Today’s retail customers are the driving factor pushing retailers into the evolving omni-channel world. While we looked at how POS solutions can provide you the tools needed to adapt to this trend, there is still much to understand about creating an engaging omni-channel customer experience. Research indicates that retailers utilizing omni-channel retain an average of 89% of their customers, as opposed to a rate of 33% for businesses not leveraging omni-channel shopping experience. Since it costs 7x more to gain a new customer than to retain a current customer, the financial case for moving to the omni-channel model is sound.
The key question to ask yourself is this: How are you going to manage an additional channel in your retail operations while creating a seamless new link in your supply chain? This starts with a deep understanding of how your customers think and make purchasing decisions.
Deepening Customer Relationships Through Omni-Channel Shopping Experience
Catering to your customer’s desires requires a foundation that is based on offering convenience. You cannot hope to retain customers that feel inconvenienced during their shopping experience with you. This means product accessibility is one of the keys toward successful customer engagement. This is exactly what a well-developed omni-channel strategy should deliver.
A virtual storefront presents a proactive omni-channel opportunity for increasing customer engagement. How this interface is designed, as well as delivery or pick-up options, will be the top factors in determining its success. Presenting your products in a crisp, easy to navigate, virtual store empowers the customer to engage with your business offerings when it is a good time for them.
Equipping your virtual store with a savable shopping cart and a wish list are items that enhance the shopping experience and allow them to leave and come back anytime they wish. Also, you gain a marketing tool here by being able to send an email or social media reminders based on shopping carts and wishlist histories.
An omni-channel shopping experience goes beyond providing a virtual shopping experience. While a virtual storefront presents more opportunity for customer engagement, there is the social media aspect to consider as well. When you are taking advantage of a POS system that is equipped to handle the omni-channel model, you can formulate sales events and product promotions based on gathered customer data. You also gain the ability to engage your clientele through social media outlets, email, and even chat, to make your product lines more accessible and available to your customer base. This all serves to provide personalized, catered services at minimal cost to you.
The Omni-Channel Shopping Experience Starts with Your Storefront Tech
It’s important to make your physical store as appealing and engaging as possible to your targeted customers. According to an Accenture study, 81% of customers expect to be able to pick up or arrange delivery of an item. With this in mind, you should provide storefront conveniences such as in-store product pickup, “trying before buying,” and easy return handling. A vibrant storefront distills your online presence into in-person shopping options to create added value.
Today’s POS solutions equip you with the tools needed to create an endless aisle shopping experience. For example, say a customer walks in looking for a new sweater for a date. She found the sweater of her dreams, only her size is not on the shelf. One of your staff members, equipped with a tablet and your inventory management app, easily orders the sweater for the customer in her desired size. Better yet, your staff member was able to edit the delivery options to send it directly to the customer’s place of work.
This scenario not only produced a sale for you but gained points with that customer. Next time she’s looking for a new outfit, where do you think she’ll be that much more likely to shop? Plus, if the customer is a fan of your products, you can easily sign her up for your loyalty program, enter her into your CRM, and send her regular loyalty emails that deepen the omni-channel shopping experience.
Use an Omni-Channel Shopping Experience to Tighten Inventory and Shipping Controls
Data has always and will always serve to drive businesses forward. Your customers are the best source of data you have, and effectively storing and analyzing this data is critical when it comes to getting inventory management right. Accurate inventory tracking is essential when crafting an omni-channel shopping experience. This means seamless delivery to the customer regardless of which channel they are using to connect with your business, creating confidence that you will deliver when they need it the most.
Today’s POS systems provide retailers with inventory management features that can be an asset in both physical and digital spaces. Tying customer and transaction sales data into your inventory levels allows you to detect trends in products and services so that you can adjust on the fly.
The custom reporting abilities of next-gen POS solutions will provide you with these valuable insights and will result in your customers wondering if you are reading their minds. This serves not just to make inventory controls run as smooth as silk but will be a vital asset when product shipping and ordering is involved.
Simplifying how you get your products to your shoppers is another way you can build a better omni-channel experience. Utilizing the data analysis and reporting mentioned earlier, you can evolve your shipping to better suit the demands of your customers while pinpointing industry trends to stay a step ahead of the game. This gives you the ability to save on shipping costs through pre-paid labels, bulk shipping discounts, and working with your distributors to create a drop-shipping relationship. The synergy created in this keeps your operations tight while lightening the load on your customers, your staff, and yourself.
Evolving Trends Requires Evolving Skill Sets to Succeed
Developing your own omni-channel shopping experience is a great way to connect with your customers on their platform of choice. Whether it’s through social media, an e-shop, or in store, you want to make sure you have the right setup to cater to shoppers and diners. That’s where talech can help.
Enlist the help of an expert in POS systems and business operations to implement a transparent solution. When you partner with talech for your omni-channel project needs, we devote our time to identify your business challenges and work with you to apply a solution that brings you a concise, POS solution. Our goal is to leave you feeling confident knowing the system you’re implementing gives you the results you desire. Reach out to us today to sign up for a demo and to learn more about how talech can be your valued POS partner.
