Category Archives: Merchandising and Marketing

by Jennifer Bosavage

3 retail supply chain vulnerabilities to fortify during COVID-19

Disruptions to the supply chain — beginning in China in the early days of the coronavirus outbreak — have impacted the availability of inventory and delivery times.

Customers are now often faced with significant shipping delays — sometimes as long as 14 days.

And retailers themselves are experiencing shortages from their own suppliers.

Inventories across the board have been reportedly low (and sadly not due to higher turn), and factory closures in China and other manufacturing countries mean they may not be able to restock products easily.

Retailers who have been weathering the storm with greater fortitude have discussed production schedules with their manufacturers and have an idea of how COVID-19 is impacting their businesses.

From warehouse and store employees being affected by quarantine or illness, to an over-reliance on human intervention within inventory planning, the pandemic has uncovered existing vulnerabilities within retail supply chains.

Here are 3 areas of vulnerability to fortify during COVID-19.

1: People: Be clear on protocol for employee safety along the supply chain

Offering goods and services that delight customers and entice them to return should be the goal of all profitable retailers.

But the safety and well-being of customers, staff and the suppliers that are delivering goods to your warehouses is of first importance, especially during COVID-19.

Using the Retail Pro Prism app for your receiving operations will help your team maintain social distancing.

Advance ship notice (ASN) vouchers in Retail Pro will also help speed up the receiving process, reducing employee exposure.

Retailers weathering this storm should not assume suppliers are current on specific state and countries’ health and safety policies.

Instead, they should sponsor straight-forward discussion of expectations.

That makes delivery staff feel secure and shows the entire staff their safety is a priority.

For later reference, supporting documents should be sent via email or texts to reinforce the message and ensure compliance.

Having a direct and transparent approach will help ensure both an adequate product supply to serve customers as well as a healthy customer pipeline.

2: Process: Adapt your 80/20 to align supply with demand

Some retailers have created redundant supply chains to handle quick shifts in demand, adapting the 80/20 to source 80 percent of product for low cost and 20 percent for fast response.

Quick response with volatile demand can often be sourced more locally, even within the United States.

For each of those suppliers, a direct line of communication with a designated person is critical, as is understanding who their suppliers are.

Transparency is key.

Weekly check-ins help keep everyone on the same page, as policies affecting suppliers are rapidly changing, as are supply needs, state mandates and safety protocols.

When the interests and data of retailers, suppliers, and manufacturers in the supply chain are aligned, the decision-making of each works together to help to optimize the entire supply chain’s performance.

Vendor management tools in a POS and retail management software like Retail Pro Prism go a long way toward helping retailers keep up to date records on critical vendor information, including the following:

  • Contact information
  • Account and payment terms
  • Currency defaults, especially for international suppliers
  • Trade discounts
  • Special notes and product images

3: Product: Keep reevaluating inventory costs and allocations

Cost of goods sold is rising because vendors must account for the extra time and associated expenses that are accrued with no-contact delivery, purchases of masks and gloves, etc.

With a higher cost of inventory, the types and variety of products purchased must be regularly reevaluated.

COVID-19 has changed customers’ needs and preferences, so agile inventory strategies are required.

However, just-in-time strategies may seem risky at a time when vendor shipments are generally delayed.

Allocation patterns across stores will also need to be reevaluated to account for COVID-induced purchase variations.

Use reports in Retail Pro Prism to stay up on demand flux and use the findings to adapt allocation patterns for problem stores.

Right now, retailers are seeing the value of integration between their retail management and enterprise resource planning software.

Such integrations, as between Retail Pro and SAP, allow for automated data exchange between the two tools so merchandise managers have up to date data unified in one picture of the entire business.

Fragmented data sources are always a cause for wider margins of error in ordering and allocation, but even more so during a pandemic when historical data is a less reliable source for forecasting.

A new study by WMG, University of Warwick, and Blue Yonder concludes that retailers must invest in creating supply chains with greater flexibility, visibility and automation: “Technologies such as artificial intelligence and machine learning will play a key role in helping retailers navigate future disruption, whilst still meeting customers’ expectations.”

In-depth and on-going analysis of recent shopping patterns will help retailers make more strategic decisions on product offerings, which will dictate inventory ordering.

