Some twenty five years ago, an ingenious creation that is now taken for granted as our god given right to knowledge, entered our lives. Many of the youngsters that I work amongst on a day to day basis are younger than this gem and have never known what life was like before we had a wealth of information available at our fingertips. For these people, those weekends when you jumped on the bus as a teenager to head to your nearest shopping centre to spend the pennies you’d accumulated from your part time job probably seem a bit pointless, when nowadays you can have pretty much anything at your disposal simply from typing a few keywords into a search engine. You all know that I’m referring to the World Wide Web, and it’s changed the way we shop forever.
Changes in lifestyle
Without sounding too regurgitative of a million blog posts previous, I do think an important factor in the online vs offline battle is the fact that the pace and lifestyle of people, in particular women, has changed. Women have become increasingly more career driven which has required longer working hours and much more hectic lifestyles. After the working week is done, is the enthusiasm for browsing the stocked shelves and the hustle and bustle of the crowds as palatable as the simple swiping of their already downloaded app? This doesn’t just apply to the working woman, the stay at home mum doesn’t have the luxury of browsing time as a rule either. I’m not speaking from first hand experience so please forgive me if I speak out of turn but I can’t imagine trying to take a buggy and a toddler on a trip to the shops whilst it’s brimming with other hurried customers to be like an afternoon at the fair, even the most angelic of children surely has their day.
Is it not a welcome adjustment to be able to pop online in those few silent hours and pick out the necessities and treats in a few clicks. I’m not being one sided in my approach by referring to women in this statement, I do go on to ask the opinion of a man later on in the blog so please don’t push this into the column of ‘one of those blogs about women and their shopping habits’.
Conversion – Use it or lose them
So if the need for speed is there on the high street then it obviously needs to be there in the virtual world. So often companies spend thousands of pounds on an artsy over complicated website, without bearing their customer in mind. So often this over complication can be the downfall of their online conversion. I’m betting many a marketing manager has been dragged into a boardroom asking to explain why their marketing budget has been spent and their sales are down. If Joe public has to click their way through your entire website until they are greeted by the checkout, then guess what- they’re probably not going to make it that far! The more accessible other companies make their products then the more it will stand out if the consumer has to haul themselves through half your website before they get to the holy grail.
Price Points
That red sale banner is like a bull to a red rag for many consumer. That new kitchen appliance or pair of jeans suddenly seem like the only thing you’re missing from your life when there’s 50% off them, or is this just a condition that I suffer from? This is a pull that the high street has, it’s in your face and there’s rarely a time when not a single outlet is having yet another ‘end of stock sale’. We’re not just blessed with the January sales, they’re all year round. I know this should make us less susceptible to their allure because of their frequency but I know that doesn’t help me!
So how do the online giants combat this? They do it on the same frequency, but in my opinion they do it better. The use of flash sales promoted in email marketing campaigns and social media outlets mean that these sites are managing to reach the same audiences. In my experience the Online versions of their high street counterparts are better managed and you don’t tend to be met with an angry shop assistant whose main hatred in life is the restocking of shelves after the sales mob hit the store. Again, I’m using this as a sweeping generalisation. Not every person in retail wants to strangle you with the appliance you clutch just as not every shopper is a mad rage of greed and necessity…but have you ever tried to tackle the Next Sale after Christmas?
Customer Service
After recently attending a talk held by Tie Uk North where the guest speaker was Simon Arora, one of the brothers who has purchased and grown the retail giant B&M to some 370 stores, which in turn earns its title in the Sunday Times Fast Track 100 list on a repetitive basis. I found my ears pricking up when a piece of advice was given which quite frankly threw off my expectations. He stated quite boldly ‘do not to be afraid of the things you are bad at’, this was not the startling statement, it was Mr Arora’s acknowledgment that they are in his own words ‘bad at customer service’. This coming from a retailer that as of yet hasn’t embraced online retail and is not phased by the fact that his customer service is yet to be desired sparked me to ask busy entrepreneur and all round gentleman Gary Chaplin his views on his preferences as a working parent, customers service alignments online and offline and whether in his opinion there will always be a need for high street retail.
