy drives from the past!).
You really have to ask why this sort of bloated homepage shenanigans is still going on in this age of web page optimisation…. and whether any of these UK retailers are aware that an increase in page delivery speed can significantly improve conversion.
*Onload time is approximately the time taken for the page to start to display. Other elements are still downloading and the entire page might take much longer to fully render.
So I loaded-up Firebug (a brilliant and free debugging tool that plugs into Firefox) and checked the size of the homepages I was looking at.
Here’s what I found:
Site: http://www.johnlewis.com/
Total file size: 573k
Onload time*: 7.55s
Site: http://www.marksandspencer.com/
Total file size: 1.5Mb
Onload time*: 13.63s
Site: http://www.hsamuel.co.uk/
Total file size: 1.3Mb
Onload time*: 16.28s
Site: http://www.debenhams.com/
Total file size: 1.1Mb
Onload time*: 8.16s
Site: http://www.goldsmiths.co.uk/
Total file size: 1.1Mb
Onload time*: 7.44s
Site: http://www.bhs.co.uk/
Total file size: 720kb
Onload time*: 7.39s
Site: http://www.morrisons.co.uk/
Total file size: 1.1Mb
Onload time*: 7.22s
Site: http://asda.co.uk/
Total file size: 866k
Onload time*: 9.33s
Note: This isn’t an exactly scientific test, being conducted once on a PC with network traffic. But even as indicators of total file size and download time, they do start to paint a pretty interesting picture.
However these figures pale into mere insignificance when compared with the weight of the George Style Blog http://georgestyle.george.com/ set up to accompany their support of Graduate Fashion Week. This homepage tops the scales at a whopping 2.8Mb (or to put it another way, not just one but two entire old HD floppy drives from the past!).
You really have to ask why this sort of bloated homepage shenanigans is still going on in this age of web page optimisation…. and whether any of these UK retailers are aware that an increase in page delivery speed can significantly improve conversion.
*Onload time is approximately the time taken for the page to start to display. Other elements are still downloading and the entire page might take much longer to fully render.
Monday, May 9, 2011
UK FCommerce: from Goldrush to Maturity
Having just received the latest Social Media Benchmark results from the eDigitalResearch survey that looked at 73 of the UK's leading retail brands, it makes for interesting reading.
Retailers are continuing to grow their legions of followers, with the top ones still attracting tens of thousands of new ones each month across the different social networks. However the main platform for engagement is most definitely Facebook, with UK market leaders such as ASOS adding the most. TopShop is still the only UK retailer over a million followers (although River Island is closing in) and fashion retailers as a whole are the obvious trail-blazers, due to their target demographic being so prevalent in Facebook usage.
However a growing trend that I’m particularly interested in is the continued introduction of Fcommerce, with nine of the top twenty retailers in the study already offering their followers the ability to shop from their Facebook pages. Its fair to say that the retailers who established a social media presence early one are now the ones who are reaping the benefits…. and its therefore my belief that those who do the same over the next few months with Facebook Social Commerce will grow their sales as well as their social footprint the most.
Retailers are continuing to grow their legions of followers, with the top ones still attracting tens of thousands of new ones each month across the different social networks. However the main platform for engagement is most definitely Facebook, with UK market leaders such as ASOS adding the most. TopShop is still the only UK retailer over a million followers (although River Island is closing in) and fashion retailers as a whole are the obvious trail-blazers, due to their target demographic being so prevalent in Facebook usage.
However a growing trend that I’m particularly interested in is the continued introduction of Fcommerce, with nine of the top twenty retailers in the study already offering their followers the ability to shop from their Facebook pages. Its fair to say that the retailers who established a social media presence early one are now the ones who are reaping the benefits…. and its therefore my belief that those who do the same over the next few months with Facebook Social Commerce will grow their sales as well as their social footprint the most.
Thursday, March 24, 2011
When did eCommerce become Multi-Channel retailing?
If you’re working in and amongst the eCommerce industry in the UK, like me you’ve probably noticed the change in language over the last few years, from pure-play Internet retailing to Multi-Channel (with or without the hyphen) retailing.