Latent vulnerabilities existed in retailers’ supply chains prior to COVID-19 but the pandemic served to draw them out.

The added strain exposed and compounded weaknesses.

Addressing these three areas will help fortify the supply chain to last through the pandemic.

As conditions begin to plateau, retailers will be able to revisit these areas with more thought to long-term improvement.

Retail Pro Prism: Tracking inventory needs and movement in COVID-19’s accelerated Omnichannel

by Jennifer Bosavage

3 Ways to track your inventory for better sell-through

Retailers more than ever before are faced with critically evaluating their inventory to curate a selection of products that will sell quickly and reduce their inventory costs.

The longer products sit on a shelf or in a warehouse, the faster their value decreases.

Carrying costs can be between 20 and 30 percent of inventory value, which indicates too much stock is simply taking up room and not providing revenue.

Capital costs are the largest portion and perhaps the greatest burden of carrying inventory; they include the investment made in acquiring goods and the interest lost when cash becomes inventory.

There are also storage costs and service costs.

And of course, there are risks with carrying inventory, primarily that the real value of the items will decrease while in storage, waiting to be sold.

1. Watch shopper demand

To streamline offerings, companies routinely weed out what’s not moving, and focus on products — and related items — that are popular.

One of the most efficient ways to determine exactly what customers are buying is by monitoring your inventory and sales data.

That provides the data necessary to determine what customers really want.

It can also help determine what they’ll want a few months down the road; investing in an analytics expert can be a cost-effective way of understanding and acting upon the information gathered.

Retailers tend to look at revenue as the primary metric of success or failure.

But knowing what drives those sales is equally important, because that information can help formulate a strategy for growth.

The additional analytics provide a more complete picture of a retailer’s health.

2. Audit store inventory

A complete audit includes more than an inventory count of both product on shelves and back stock, as it also can include a count of damaged products; assessments of in-store displays; planogram compliance (shelf location, number of SKUs, missing or inaccurate shelf tags).

Some retailers include a summary of competitors’ strategy as well as a look of their own roadmap.

Many retailers use point of sale software like Retail Pro to track current inventory, which is crucial in determining the right balance of products to carry.

POS software provides real-time inventory visibility and helps ensure the items are available in-store or for fulfillment of online orders.

It’s also important to confirm that data visually to have an exact idea of current stock.

While it may seem old-fashioned — and certainly not a replacement for today’s technology — performing a visual inspection could find an underlying reason for the slow sales, such as poor product placement on the retail floor.

Technology like RFID can help a retailer conduct physical inventory counts in hours rather than days.

Similarly, POS software can also help retailers identify product shrinkage, which may be easily remedied by physically relocating the item or by changing loss-prevention techniques.

3.Manage turnover ratio

By effectively managing the inventory turnover ratio, cash flow is optimized.

It provides feedback that the retailer is meeting customers’ needs, and results in maximized profits.

Even and especially the largest retailers need to be aware of their inventory situations and make their stock work for them.

Not only does that result in healthier revenue, but it also ensures more satisfied customers who know that what they come for is in stock.

by admin

Reopening your stores: optimize these 5 areas first

Stores are starting to reopen across the world, and we are watching this very, very carefully. 

We’re learning a ton of new things while watching what they are doing, because some of these stores are doing excellent business. 

In some cases, they are exceeding last year’s numbers!  Let’s take a look at what the most successful retailers are doing to make this happen. 

Overall, you have to approach opening as if you were opening for the first time. 

It has to have that level of excitement, that level of enthusiasm. 

So my first, best advice to you is to get super pumped up about opening! 

1. Store Presentation and Layout

This is the perfect time to reassess your store’s layout and shop-ability. 

You certainly want to organize your store so your shoppers can maintain the proper social distance from each other and still see all the great merchandise you have in stock. 

