If you own a retail business, then the thought has most likely crossed your mind that your business can no longer survive in this day and age. The Internet has swooped in and taken over your business. People have quickly abandoned ship, but there is no reason that your retail business should die. Your business must evolve if you want to keep the doors open. Shopping is not like it used to be. Everyone’s mobile phone is now integrated into their shopping experience. When someone comes in your store, they are using their phone to look up products, take pictures, find reviews or ask friends for suggestions. With that in mind, your store needs to have a more integrated mobile experience.
1. Ecommerce – As phones now a part of the shopping experience, you need to have an online presence. There are two reasons for this. One is for the more integrated mobile experience that I mentioned. Customers can instantly look up the item to learn more about it and look up reviews. Second is to continue the shopping experience after their visit to the store. They may be hesitant to make the purchase at that moment, but once they have mulled it over a little more, they can order it online from you and have the product shipped straight to their door.
2. Retargeting – With an e-commerce site, someone’s experience does not stop with one visit to your website. With a simple Facebook pixel installed on your website, it makes it very easy to retarget your products. With a Facebook Pixel, if someone views your product on your website, then you can start “remarketing” to them on Facebook. This can be a little freaky to see at first, but the studies have shown how effective remarketing can be.
3. QR codes – These have been around for awhile now, but they are still an effective way to get someone to your website. If you have e-commerce and remarketing set up, then the QR code would be the first step of the process. A good example of this was when I was car shopping. Each car had its own QR code and I was able to scan it and instantly go to the website for more information. Buying a car is no simple task. It takes a lot of time to contemplate and make such a big decision. Thanks to my QR scan, I was able to go back to the website and review all the car’s information before I made the purchase.
4. Hashtags & Social Media Profiles – Your business, if done right, is an experience not just a store. People often want to share this experience or your products on social media. Have a store hashtag or have your social media usernames posted throughout the store. The easier it is to find your online profile, the more inclined customers are to tag you or use your hashtag. If it becomes too difficult to find your business online, then someone will just post their picture or comment without you. Meaning you’ve missed out on a big opportunity to get more exposure for your business.
6. Strong Wi-Fi – Having Internet access is a must these days. You want your customer to move around and use your integrated mobile experience to make their retail shopping more enjoyable. It is important that your Internet is fast and easy to access.
6. Email Sign Up – One of my favorite arguments is that email is dead, but in fact, it’s the complete opposite. Thanks to mobile devices, email is thriving like never before. Millennials constantly check their phones for new updates and emails. So it is very important that you continue to build your email list. You can do this in-store multiple ways. A simple QR code in your store can send them directly to a page to sign up. If you have Constant Contact, there is an app that allows you to set up a tablet to quickly sign up for emails or even send a text to join.
Your business may have been around for the last 40 years, but chances are will not survive without adapting to today’s world. It seems like Amazon is going to take over everything. But if your business evolves and provides a great retail shopping experience, then there is no reason your company shouldn’t thrive. If you can’t decide which strategy your company should take, Roundpeg is a strategy company that can help you brainstorm and plan your next steps.
