Omni Channel Shopping

With the increase this year in the omni channel sales numbers when compared to the in store sales I think it is important to call out the difference between omni channel shopping and omni channel purchasing.  Omni channel purchasing is simply the final execution of the purchase and acceptance of the product.  Omni channel shopping is the search for products and the price comparisons involved prior to the final selection and purchase.  The shopping portion of the equation has seen the largest shift from in store shopping to mobile shopping due to the increased consumer acceptance of the mobile platform.  The twist this year though is in the manner in which the consumer has embraced the mobile platform, or channel, in their shopping.

This is where the mobile channel gets very interesting, and rather speculative, because this is where the consumer is utilizing the technology while in the store.  I see that there was no major drop in consumers in the malls and stores this holiday season and especially during the initial Black Friday / Cyber Monday weekend and yet the store sales were off by a large percentage.  This drop in store sales though was shifted to online sales to deliver an overall increase for this kick-off weekend.  This is an important piece of information because when combined with the increase in use and acceptance of smartphones I come to the conclusion that people have blurred the shopping line between in store and online via the smartphone.

I previously discussed the potential for consumer use of mobile technology in their shopping and blending the social media capabilities provided by their smartphone with the in store shopping to enhance and improve their overall shopping experience and capabilities.  This past holiday shopping experience seems to provide an initial proof of this concept and it would be a good idea for retailers to heed this as a sign of the next holiday shopping season.  

Retailers do not have much time to implement improvements, though and must begin immediately with the low hanging fruit type of improvements.  As one example, I think retailers need to improve their in-store wifi network capabilities and access to encourage consumers to connect and this also provides the retailer with the ability to push information to the consumer upon connecting to the network.  This requires a little simplification to the access though, rather than a review and acceptance of term to access the store wifi, why not present a welcome splash page is pop-up sales?  Another example is encouraging consumer use of smartphones to match products and look up sale prices using their smartphone.  This will allow the retailer to provide BOGO type specials via the smart phone.  Macy’s as an example does a great job offering e-coupons that can be used online or in the store.

This year consumers are blending the purchase between in-store and online using mobile technology and the supply chain has delivered on the promise.  Consumers will demand building on this practice and retailers must be ready, and flexible, to meet these demands.  This means increased supply chain collaboration and standardization to allow and support the flexibility required to support these future demands.

And now for the audience participation portion of the show…

What types of cross channel services and offerings would you like to see to enhance your shopping experience?  Retailers are focused on maintaining sales volumes through reductions in pricing rather than expansion of sales, or even maintaining sales through creative utilization of eCommerce services. Did you shop over the Gray Thursday / Black Friday period?  What was your experience in stores and malls?

Omni Channel Mobile Sales

The mobile platform seems to have reached a critical mass this season with consumers.  Mobile platform purchasing really made an impact on holiday sales this year.  This has shown provided the consumers an opportunity to use the technology to help in their purchasing.  I see the platform as a means to improve the consumer shopping and then make the best purchase decision.  This year the spread of smartphones in addition to the improved wireless network capabilities have allowed consumers to blend both the in-store and online purchasing practices.  This is where the technology has started to live up to it’s potential to truly provide consumers with the ability to shop and make the best purchase decision from any location.

We have seen an increase in online sales this year that most of the reports relate directly to the improvements in mobile technology and wireless networks.  This makes a great deal of sense to me because I can relate it directly to my own shopping experience and practices.  I joined and downloaded a few apps to my smartphone that push sales and coupon information to me directly and when I am in a store or mall these apps push deals related specifically to the mall or store location.  I can even expand the search for deals by a number of miles to expand my comparison.  When I shop now I will take a few minutes before purchasing to identify any specials.  This has saved me a great deal in my purchases by providing discounts specific to the store where I am making the purchase and also providing immediate information discounts that may be related in stores near me.  I am just one shopper you might say, however, these apps are readily available to any shopper and both direct word of mouth and the recommendations on the Play Store make it easy to search for these types of apps to find the apps that work best for the individual.  It is foolish not to think that each consumer with a smartphone is doing the same thing.  

In previous years I suggested that stores should provide easy access to their wifi network for consumers.  The improvements to wireless network service is reducing the importance of this suggestion though the outcome remains the same.  Consumers are shopping on their smartphones while physically in the retail store.  Retailers have fought against this practice in the past to no avail and now it is time to realize that the key is the purchase and not the shopping method.  This means that retailers must support all channels for purchase and must even open their networks for consumers to easily shop via their phone.

And now for the audience participation portion of the show…

ECommerce will have wide ranging impacts on both the retail and manufacturing sectors.  How can you focus these abilities to improve the consumer's experience?  Improving the consumer’s experience will require a re-evaluation of the sales channels, the manufacturing channels and practices and the supply chain channels and practices from the raw materials to the consumers’ homes.  In order to ensure and maintain success in this new reality you must harness the tools and capabilities in many new areas.  How can you support these continuously changing requirements?

Omni Channel Sales Challenge

Retailers must change their focus from a short term sales perspective to a long term relationship perspective in order to be successful in the future.  The omni channel purchase capabilities strategy must be expanded and the focus changed to develop a relationship that retains the consumer’s attention on all platforms.  I see the critical factor as consumer retention and the return  of the consumer to the retailer over and over.  Whether it be the online channel or the retail store, it is important to the success of the retailer that the consumer return.  This means that the retailer must focus on the long term relationship and this will involve losing a sale periodically to the competition.  This periodic loss of a sale is more than overcome by the long term relationship and continued return of the consumer.

Providing a ‘sticky’ environment that encourages the return of the customer in itself is a long term position that requires patience and perseverance to achieve.  I go to Amazon as an example of the type of ‘sticky’ environment that becomes a destination for consumers over and over again.  Amazon provides a virtual shopping mall experience with everything from groceries, to home improvement, to fashion, to electronics, to entertainment.  This foundation is then supported with continuous communications with the customer regarding ratings, purchase suggestions based on past purchases, new service offerings and special offers of sales and services.  Then combine all of this with the Primo membership program that both encourages purchases and encourages use of the entertainment platform and you have an architecture that provides a compelling reason for consumers to return.

These are not services that will work with all retailers and they are certainly services that cannot be implemented with the flip of a switch.  This does provide an example, however, of how to define and implement a long term strategy to encourage the retention and return of customers.  This strategy all begins with developing the relationship with the customer and does not necessarily focus on a need for a sale each time the customer returns.  The strategy builds on and focuses on service and delivery of value to the customer.  Retailers should focus on the power and capabilities provided by standard social media tools along with a continuous communication stream to maintain the conversation with the consumer.  The objective is for the retailer to be top of mind for the consumer when they are ready to make the purchase.  The objective is for the retailer to be the go to destination for the purchase and by destination I mean virtual destination and virtual purchase.  

What we confirmed this year is that mobile technology is changing the consumer purchasing practices more than shopping practices.  Due to the growth and expansion of mobile technology and wireless networks, this purchase practice will grow and retailers must prepare by developing the relationship with the consumer.

And now for the audience participation portion of the show…

ECommerce will have wide ranging impacts on both the retail and manufacturing sectors.  How can you focus these abilities to improve the consumer's experience?  Improving the consumer’s experience will require a re-evaluation of the sales channels, the manufacturing channels and practices and the supply chain channels and practices from the raw materials to the consumers’ homes.  In order to ensure and maintain success in this new reality you must harness the tools and capabilities in many new areas.  How can you support these continuously changing requirements?