Here are some tips you can apply:

  • Start at the front door, and look inside your store as if you’re visiting for the first time.  Can you see all the way to the back wall? Can you identify key areas that you want to go to to see the merchandise?
  • The most important real estate in your store is the immediate right. Do we have some of our best merchandise there?
  • Many stores are putting markers on the floor that direct people through the store, creating a path to follow, much like grocery stores or Ikea have done. The benefit of this is that when your shoppers walk the path, they can see merchandise they might not have seen.  This is creating add-on sales!
  • As you walk the store, make sure your displays make people want to stop and check out the merchandise. Make the displays compelling with cross-merchandising, props, bundles, and multiple levels.
  • From each display that causes a shopper to linger, where will they go next? Merchandise your displays that lead the customer through the store, directing their eyes to the next great display of merchandise.
  • Signage is super important. Yes, you want to have signs that remind people to obey social distancing, but they don’t have to be negative or serious. A western apparel store put up signs that say, “There should be a cow’s distance between us!” Another store posted a sign that said, “If you can read the label on my jeans, then you’re too close!” Make it fun!
  • This is also a time to ensure you have excellent lighting that shows off and spotlights your great products.

2. Marketing

For many years, I have said that marketing should have a two-word definition, which is “Creating Demand.”

That means that any messaging you send out, whether it be by email, social media, or texting, should first be checked to see if the message makes anyone want to come to the store or the website, or to find out more.

If it doesn’t, rework it until it does.

  • I think the best messaging for reopening is, “We are back, we are safe, and we are ready for you!” Customers need to feel like you are welcoming a long, lost friend to the store.
  • Show them in your videos (you ARE doing videos, right?) and posts how you are working hard to keep the store clean, safe, and fun. 
  • There is a lot more activity in social media and emails now. More retail stores have had to quickly open up e-commerce sites, and the only way to promote those was to send out tons of social media posts and videos, and emails. So it’s noisier out there, and to compete you have to generate as much activity as everyone else. That means 2-3 emails per week, multiple posts on social media every day, and at least a couple of videos.
  • While I’m talking about videos, did you know that YouTube is the #2 search engine on the planet?  That means that you need to have your own YouTube channel, post all your videos on there, and make sure you tag them properly so people can find and watch them, and want to come to your store.

I have to confess that up until recently, I was not doing much with hashtags in social media. 

But I have come to learn that they are the best, most direct path to getting more customers to follow you. 

That said, they have to be the RIGHT hash tags – in other words, “#clothing” is not going to help you, but “#darkwashskinnydenim” will. 

Look at other stores and brands that you admire and take a look at their hashtags. 

Incorporate those into your posts and see if they get you more likes and followers. 

3. Staff

As you open your business, you’ll also need to give careful consideration to your staff’s needs and your personnel needs as well. 

  • Keep in mind that with social distancing, you may not need as many people on the floor as you did previously. Also, your store may have different hours now. So first, consider what you really need in terms of floor coverage, and then deal with any employee issues.
  • Some of your staff may be reluctant to come back. It may be that they are scared of the virus and don’t want to return. It may also be that they are enjoying the extra money they’re getting while on unemployment. This is all understandable, but you cannot be held hostage this way. Retailers who have faced this have had to get new staff, and you may have to do the same. 
  • The ones that do come back will need some additional training. First, they need to learn some new procedures in the store, especially regarding cleaning. We need to show customers that our stores are clean and safe, and so your employees will need to know how to clean and which areas to clean. Of special concern for apparel retailers is the dressing room. It needs to be cleaned between visitors, and I would recommend posting a log inside the dressing room that shows how often the dressing has been cleaned. 
  • Staff will also need to be trained on how to sell from 6 feet away. How do they still engage with customers, make recommendations, and lead them to the purchase?  Certainly, one of the things I think they’ll need to work on is how to move the conversation from the awfulness of this pandemic, to positive things. It’s something they need to drill before you open.

4. Selling

The politics of salesmanship are yet another challenge we have to get past. 

Scroll through social media for 2 minutes and you’ll see tons of divergent opinions about how this whole situation should be handled. 

  • Some of your customers are going to be worried about being out. Make sure they feel warmly welcomed, and make sure they see that you are cleaning the store, that you are safe, and that it’s OK to be there.
  • Other customers will want to completely ignore that there is a virus at all. Be careful about any customers who do not obey social distancing, for this reason only: you could freak out other customers who see it, and that could get you a nasty scene on the sales floor, or a nasty online review.
  • Lots of stores are stepping up sales by setting appointments to visit the store. An appointment is almost a guaranteed sale, because you wouldn’t make an appointment unless you had a strong interest in buying product, right? 
  • Products that are touched by customers need to be cleaned. Garments that have been tried on need to be steamed, and everything needs to get looked at to ensure safety. This is part of what your employees need to show customers on the floor – that we are safe, and the merchandise can and should be touched!

