How to keep your customers happy
The retail environment is evolving at breakneck speed. With more products available at the lowest prices, and customers holding an increasing amount of purchasing power, retailers have had no choice but to look for new and effective ways to set themselves apart and remain competitive in the market.
There’s no doubt that the industry over-saturated. Retail sales have risen sharply since the start of the pandemic, meaning it is harder than ever for retailers to find and retain customers. But it’s this customer loyalty that can so easily make or break a company.
Now more than ever, retailers need to do what they can to stand out from the crowd and build meaningful relationships with their target audience. And the way to do this, reports TotalRetail, is through a highly personalised customer experience (CX). For those retailers that get their personalisation strategies bang on, the rewards are that truly magic combination of more sales and happier customers.
But personalisation these days doesn’t come easy. Restrictions on personal data and the use of third-party data have left many retailers scratching their heads about how they can benefit from dynamic personalisation in practice.
To find answers to those questions, we need to take a step back and seek out the potential gaps in retailers’ knowledge surrounding personalisation and CX. Here are three ways retailers can create a more positive customer experience through personalisation.
1. Making the most of social media
Social media allows businesses of all shapes and sizes to connect with their audience at the click of a button (or two). But while the potential is huge, actually making the most of what is on offer is no easy task. The challenges come thick and fast. Collecting valuable customer data requires a lot of time, attention and the right tools. Putting that data to good use, while ensuring customers continue to trust the brand requires even more time and energy still.
QR codes and unique landing pages are just two of the ways companies can capture first-party data from social media audiences and use personalisation to create hard-to-resist retargeting opportunities. Brands and retailers need to remember to offer clear ‘value exchanges’ as part of this process. In other words, they offer special offers, discounts on certain items, or limited-time deals in exchange for their customers’ valuable data.
The typical social media user may follow numerous brands on different platforms. However, they will usually only engage with a handful. The reason for that is the lack of truly customised content. To stand out from the crowd, brands can start targeting their subscribers with tailored, personalised campaigns and messages. With the right content in place, real engagement can become a reality.
2. Empowered retailers = empowered customers
However you’re capturing customer data, what you do with that information next is what really matters. This will determine whether you gain value from the data – gleaning insights from it to empower your brand.
Personalisation isn’t just about pushing messages or products based on what a customer has previously bought. Instead, it is about communicating with individuals on a one-on-one level, demonstrating the respect your brand has for its customers and showing you understand their reasoning behind a purchase.
Retailers need to understand the customer journey in order to maximise sales opportunities and enhance customer experiences. Understanding customers’ online behaviour is a good place to start. By tracking discarded baskets and mapping which channels your customers came from you can better tailor your offering and empower your customers. This can help build loyalty and make the purchasing journey more enjoyable.
3. Joining up the digital and in-store experience
Retailers now need to work hard to make online and in-store customer experiences as seamless as possible. In-store shopping offers customers the chance to handle products, pay on the spot and take items away with them. Online shopping offers ease, speed and convenience. Both have their advantages, but it is only by encompassing online to in-store and in-store to online that retailers can streamline the processes and boost the likelihood of a sale. Bridging this gap and building customer confidence involves strategies such as retargeting, in-store digitisation and loyalty programs that are activated both in-store and online.
At Delta, we help retailers and brands leverage effective personalisation strategies to create a positive customer experience and drive sales. Find out how we can help you stand out from the crowd. Get in touch today: hello@thedeltagroup.com.