Content-Rich Experiences Aid The Store, Too
By Erin Harris, Editor-In-Chief, Cell & Gene
Follow Me On Twitter @ErinHarris_1
In the latest issue of Integrated Solutions For Retailers, Matt Pillar wrote a great article about how a specialty retailer’s video wall and the content it displays drive traffic into the store. The article itself is a reminder that video wall or not, delivering content-rich experiences to the customer is key to bringing the sophistication of the online experience to the store.
Content assets can aid the customer in context — in the store. Product content (i.e. descriptions, pricing, product images, reviews, and recommendations) and brand content (i.e. videos, advice, how-to’s, marketing images) may be featured simultaneously via kiosks, digital signage, video walls, associate-facing mobile devices, as well as on the consumer’s smartphone. Since price and product assortment are no longer true differentiators, retailers can leverage brand content to engage the customer, knowing that the engagement must be seamless regardless of how she shops the brand.
Live chat, speedy email responses, social engagement on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and Pinterest, videos on YouTube and Vine, and more help improve the customer’s online experience. Store-level associates who have access to this aggregated content help the business in several ways. Armed with the information necessary to have meaningful conversations with the customer, associates can create an emotional connection, converting a browser into a buyer. Further, and evidenced by the aforementioned article, retailers can use content to deliver brand advertising, products, or entertainment. Pete Censoplano, VP of operations and marketing at Sun Diego Boardshops explains how the retailer uses content-rich experiences to improve the customer experience. Matt writes,
Censoplano is quick to admit that Sun Diego Boardshops wasn’t looking for any complex interactivity or customer analytics from the project. “We just wanted to wow our customers and create a cool experience, Censoplano says, but Grandview helped us evolve our vision into a marketing project. The fact that customers stop in the store and stare at it is justification enough for our vendors to participate, and because Grandview manages all the content, a weight is taken off my back from the marketing perspective.”
Reimagining the store to include content-rich experiences that cater to the needs of the customer can transform the shopping experience. These experiences create atmosphere and entertainment and add value by potentially increasing the average purchase amount, form repeat buyers, improve brand awareness, and as Sun Diego Boardshops experienced, raise in-store traffic. There are plenty of available technologies that help retailers bridge the gap between personalized, local digital content and commerce while making it simple to execute — and yielding measurable results.