We are seeing a large variety of methods of selling right now. It’s a broad topic and way beyond the scope of this post.

The most important thing I can tell you is that we’re all learning how to sell in this new era, and there will be lots of tips and tricks coming. 

5. Merchandise

Frankly, the absolute most important thing in this blog post is a discussion of your merchandise.

Having the right merchandise is the key to your survival.

  • First, look at your Spring merchandise. We think Spring will be extended by a month or so, since people have not seen a lot of the merchandise you received when then lockdowns started. Look carefully at what you have and what’s on order. Talk to your vendors and find out if they still have goods and negotiate for discounts on whatever they have left, but only if your Open to Buy plan (you do have one of those, right?) tells you that you need it.
  • Fall goods could be tricky. We’re already hearing that many manufacturers are not able to produce their typical Fall production because of the shutdown. Start talking to your vendors about Fall and see who can and cannot ship, and how that will affect your assortment plan.
  • Most importantly, you need a sales plan that you believe in, coupled with an inventory plan that enables you to turn goods even faster than you ever have. In all of our merchandise planning and open to buy planning, we are putting together models that ensure positive cash flow through proper sales forecasting using algorithms and artificial intelligence. Cash was always king, but now, it’s super-king. Make sure you have a solid plan to get you through the rest of this year!

One last thing, which is really, really from my heart. I believe in independent retail. I believe in you. Every politician says that small business is the backbone of our economy, and that’s true. 

That said, small businesses are the people who build communities, who take leadership roles to give everyone a better life.

To that degree, you are more than the backbone of the economy, you are the backbone of society itself.

As such, your survival is hugely important! 

And you can do it, if you apply these first tips that I’ve listed here. 

So go for it. Make it happen, for you, your family, your community, and for the future for all of us. 

We all stand with you, and we’re cheering you on!

Get the retail reopening checklist

Make sure you don’t miss any important details! Get this retail reopening checklist from Retail Pro and Management One today.

Guest author: Dan Jablons
Management One
Retail Smart Guys
by Ulyana Avetisov

In-store inventory: Curating to compete against ecommerce’s endless aisle

 

 

One of the most difficult things for a retailer is understanding what items to have in-store and which could be successfully handled in online as part of an endless aisle strategy.

For brick and mortar retailers, physical in-store space is finite, and what’s available must be used effectively.

That is particularly challenging as brick and mortar retailers face the vast breadth of inventory that ecommerce competitors offer.

However, sometimes that enormous ocean of product can overwhelm customers.

 

Get insight into inventory

 

Traditional retailers can augment what’s in-store with online offerings, but one of the highlights of being brick and mortar is the ability to offer “look and feel” in a curated environment.

The “inner sanctum” of any retail store is the inventory area.

Making the most of that space will save any retailer money.

Storing inventory and supplies in a warehouse comes at a cost, especially if it eats away at display/retail space. Off-site inventory incurs rental and transportation costs, as well.

However, retailers must have “the right” inventory on hand so shoppers don’t leave stores empty-handed.

Retail inventory management keeps the backend in line with the front-end’s needs.

Good retail management software helps you see:

  • The quantities of each product in stock
  • A sense of when reordering is necessary
  • The number of items that should be ordered regularly
  • Best selling items
  • Items that are unpopular
  • The amount of inventory on-hand is adequate
  • If overstocking is a concern
  • If your inventory space is not big enough

Getting a handle on inventory management affects a business’ bottom-line, allowing it not only to continue operating, but also to grow.

Without a strong inventory management process, it’s easy to lose track of stock.

Mismanaged items are more easily stolen and seem to vanish without a trace – precisely because there is no traceability.

In a worst-case scenario, a retailer spends money on unknowingly replacing stolen goods, while paying to store an item that was ordered to replace a product that was never actually sold.

Additionally, not having a firm grasp on inventory levels can also mean running out of stock more easily, missing sales opportunities.