The move to multi-channel was also helped by a transition phase sometimes called “Bricks & clicks”. This was where retailers with a physical presence created and consequently optimised their online sales presence. But now Multi-Channel is a discipline that encompasses: marketing, technology, operations and merchandising across website, catalogue*, in-store (kiosk anyone?) and mobile platforms. The online shop has now just become another sales and servicing channel for all sorts of companies.
*Yes, I have included catalogue as part of the multi-channel mix, as there is a lot of integration possible between online sales, in-store and even mobile. [But perhaps that’s the topic for another posting].
However, the most important thing that multi-channel retailing is (and needs to maintain) is flexibility. Not just in its understanding of new and changing platforms and processes, but in its adoption and implementation of increasingly fragmented technologies and devices. Furthermore the principle offline and online drivers of customer: (building) confidence, (providing) trust and (maintaining) loyalty now need to be implemented across these channels in an integrated and thought-out way, creating a joined-up brand experience regardless of where the customer is and what device they are using.
So to answer my initial question of when it became multi-channel…. I would have to state that for most retailers the delivery of a successful ecommerce operation was not the end-game, but just another step along the path to multi-channel success. Wasn’t there always going to be a natural evolution to providing numerous sales platforms to the same person regardless of device or location?
Or put another way… if the customer wants to buy something, shouldn’t they be offered this facility wherever and whenever they want?
The move to multi-channel was also helped by a transition phase sometimes called “Bricks & clicks”. This was where retailers with a physical presence created and consequently optimised their online sales presence. But now Multi-Channel is a discipline that encompasses: marketing, technology, operations and merchandising across website, catalogue*, in-store (kiosk anyone?) and mobile platforms. The online shop has now just become another sales and servicing channel for all sorts of companies.
*Yes, I have included catalogue as part of the multi-channel mix, as there is a lot of integration possible between online sales, in-store and even mobile. [But perhaps that’s the topic for another posting].
However, the most important thing that multi-channel retailing is (and needs to maintain) is flexibility. Not just in its understanding of new and changing platforms and processes, but in its adoption and implementation of increasingly fragmented technologies and devices. Furthermore the principle offline and online drivers of customer: (building) confidence, (providing) trust and (maintaining) loyalty now need to be implemented across these channels in an integrated and thought-out way, creating a joined-up brand experience regardless of where the customer is and what device they are using.
So to answer my initial question of when it became multi-channel…. I would have to state that for most retailers the delivery of a successful ecommerce operation was not the end-game, but just another step along the path to multi-channel success. Wasn’t there always going to be a natural evolution to providing numerous sales platforms to the same person regardless of device or location?
Or put another way… if the customer wants to buy something, shouldn’t they be offered this facility wherever and whenever they want?
Thursday, September 9, 2010
Teens and Fashion online - retail, mobile and social habits
Working with our client River Island over the last few years has meant I have come into contact with many young, fashionable and beautiful people (Could there be a more disliked bunch? And no, according to Mrs Sutherland this apparently doesn't make me any of the above by default!)
Its also interesting to see the staff there as a cross-section of the Generation Y and Millenial demographic that is now becomming the new workforce. They live online, they work online (well, the ones in the thriving eCommerce and Marketing teams that I speak to on a daily basis do) and they socialise online using the obvious social media sites of Facebook, Twitter, etc.
The work we have done with them has meant this thirty-something consultant has also seen how high street retailers have now firmly embraced the new breed of mini celebrities and digital-savvy fashionistas that have grown in number and prominence over the last few years.
With virtually every cell phone now having a camera, teens are walking into changing rooms and happily snapping pictures of their fashionable mates. They are then either texting it to their friends or posting the photos to their Facebook profile for instant fashion feedback.
Its also interesting to see the staff there as a cross-section of the Generation Y and Millenial demographic that is now becomming the new workforce. They live online, they work online (well, the ones in the thriving eCommerce and Marketing teams that I speak to on a daily basis do) and they socialise online using the obvious social media sites of Facebook, Twitter, etc.
The work we have done with them has meant this thirty-something consultant has also seen how high street retailers have now firmly embraced the new breed of mini celebrities and digital-savvy fashionistas that have grown in number and prominence over the last few years.
