It’s 2021, and there are several different ways to go shopping. For businesses, this makes putting the customer experience first challenging because you might not know where to search for consumers.
Thankfully, the internet has given entrepreneurs the ability to sell products and services. Did you know that eCommerce will make up 22% of all worldwide retail sales by 2023?
This is proof that you need to bridge the gap between your physical shop and your online one. However, it’s not as straightforward as many people assume, which is why lots of business people make mistakes. To avoid these errors, you should consider the following.
Invest in Omnichannel Marketing
With so many advertising strategies and methods on the table, it can be hard to keep up with the latest releases. That’s why entrepreneurs opt for search engine optimisation and pay-per-click – they know they work and are easy to understand. Omnichannel marketing is a little different because it’s not as simple, yet it is an overarching tactic that ensures brands reach as many people as possible by focusing on the areas of the company that overlap. In short, customers should be able to shop online with a mobile phone or in-store with a sales clerk and the experience shouldn’t change.
There are a plethora of examples of well-known brands in competitive industries, such as Bank of America. Banking is about providing consumers with what they require to ensure their resources are secure, and BoA does this by now offering services through their app and website that used to be available in-store.
This means you could theoretically handle everything from check depositing to appointment scheduling without wasting time speaking to an advisor or standing in a long queue. Online casino and bingo providers are also using omnichannel advertising to stand out from the crowd and build a community. For example, not only are the same games available online. But providers like Buzz Bingo replicate the real-life experience via live streams, eclectic deposit and withdrawals options, and instantaneous live chat solutions – in a way, building positive community interactions. So, whether you like to play online slots the UK, table games, or bingo, you’ll find that the online experience is just as extensive as the in-store one.
The facts speak for themselves. According to a recent Harvard study, for instance, 73% of shoppers already use multiple channels when they shop, which is why some of the biggest and most successful industries are leaning on them now to create a seamless journey for customers.
Don’t Underestimate Bricks-and-Mortar
People tend to assume that eCommerce is more powerful than traditional shopping methods due to the numbers. They do make for impressive reading, so it’s not wrong for you to concentrate on your online offerings, much like online casinos, banks and retailers currently do. Still, there will be an imbalance if you overestimate the strength of the internet.
After all, internet sales as a percentage of total sales in the UK are under 40%, which means that brick-and-mortar stores continue to do a lot of the heavy lifting. This will change in the future, but for now, the landscape means you can’t ignore a majority of your customer base. An excellent example is the introduction of return policies that take the stress and hassle out of securing a refund or an exchange. Today, it’s customary for shops to accept items bought on any platform, such as an app or website. Plus, this encourages shoppers to browse in person, encouraging additional sales. Furthermore, drop-off locations like Amazon lockers make the process of returning an unwanted item twice as simple because everything is taken care of quickly.
Bridging the gap between your eCommerce platform and your physical shop is essential since more people are using different channels to optimise their shopping experience. By leveraging elements of both, such as mobile applications and in-store returns, your company should appeal to a broader audience base.