Today, many retailers offer a buy online, pickup in store option.

Not having inventory in sync with on-hand counts is a customer experience disaster.

In addition to keeping accurate inventory numbers, some stock management can be handled within the product displays.

The cost of storage depends upon the amount of inventory needed to be stored.

Planograms, or the blueprint of a store’s layout, can help retailers improve sales with visual merchandising.

 

Digitize the in-store experience

 

Today’s shoppers are used to a much higher level of convenience, choice and accessibility than in the past, because of the influence ecommerce has had on retail.

Therefore, it’s important for stores to “digitize” by providing personal recommendations, customer reviews and increased assortments, so that when customers enter a physical store, their expectations are met.

Planograms help to arrange merchandise in a way that catches the customer’s eye, organizing in a way that provides more room on your shelves, and helps estimate how much to place on the sales floor.

Brick and mortar retailers should focus on effective use of inventory space.

Too much is as detrimental as too little.

By employing retail management technology to count and manage products, they can offer what customers want, when they want it, while maintaining a healthy profit margin.

 

 

 

by Ulyana Avetisov

2021 Holiday game plan: 3 ways to help shoppers find the perfect gift and get on with their online parties – faster

 

 

Let’s face it – even if you’re someone’s absolute FAVORITE retailer, they still don’t want to spend their holiday season with you, and this year, even less so with COVID.

What your customers want most is to find fun gifts for friends and family fast – and get on with the white elephant and ugly sweater parties online.

Don’t be offended. You know the feeling is mutual.

So this holiday season, give your shoppers the gift that matters most to them: time.

Here are 3 ways to help your customers find what they need and get on with the digital festivities – faster.

 

1. Send gift ideas and personalized offers

 

The biggest challenge in holiday shopping is actually deciding what to buy – so use your data resources to help your shoppers out.

Their past purchases will give you an idea of their unique style and will help you extrapolate from those qualities to tie in with the new items you’re carrying for the holiday season.

AI-powered personalized marketing and loyalty platform AppCard for Retail Pro listens to your transaction data for you, watching for trends for each individual shopper.

Use it to send personalized offers tailored to your shopper’s style so it piques their interest and brings them into your store to find that perfect gift.

The offers will help you get your customers in the store, and their purchase will get them more loyalty points.

It’s a win-win!

 

2. Give them all the options with endless aisle

How about those shoppers who just walked in your store and don’t have a shopping history with you?

Show ‘em everything you’ve got with an endless aisle!

You’ve already got full visibility into inventory at each location in Retail Pro, and you have the inventory pictures, so make it available for shoppers to see your full collection.

Give shoppers free reign to browse and find what they’ll love on a secure touchscreen tablet or kiosk in your stores.

With an easy to use interface, customizable workflows, and detailed permissions settings, you can control the experience to ensure customers find what they need – without finding POS screens not intended for their use.

Plus, sales associates can be on hand to answer questions, offer suggestions, or for help navigating for first-time users.

 

3. Get them out faster with efficient mobile checkout

Shoppers can spend all evening browsing your store but once they’re in the checkout line, they want out.

Get them through the queue faster by setting up extra points of sale on mobile tablets.

Sales associates can be available anywhere your customers are on the sales floor to help them find what they need and wrap up the conversation right there by completing the transaction on a mobile POS.

Because Retail Pro is browser-based software, you can access it on any mobile or desktop device, so you can ramp up more points of sale for the holidays to keep lines short – especially with COVID considerations – and customers happy.

Don’t have time this season to invest in mobile printers and accessories for mobile POS?

Send email receipts!

Or, for customers who prefer paper receipts, you can ring up all the items while clienteling and hold the transaction for associates at an express counter to pick up and finish off to get customers on their merry way faster.

 

This holiday season, help your shoppers find gifts for every person on their list – and then just let them enjoy the holidays.

Your customers probably won’t thank you for it.

But they’ll be back in January to redeem their loyalty points, and that’s pretty much the same thing.

 

Christmas at the mall

7 Ways to get your store tech and staff ready for the holiday rush with Retail Pro POS

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by Jennifer Bosavage

How to lift retail revenue with product drops

 

 

Retailers are challenged with making their product selections more exciting, alluring and sexy than those of the competition.

