The Center for Retailing Studies at Texas A&M University, a College Station, TX-based resource for developing talent for more than 25 years, has released some holiday shopping tips designed to help retailers get the most out of the season. Here are three of the best:
• Embrace the Sophisticated Customer
Retailers overlook the tuned-in and ramped-up state of their customers at their peril. Today’s shoppers are not only on the hunt for good deals, but are more well versed than ever on where to find them. They’ve done their homework and have replaced the usual sense of urgency and pressure to buy with a well-researched thoughtfulness.
More, their expectations for value — along with such conveniences as free shipping, additional gifts with purchase and technology-equipped sales associates — are higher than ever. Taken together, this means retailers need to engage more comprehensive and nuanced customer service and less hard-slam selling tactics than before.
• Prep for a Busier Year
The link between lower gas prices and the holiday shopping scene may not be immediately obvious, but it could be significant to retailers’ performance this year. The price of oil has fallen almost 50 percent since its $105-a-barrel peak in June. Thanks to this, consumers have more bucks in their pockets and, say the experts, could be more inclined to spend them over the holiday season. Retailers should anticipate them mindfully.
• Play up Your Digital Side
That almost 90 percent of purchases still take place inside brick-and-mortar excuses no retailer from stretching its horizons into the digital space. A physical retail store that offers a more dynamic and interactive shopping experience than ever is the rationale behind many retailers’ decisions to upgrade their premises to include digital facelifts and technological enhancements. