3 Ways To Help Your Merchant IT Clients Win Over Customers Without Competing On Price
By Francesca Nicasio, Vend
As a trusted advisor to your merchant clients, you may be asked how the solutions you sell can help them be more competitive. Between the numerous price check apps in the market and the fact that there are plenty of retailers selling the same products, it’s easy to see why many merchants get into price wars, flash sales, and outrageous discounts to entice shoppers.
A webinar, How to Win More Customers without Competing on Price or Products, featuring Erin Harris, editor in chief of Innovative Retail Technologies, will provide insights on implementing technology to enhance the retail experience rather than resorting to price wars.
In order to truly win over customers, retailers must go beyond competing on price or products, and instead step up their game in the customer service and experience departments. When you’re up against merchants who are selling the same products (sometimes for less), you need to be able to connect with shoppers in unique and memorable ways.
To help your merchant clients accomplish this, we’ve put together some action steps for improving the customer service and experience. See what you can help them implement with the solution you provide:
- Design Exceptional Shopping Experiences
According to Harris, retailers who want to stand out from their competitors must figure out a way to give consumers something they can’t find anywhere else. And no, this isn’t just about selling unique products — it’s about offering shoppers exceptional retail experiences.
One example of a retailer doing this well is Alton Lane, a premium tailored apparel store that sells custom suits for men. “Alton Lane leverages technology in a variety of innovative and margin-moving ways, but they’ve also added a lot of extras that make them a customer service standout. For instance, their locations have big leather sofas, a stocked bar, and even flat screen TVs so customers can catch the game,” adds Harris.
At Alton Lane, a gentleman can make a private appointment at one of their locations, where the retailer will digitally capture his measurements and include it in his file. That customer’s information can then be accessed anytime he wants to shop the brand, so whether he’s shopping in the Chicago location or in the Boston branch, his information will be there. The same goes for when he’s purchasing online.
“They’ve turned shopping into an inviting experience,” she continues. “Alton Lane knows that most men don’t particularly enjoy shopping, so they designed this home run of a customer experience that makes buying clothes convenient — even enjoyable — for their target shoppers.”
- Invest In Technology And Marry It With The Basics Of Retailing
“Technology can and will ease countless operational burdens,” says Harris. She adds that retailers should definitely invest in tools and solutions that’ll help their businesses. “I’m not talking about blue sky innovation. This is about technologies that are affordable, easy to implement, and are in line with where your customers are, or where they want to be.”
Going back to the Alton Lane example, Harris says that the retailer has done a great job in implementing technology and marrying it with “back to basics retailing.” Harris is referring to Alton Lane’s omni-channel shopping experience that allows customers to access their information and complete purchases across multiple stores or channels.
The retailer has successfully embraced technology, but at the heart of it all is a system that makes shopping more pleasant and convenient. And at the end of the day, isn’t that what every consumer wants?
- Invest In The Workforce
Employees play a huge role in executing customer service strategy, so making sure everyone on the team is well-trained and armed with the tools that’ll help them serve shoppers better is imperative.
“These days, there’s nothing worse than when a customer knows more than the associates on any given thing about your store or brand,” says Harris. “That’s why retailers really need to invest in training, as well as in scheduling and management, to ensure that friendly and knowledgeable associates are available in the right place and at the right time.”
MIT professor Zeynep Ton conducted an in-depth study on the operations of various retailers and discovered that companies such as Trader Joe’s, Costco, QuikTrip, and Mercadona, which invest significantly more in their employees, “have high profits, low prices for their industry, excellent operational metrics, and a reputation for great customer service.” Indeed, while it may seem that cutting back on workforce expenses is saving money, this move can actually do more harm than good.
Advice To Share With Your Merchant Clients
As Harris puts it, “‘Some’ is not a number, and ‘soon’ is not a time.” Help your clients prioritize initiatives, set a realistic timeline, and take action.
To register for Vend’s webinar with Harris, scheduled for 3 p.m. EDT on Sept. 29, click here.
Francesca Nicasio is a retail expert and author from Vend, a point of sale, inventory, and customer loyalty software that helps over 10,000 retailers manage and grow their businesses.