Having that certain product or designer that is unique to a particular brand can make a retailer a shining star, at least for the season.

“Drop culture” is a trend that is propelling some retailers to the heights of fame and, sometimes, fortune.

 

Create urgency

Product drops are special releases that will only be available for a limited time.

Customers are excited to be a part of the “in” crowd, getting something exclusive early.

For retailers, the buzz that’s created around these events promotes their brands even before the product is launched.

While it can be an opportunity to test new products quickly, product drops are really an event employed to encourage the competitive shopping mindset.

The product that’s dropped is special in some way: a limited edition, something new from a famous designer, a bleeding-edge fashion trend, etc. The value of a “drop” is therefore earned, not assigned.

 

Show scarcity

Today, many luxury products are devalued due to over-exposure in the market, which means that the most desirable items require a level of effort or cleverness to obtain.

For example, U.S. streetwear brand Anti Social Social Club (ASSC) partnered with product release app Frenzy (created by Canadian small business shopping platform Shopify ) on an event where fans had to check-in to a physical location at a designated time to buy a limited-edition sweatshirt online.

But figuring out the exact location of the drop required significant detective and riddle-solving skills. Those who solved the puzzler were automatically logged in, triggering the product to appear on-screen to purchase — but within a certain amount of time.

 

Sell them a spot in the in-crowd

Product drops take advantage of the basic human desire to be included. No one wants to miss out on being part of something special.

The excitement tends to prompt customers to make decisions faster and more impulsively than if they have time to think about the purchase.

Often, quantities are limited and therefore sell out, adding to the “limited edition” mystique.

Although more products often become available in the months following the first drop—and shoppers are well aware of that—the excitement of purchasing these items ahead of the pack is too alluring to ignore for many.

Product drops are a good way to stir up excitement especially during a lull in the shopping sales cycle — such as post-holiday.

By creating a “buzz,” a retailer raises the desirability of a product, and the “lucky” purchasers can enjoy basking in the afterglow.

by Jennifer Bosavage

3 ways to invest more in shopper relationships with 160 characters or less

 

 

SMS messaging — texts — are great to get the word out to customers about special events, sales and discounts. Retailers large and small can benefit from the marketing strategy primarily used to drive sales and foot traffic.

The trouble is, the limited space for content mandates writers use extremely concise verbiage.

With a character count of around 160, it’s difficult to create content that will strengthen customer relationships and drive business.

Conversations nurture relationships, and relationships can grow sales.

Texting is a great way to have conversations when your customers are not in the building or on your site, especially because 95% of Americans have cell phones.

However, to reach shoppers quickly and grab their attention enough to entice them into your store, content has to be engaging.

Your interesting offers, information, discounts and coupons were attractive enough for them to sign up to receive messages. Now it’s time for them to take action.

Here are 3 tips for creating strategic content in 160 characters or less.

 

1: Determine your goal

If your texts are meant to encourage sales, they should be inviting, not demanding.

SMS texting can be rather intimate, one-to-one conversations. Let your sales team establish a position of a trusted advisor.

For example: “Hi Steve. Remember the Sky-Dweller that caught your eye? We’re having a Rolex sale Saturday. Let me know if you’re interested – Leah @ Hughes Jewelry”.

 

2: Offer help consistently

Texts from trusted advisors should maintain a fairly regular cadence: Not too frequent, but not “out of the blue” either. Be authentic; customers can detect insincerity a mile away.

Try basing the timing of texts on the number of times per month or week customers are actually purchasing.

For example: “Hi Renee, thanks for attending the install demo. Sound system installation is Thursday, 10/10. Sign up: xyz.com/nmk. Let me know if you have questions – Rob”.

 

3: Include a call to action

While “Thank you for your business,” is a polite ending, it’s not the most effective use of 160 (or fewer) characters. Ending with a link or phone number shows you mean business.

For example: “Hi Fiona, the 20% discount on Natural Kat ends this week @KitsCorner. If you come in today, you’ll get a BOGO deal with this msg. Hope to see you later – Piper”.

Remember, a customer can easily call you from a text message, because the SMS is generated from a cell number. So using precious character space to include a phone number may not be the best use of the space.

