By Bob Phibbs
From The Floor
3 Ways the Coronavirus Pandemic Will Change Retail Forever
Part 2 - How Retail Can Regain Its Strength
Keeping Associates Without Skills Needs to End Shoppers come into your store to buy and browse , to try things and to turn things on . They go online when they know exactly what they want .
Say I need an ink cartridge for my printer . I ’ m probably going to order that online because I don ’ t need to go in and ask some guy with a ring of keys to unlock a case , hand it to me , and ask me , “ Anything else ?” I can buy that one item online much more efficiently .
But if I DO go into the store to get that cartridge , the mistake many retailers are still making is assuming that is all I came in to get . They stupidly ignore that I ’ m open to discovery and suggestion . After all , I could have gotten what I wanted online .
With less traffic , you can ’ t have any associate on your floor who can ’ t suggest complementary items and associated merchandise to help make the in-store visit more authentic , efficient , and profitable . Those who can ’ t must be relegated to other roles or let go altogether .
Retail used to be the great democratizer . Anyone could ask , “ Can I help you ?” and get away with it . Not now . The connected consumer knows what they want but is still open to being persuaded to better options .
I sold shoes in college . If I wanted to eat , I had to sell . So , if I went to the stockroom and if I didn ’ t have a nine in the style my customer wanted , I had to quickly pivot and find two similar choices to show them because otherwise I wouldn ’ t make the sale .
Nowadays , most employees would simply say : “ The tablet says we don ’ t have it ; we can ship it to you .” The problem is , the sale isn ’ t complete until it is tried on . The goal is to get a satisfied customer today , not to kick uncertainty down the road – or online . Employees still have to be able to engage a stranger , discover why they ’ re there , and then ultimately get them to want to buy something from you .
Every associate and manager has to come to work every day and feel they own the success of the store , and we must reward responsibility and accountability – not length of service .
Merchant Mentality Needs to Return There is a big difference between someone who owns a retail store and a merchant . A merchant is always looking at how to improve the turn of their merchandise , how to raise margins , and how to improve conversion rates . That knowledge and focus has to be learned by retail owners who expect to survive in the post-pandemic world .
In short , your employees and smart merchandising can do a lot more to grow sales than curbside delivery can .
Lana Negrete Fernandez , whose family owns the Santa Monica Music Center in Santa Monica , CA , told Adweek that for major purchases like a musical instrument , seeing and feeling the item in question ahead of actually making the purchase is a major part of the shopping experience .
“ We can ’ t say , ‘ Oh , you ’ d like to buy a $ 3,000 saxophone ? Well , look at it on the internet and we ’ ll toss it into your car from the curb ,’” she said .
Brick-and-mortar stores are the hub of a profitable business , but the story of winners and losers will come down to merchant skills like investing in technology and innovative approaches to customer acquisition .
Oh , and those who have never worked in a retail store have got to stop creating training programs ; employees have to learn more and merchant owners have to hold them accountable for doing the right things .
Digital Innovation Must Be Embraced While many retailers found Facebook Live videos lifesavers for connecting with customers online , moving forward will mean embracing technology to be able to sell remotely . Using hardware like Dten . com and connecting to advanced POS systems like Shopify or Springboard Retail will help you sell online using video to stay connected with shoppers .
Forget messaging or selling over the phone ; the way forward is click-to-startvideo chat . Instead of waiting in your store for someone to walk in , be available online where the journey starts and you can use all your rapport skills to get the sale .
To do this , you ’ ll also need to offer product transparency online . Shoppers won ’ t leave their home unless they know you have the product they need . That will involve more sophisticated tracking of inventory and regular checks to monitor inventory levels .
The opportunities right now may never been greater , but for existing retailers , now is more like opening a new business than restarting .
In Sum A bright spot in these retail trends ? While you can work alone at home , you can ’ t work as a team alone . I suspect “ Zoom fatigue ” will set in for many , but it doesn ’ t change the reality at least in the near term – there are fewer trips to your store ’ s neighbourhood ; your shopper has gone online to work , shop , and get food . We must follow and engage them there before they will return to anything like normal behavior .
While the retail industry was forced to add tech tools during the virus shutdowns , we need to be careful about predicting how shoppers have changed for good .
As malls and landlords reduce rents , a new wave of smaller retailers , restaurants , and boutiques will reinvent the mall away from big and homogenous to unique and curated . In the long run , that is better for everyone . We have to remind ourselves that , for now , it ’ s still going to be a day-to-day struggle . You ’ re in the hope business . If you don ’ t give it to your employees , they ’ ll never give it to your customers . If you can do that – especially with fewer shoppers coming in the doors – you can survive to see the next holiday season .
This article was originally published on retail expert Bob Phibbs ’ The Retail Doctor Blog , which features a host of free retail-focused and business-building content . Access the blog along with more information on The Retail Doctor ’ s sales training , consulting , and more at www . retaildoc . com .
CANADIAN MUSIC TRADE 9