Happy Throwback Thursday!
In recent years, window shopping has taken on a new meaning. It no longer means that you physical need to be at the store to find out what the great deals are. You can virtually be there and find the best prices without having to travel from shop to shop, which takes hours!
Have you ever gone shopping for something and used your Smartphone
as a tool to help you find the best deals? I know I have. Just recently, I was
shopping for a TV; I started at Costco and examined their prices, and then, as I
was casually walking around, I was looking online at Best Buy's company website
seeing what kind of deals I can get over there. Unfortunately for Costco, I ended
up doing my business with Best Buy because I found a better deal for what I was looking for with my Smartphone.
I’m bringing this up because I came across an article
that actually gave a name to what I (and many other Americas) do instead of the traditional window shopping. They call it showrooming, being in a
store and looking at their competitors’ website on your Smartphone, shopping
for better deals. To me, this concept is genius. I mean we are in the era of
technology, so why not use it to conveniently save some money?
Companies are becoming very upset when they find out that
they are losing business to a competitor because their consumers were able to
hop on their phones and quickly compare prices. Stores are trying to figure out
ways to combat showrooming. In the 1to1 Media article linked above, they mention stores charging fees for people who come into there stores "just to look."
To say the least, people were not thrilled with these signs
at all. In my opinion, this store will probably lose more customers because of
these signs, than because of showrooming.
Instead of coming up with ridiculous ways to stop people
from showrooming, experts suggest companies to embrace this phenomenon and use it as
incentive to work a little harder to make sure consumers make purchases and
also, come back to their store. Providing EXCEPTIONAL customer service is a
great way to keep customers from leaving your store to go to another. Whether
we like to believe it or not, people base a majority of their decision on
emotion. They remember the experience they had and the feeling they got when
shopping in a store and will likely come back if these feelings were positive.
Another
way, is to get showroomers to leave the store they are at and come to yours by
having an attractive AND effective website. Seth Godin wrote a blog called “Q&A: What Works for Websites Today?” He shared a list of questions that should be addressed
when creating a good website. He stated, “But I stand with a series of
questions that will expose the challenges of any website (and the problems of
the organization that built it):
- Who is this site for?
- How did they find out about it?
- What does the design remind them of?
- What do you want them to do when they get here?
- How will they decide to do that, and what promises do
you make to cause that action?
The only reason to build a website
is to change someone. If you can't tell me the change and you can't tell me the
someone, then you're wasting your time.” Create a website that works for your
business...it is one of your biggest resources for gaining customers and increasing
customer loyalty.
How do Virtual Agents (VA's) fit into this
equation? Simple. SalesAdvisor™
, a VA can give your company one up on the competition. Having SalesAdvisor™
implemented on your company website can help customers find what they are looking
for easily and answer any questions they may have about your products, all
while cross-selling. Since people are using their phones to access your website, it is a great idea to have someone/thing on their assisting the customer.
SalesAdvisor™ can also be used as a tool for employees to provide even better
customer service. Maybe implementing the VA on a company tablet?
The term “window shopping” has
changed throughout the 21st century because of the convenience of mini-computers
in the palm of our hand, 24/7. Point being, we should embrace what technology
brings to us, not fight it. Challenge ourselves to adapt to the times and
continue innovation.
Cheers.