 

Texting after contact has been established with a prospect can help significantly improve conversion.

Sales prospects who are sent text messages convert at a rate 40% higher than those who are not sent any text messages, according to research by Velocify.

It is also a effective way to keep your brand top-of-mind and to build strong, lasting, customer relationships.

by admin

The power of personalizing the post-sale

 

 

Mass-marketed messages are inundating consumers from every available avenue. Retailers today continuously push out these messages using the latest trending channels, hoping to acquire new and repeat customers. With the emergence of more advanced marketing techniques and technologies, outreach has become even more sophisticated.

While a steady diet of messages has allowed consumers to respond and engage with brands in a variety of ways, it has also created a demand for greater personalization.

Stellar personalized experiences provided by some of retail’s top brands (including GNC, Michael Kors, Neiman Marcus, Sephora and Under Armour) have helped to permanently alter consumers’ expectations for brands. A recent Infogroup survey, The Power of Personalization, found that 44% of shoppers are open to switching brands [to ones] that do a better job at personalization.

With so many options to choose from, consumers now look for better, more relevant experiences to keep them engaged. The message is clear: legacy retailers must raise their personalization game or risk losing customers.

A glaring missed opportunity for many retailers is in the re-engagement of their existing customers.

In a recent joint report by Commerce Next and Oracle, 81% of e-commerce marketers cited acquisition marketing as the top priority. The greater focus on new customers may be costing them as current customers are known to pay 67% more than new customers.

Consider the above facts alongside research by Litmus, which states that 64% of consumers consider a retailer’s purchase confirmations as the most valuable messages in their inbox; and research from Experian, which states that transactional emails generate 6x more revenue than standard marketing emails; and an untapped opportunity begins to emerge.

It is for these reasons, well-respected brands including Under Armour and GNC have started tapping into the potential of their post-purchase communications.

 

GNC – A Move towards Customer-Centricity

While the path to personalization can be a winding one for many retailers, GNC continues to remain ahead of the curve.

Having originally adopted smart receipts several years ago, GNC recently looked to flexEngage for new ways to increase the number of GNC brand advocates. Several adjustments were made on the fly to further personalize GNCs smart receipts, and as a result, the brand experienced a 10x lift in membership for their paid loyalty program as well as a 7% increase in sales from product recommendations within receipts.

But the impact continued as 10% of GNC customers receiving smart receipts also enrolled in auto-delivery for products they just purchased.

“This is one of the touchpoints that we use for customer retention and repeat trips. We know that customers access their receipts multiple times for various reasons, so we want to be present for them with multiple tiers of messaging that meet their needs,” says Jennifer Biefel, former Director of Customer Marketing & Loyalty at GNC.

 

 

Under Armour – Creating a Better Customer Experience

Under Armour, a leader in sports and fitness apparel, recently saw the need for improving their post-sale shopping experience.

At the time, shoppers left Under Armour stores with either flat, paper receipts or unengaging PDF receipts which were eventually emailed to customers long after they had left the store. With the goal of keeping customers engaged beyond the sale, Under Armour worked with flexEngage to upgrade their post-sale communications.

Today, Under Armour customers that opt for smart receipts leave their stores with brand-right, dynamic receipts delivered in seconds.

Brent Ott, Senior Manager, Global Store Experience at Under Armour spoke to the effectiveness of the upgrade: “The minute we launched it, we saw the initial challenge that we were trying to resolve was fixed. It was a big win.”

Powerful Results

Under Armour’s brand-right receipts are delivered to their customers’ mobile phones in less than 60 seconds. This improvement has also led to some unexpected results.

“The biggest success that we didn’t realize at first was the open rates. The digital marketing team was really excited that the open rates were as high as they were. We are seeing a huge win with our customer feedback surveys. There has been a huge increase in customers’ willingness to tell us about their in-store experiences,” Brent said.

While Under Armour is just getting started in their post-sale personalization journey, smart receipt customers can expect more relevant content from Under Armour as they continue to look for ways to drive brand loyalty and repeat visits.

Under Armour and GNC’s enhancements to their smart receipts showcase the power of post-sale personalization. By harnessing smart receipts, brands are able to capture more attention and revenue from current customers and leverage heightened consumer interest to highlight their other marketing programs.