“I am favouring online more and more for reasons of convenience….but I still prefer the customer service of a good high-street/bricks-and-mortar store…. However, that is nothing really to do with being a father. If anything, my daughter likes a shopping trip so we’ll sometimes make an adventure of it. Ever the commercial opportunist (and yorkshireman) I like the ability to negotiate physical retail brings.
Customer service is vital in everything. Online reduces the ability to tailor that service but as a black and white medium, has the ability to offer greater service. Many still fall foul though – Amazon being the worst. I have 2+ Amazon deliveries per week, over 50% have some form of a problem with them. Excelling at emotive service is far more difficult with online, but is achievable. Look at the ways that Net-a-Porter has nailed the emotion of shopping online. Ditto the quirkier brands such as Firebox.com and MOO.com, bringing higher service through humour and simply doing what they say they will!”
Recalling some personal experiences of bad customer service online, I was intrigued to know whether Gary would stop buying from a brand offline if their counterpart online performed poorly;
“Yes, but only if there was a genuine alternative, or if it was particularly bad. Amazon is dire, but have a monopoly so there is minimal choice to shop elsewhere…in the short-term. There are several brands that I won’t buy direct online and will choose to purchase through a (usually high-street) retailer/distributor/etc due to poor service from the Brand themselves.”
To conclude I looked for the Headhunters opinion on whether there would always be a need for high street retail;
“In certain markets, yes. Repeatable commodity goods will, and probably already have shifted online for most people…but anything specific, tailored or with vital variables will still be the domain of the Brick-and-Mortar retailer. Service levels will always be untouchable (potentially at least). EG; I would never buy clothes online as fit becomes so variable and choice becomes attractive. But beyond that, shopping is becoming a more leisure-based pursuit – the task element is being replaced with e Commerce/eCommerce/mCommerce/etc”
I find myself agreeing with Gary’s statement about Customer service being vital in everything and this leads me to the social media outlets of retail.
Social Media- Friend or foe?
Our complaints and praise of a business are no longer refined to a corner of a store. They are there in black and white for other potential customers to see, and if a company don’t monitor this is can be nothing short of detrimental to their brand and business.
I’m privy to keyboard warriors on a day to day basis and I’ll be quite honest I find myself quite intrigued by peoples behaviour online as I’m certain it wouldn’t mirror their offline counterpart should the situation arise. I’m not afraid to speak my mind, all too often some might argue, but if I have a problem with a product I like to try and deal with it in a more private manner before bombarding their social media team with my complaint.
After sending what I would consider a polite yet accurate description via email of the failings of the product I purchased to a brand whom is on every high street and does equally as well online and after no response from their customer service line, I found myself taking to Twitter to ask if their social media team were more responsive than their customer service team, in short, they weren’t. This didn’t trigger a tirade of online abuse from me, but it left a bitter taste in my mouth with the brand. Looking into other online representatives of brands on Twitter it seems that unless you go kicking and screaming and it has the potential to go viral these bigger brands will disregard your comments and let you disappear down the timeline.
On the other hand if you are to praise their staff, product or experience I’m sure you’ll find a courteous ‘retweet’ coming your way. Social media works well for online giants that man their social media communications well between their offline counterparts and can earn them virtual high fives and viral kudos.
Is there an answer?
The proof is there that online sales are on the up and will continue to grow as more and more companies become tech savvy and I truly believe shopping habits will advance even further with quirkier app developments and more accessibility given to the consumer. This of course means that offline counterparts will suffer if they are not giving their customers the same potential online. A step in the right direction of improved customer service and shopping experience in the store will make offline retail seem like a warmer more personal counterpart. But with online being so accessible in this day and age can any retailer run the risk of being complacent on the high street?