clineteling for small buisness
TRANSCRIPT
Clienteling for Small Business
Agenda§ Paths to Purchase§ Enterprise Inventory§ Save the “Sale”
Clienteling for Small Business
With increased competition across multiple channels, small to mid-‐sized retailers now more than ever must optimize every sale. Leveraging the right POS system can help retailers create distinct customer profiles with unique buyer preferences to increase sales and enable better customer service.
Multiple Paths to Purchase
CustomerEngagement
Multiple System of Records
Item Inventory Customer &Order
Payment
Brick & Mortal Point of Sale Physical Physical Physical Physical
Online (desktop and mobile)
e-‐Commerce Platform Virtual Virtual Virtual Virtual
Market PlaceMarket Place Platform Virtual Virtual Virtual Virtual
Customer Call Center
OMS Virtual Virtual Virtual Virtual
Path to Purchase
Clienteling for Small Business
SOURCE: Retail Prophet – Doug Stephens
“The purpose of retail will no longer be to solely convert every customer into a buyer of goods but rather transform them into disciples of the brand itself.
To begin a relationship – a dialogue that may play out in any number of buying channels; online, in-store, mobile or elsewhere.
It doesn’t matter where purchases take place. What matters is that the consumer falls in LOVE with the brand and shares that love with others. The store maintains the potential to be that emotional center of gravity for the brand.”
Clienteling for Small Business
• According to KISSMetrics, 71% of consumers have stopped buying from a company because of poor customer service. Whether or not you tell your customers that you care about their experience with your brand, their perception is reality when it comes to your bottom line.•While it’s common knowledge that customer retention is much cheaper than finding new customers, many (perhaps most) companies focus on customer acquisition, even though it’s around 7 times more expensive.
Clienteling for Small BusinessStep 1: Define your Strategy
• As a retailer, you must design a program that is consistent with your brand, that meets growth objectives and can be implemented
• What is the personalized experience you want your brand to deliver?• Who is eligible for the program? (For example: Loyalty Program)• What is the incentive for shoppers to sign up?• How will shoppers be recognized?• How do we define success?• The strategy will guide all subsequent decisions and requirements, particularly
decisions about data and technology.
How do you want your customer to engage with you and how do you want to leave an imprint on them
Clienteling for Small Business
Step 2: Assemble the DataRetailers have to collect, assemble, transform and deliver customer data from all available touch points, including the web, mobile apps, catalogs and store visits.
• Personally identifiable information (or PII)• Prior purchase history (all channels)• Customer Preferences and Product Recommendations• Customer service contacts… who has touched the customer• Retailers have invested heavily in CRM solutions in the past 10-‐15 years. Those
systems typically include most of the data needed to launch a clientelingprogram.
Enterprise Inventory Visibility
• The days of writing notes on lined paper in little notebooks are over. As a quick internet search will demonstrate, the market is crowded with software vendors offering clientelingsolutions.
• The market is converging on mobile applications with a heavy emphasis on smart phones and iPads.
• The primary function of these applications is to empower sales associates with customer information.
• In addition, the applications may offer integrations with social media, CRM solutions and mobile POS software.
• You need to carefully evaluate functionality, scalability and cost before selecting a solution.
Step 3: Implement Clienteling Software
Clienteling for Small BusinessStep 4: Train, Measure and Incentivize Sales Associates
• Sales associates are the figurative face of your brand. They are interacting with your best customers, constantly making impressions, creating expectations and delivering on commitments.
• It’s important to ensure that any cleintelingprogram is implemented as designed every time by every associate. The only way to maintain quality and consistency is through ongoing training.
• And, nothing makes training stick like ongoing measurement and incentives for compliance/performance. (For example capturing email).
• Sales associates have to own the program. • Management must give them the training and incentives to make that a reality.
Clienteling for Small Buisness
Step 5: Test, Test, Test….• Successful programs evolve over time. In order to get the most out of clientelingsolutions, retailers must establish ongoing test and learn programs. • This starts with defining, collecting and publishing Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) for the program. • The next step involves implementing a testing roadmap to understand the impact of changing major program levers. Important areas for testing include offers (product recommendations, discounts, specials, etc.); sales scripting and engagement protocols; and contract strategy (content, frequency and channel of communication about the program). • Correctly designed tests with control groups and adequate samples sizes are a must.
Integrated POS with Clienteling
• What has she bought from me and when• What channels has she bought from me• What are her preferences• What is her average spend per TX• How many items does she buy per TX• What is her return rate• Does she have anything in her wish list• What are her loyalty points • Who has helped her in the past