On The Blog

Almost half (40%) of shoppers said delivery is the single most decisive factor in the shopping experience. Yet, delivery issues could cost retailers $333 million this holiday season, not including an additional $1.5 billion in potential lost revenue from shoppers who won’t return after a poor experience.

Brands constantly look for new channels to engage with consumers and mobile wallets are often underutilized—yet promising—tools that can do just that. People use physical wallets to hold their rewards cards, gift cards and more—and expect the same capabilities from their mobile wallets.

But until a mobile wallet can provide the same functionality as a physical one, there’s no reason for consumers to leave their leather billfold at home. Mobile wallets that don’t bridge this gap are less likely to be used to their full potential because they don’t provide consumers with added value that eliminates the need for a physical wallet—causing brands to miss out on engagement opportunities.

Customer loyalty is no longer the powerhouse that it once was. In the digital age, consumers expect top-notch customer service, and the ability to buy what they want, anywhere, and anytime, through various channels, offline and online. With brick-and-mortar stores seeing fewer and fewer purchases while online sales continue to enjoy meteoric rises, retailers must face the music, and it’s a whole new dance card.  

The human touch is important, and many business leaders equate great customer service with a customer’s ability to reach an actual person quickly. But company leaders who aspire to deliver excellent customer support should be aware that today’s customers increasingly demand the tools and resources to resolve problems themselves.

Keeping customers engaged with your rewards program can be tough.  In order to keep them interested, your customers need to be constantly reminded of your program’s benefits. Otherwise, they might forget why they joined the first place, potentially costing you business and having a negative effect on your bottom line. 

Around 80% of consumers use mobile phones inside a physical store to check product reviews, according to a recent study by website design firm Outerbox, underlining the advent of the omnichannel shopping era.

Combine this with the growing spending power of the notoriously choosy Millennial generation and it is easy to see why some commentators have branded the concept of customer loyalty as dead.

It is clear from the study that consumers want speed, convenience and timely communication for a better BOPIS experience. Currently, a small portion of total purchases are completed through click and collect, but it is growing in use, with 49% of Americans trying it for the first time in 2016.

Retailers can benefit from creating a winning in-store experience — 59% of buyers expect to purchase additional items at least some of the time. Retailers should explore if they can provide incentives to convert the 41% of customers who are not likely to purchase additional items. 

It is interesting to note that 77% of shoppers did not want to be dragged all the way to the back of the store to pick up their items. Businesses should balance their financial motives to upsell patrons entering their stores to pick up their items with the speed and convenience that they expect.

Retailers should focus on creating a winning in-store experience by enabling what matters most to click and collect consumers: speed, convenience and timely communication.

The store of the future will become the most powerful media channel available to a brand, offering customer experiences that are the most profitable product a retailer can sell. But to get there, retail as we know it must die.