With virtually every cell phone now having a camera, teens are walking into changing rooms and happily snapping pictures of their fashionable mates. They are then either texting it to their friends or posting the photos to their Facebook profile for instant fashion feedback.
These online friends and the technology to instantly share is playing a huge role in fashion that retailers are only just starting to tune into. In understanding and analysing these habits..... the clever retailer will find new ways to engage with this audience, build a relationship and hopefully drive sales.
Monday, February 22, 2010
In store multi-channel
The words multi-channel and cross-channel appear in online/ecommerce market literature more often than nearly any other.
And with good reason. Customers are no longer channel specific in their shopping habits, so neither should retailers.
In a recent report from eMarketer, they found that:
And with good reason. Customers are no longer channel specific in their shopping habits, so neither should retailers.
In a recent report from eMarketer, they found that:
Despite the adverse sales and margin impact due to down market conditions on non-food retail categories, the cross-channel retailing experience continues to gain momentum as 53% of retailers indicate that the need to address rapid changes in customer channel preferences is a key business pressure.
So what are retailers doing about this then?
Well, the crossing from the online channel to the store is an obvious one. This is supported by basic features such as 'store locators' on retailer websites, through to the increasing use of 'order online & collect from store' functionality offered by the likes of Halfords & Argos.
But what about crossing the other way, how is the in-store sales process helping to support the online one? Well... apart from the sale assistant providing the supportive line "we don't have it in stick right now, have you tried our website?"... what cross-over is there?
(Clue: How many terminals providing free access to the retailer's website do you actually see in a store?)
Tuesday, May 12, 2009
blog sentiment for retailers
There's no doubt that bloggers opinions count these days. But if you're a retailer, is the blogosphere a good or bad place for opinions?
If you believe the Mainstream Media (MSM), you'd be fooled into believing that bloggers only post about the negative things in life and seek to destroy reputations rather than say posisitve things. Well, research agency Carma has found the opposite!
In their report on whether Negativity does prevail in Consumer Generated Media, they found that..
Or to put it in diagram form (from eMarketer):
If you're a retailer, are you monitoring blog postings or even tracking the collective sentiment of this influential group of commenters? Even if you start now... you may be suprised by what you find.
If you believe the Mainstream Media (MSM), you'd be fooled into believing that bloggers only post about the negative things in life and seek to destroy reputations rather than say posisitve things. Well, research agency Carma has found the opposite!
In their report on whether Negativity does prevail in Consumer Generated Media, they found that..
the blogosphere was unfavorable in less than 28 percent of posts, while it was favorable in more than 41 percent of posts. Based on this data alone, it is not accurate to say that the blogosphere is pervasively negative. Perhaps the blogosphere is negative in other ways . . .
Or to put it in diagram form (from eMarketer):
If you're a retailer, are you monitoring blog postings or even tracking the collective sentiment of this influential group of commenters? Even if you start now... you may be suprised by what you find.
Tuesday, March 3, 2009
UK online retail & travel future looks rosy
According to Forrester's research report, the future of online travel and retail in the UK looks quite good.
http://www.forrester.com/Research/Document/Excerpt/0,7211,45345,00.html
http://www.forrester.com/Research/Document/Excerpt/0,7211,45345,00.html
"Despite the current recession, we expect online retail and travel sales in the UK to continue growing strongly over the next six years as consumers move their spending online. By 2014, 37 million UK online buyers will spend £56 billion online "
Wednesday, February 11, 2009
Online retailers fail on email customer service
Figures released today from the the eDigital Research survey of 39 UK eTailers , has Play.com, Amazon and Asos claiming the top three slots this year . However many of them provide poor customer service by email.
eConsultancy goes into more detail and give specific examples of which online retailers do well (and which ones don't):
http://econsultancy.com/blog/3282-etailers-need-to-work-on-customer-service
More details are available if you download the report:
http://www.edigitalresearch.com/news/item/nid/849753604
(I'm waiting on my one right now)
eConsultancy goes into more detail and give specific examples of which online retailers do well (and which ones don't):
http://econsultancy.com/blog/3282-etailers-need-to-work-on-customer-service
More details are available if you download the report:
http://www.edigitalresearch.com/news/item/nid/849753604
(I'm waiting on my one right now)
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