 

Leveraging Personalized Receipts

Ready to leverage the power of post-sale personalization? flexEngage seamlessly integrates into Retail Pro Prism as well as Retail Pro 9 and above. Getting started is simple. Visit www.flexengage.com or email hello@flexengage.com for more information.

 

 

This guest post brought to you by our friends at flexEngage.

by Retail Pro

The Personal Data Paradox [eBook]

 

 

Today’s headlines are ablaze with privacy scandals and consumer demand for transparency in data collection.

From Facebook to Amazon, we aim to bring down giants for perceived intrusions on our autonomy.

These are powerful political concepts that dominate the conversation around today’s technological advancements and our desire to apply morality to the digital world.

Equally as powerful as these headlines are the paradoxical returns and conversion rates that retailers are experiencing from data driven personalized marketing content: content that is derived from data collection unique to individual shoppers, i.e. personal preferences and tastes.

Public opinion seems to contradict consumer expectation.

Get this eBook to see consumers’ perception of privacy, their expectation of personalization, and the middle ground we are all looking for.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Get the eBook

 

 

 

by Ulyana Avetisov

Retailers going omnichannel pass on tech benefits to customers

 

 
In-store customers account for 50% of all eCommerce activity, research by Salesforce found, so closing the online-offline gap is critical for customer experience.

In response, retailers pursuing omnichannel with Retail Pro are turning their technology gains into customer-facing conveniences for unified commerce that puts shoppers first.

Here are three ways you can pass on the benefits of full data visibility in Retail Pro to your customers.

 

1: Show store inventory availability online

 
79% of shoppers research products online before buying in stores. Analysts are calling the trend ROPO – Research Online, Purchase Offline.

With so many shoppers choosing this blended approach to shopping, you can use your inventory data in Retail Pro to give customers online visibility into a product’s availability at their local store and secure the sale.

 

2: Make personalized recommendations

 
Though personalized recommendations generate only 7% of online visits, they result in 26% of online conversions – well worth the effort.

You can analyze customer history data in Retail Pro to personalize your marketing with recommendations based on items they recently or frequently purchased.

Effective recommendations are those that complement what the shopper already purchased from you, rather than simply other iterations of items the shopper has already browsed or bought.

 

3: Blend channels into one holistic shopping experience

 
For on the go consumers, the real shopping is done on your website.

They see your store as a fulfillment center where they will try on or pick up what’s needed on their way to do other things.

Integrated ecommerce and store POS can help you create a streamlined experience for these busy shoppers: shoppers can plan ahead and fill up their online shopping cart, and then access it at your store POS to complete the purchase and get the goods.

 

Omnichannel at Kanmo Group

 

Kanmo Group took this kind of holistic approach to managing data with Retail Pro Prism.

“To truly benefit from our omnichannel strategy, Kanmo Group has to look beyond simply engaging customers through offline and online means. When you look at the customer behavior in Southeast Asia, you will see that shoppers love to fill up their basket online – but they still prefer to complete the purchase in physical stores,” commented Bhavin Patel, Omnichannel Director of Kanmo Group. “We want to give our customers flexibility to collect and check out the ‘basket’ they created by communicating with a salesperson or through the real-time Retail Pro Prism POS system.”

 

Customers can fill up their shopping cart online. If they are in the area, they might choose to visit a nearby Justice store and complete their purchase there.

 

Going Omnichannel with Retail Pro Prism

 
Retailers pursuing omnichannel are taking on the monumental task of integrating all their data sources into a 360 degree view of their business.

With full integrability in the Retail Pro platform, omnichannel is becoming attainable reality rather than simply rhetoric.

Accurate, real-time communications in Retail Pro help you keep your inventory and customer information up to date across the entire business, so you can make better decisions from holistic, integrated business insights.

Whether you’re leveraging Retail Pro for your brand stores, ecommerce, kiosks, outlets, franchises, store-in-store, or pop-ups, Retail Pro is one solution for all your retail and helps you unify commerce in a way that puts shoppers first.

 

To see what it will take to unify commerce with Retail Pro Prism in your business, contact your Retail Pro Business Partner or request a demo today.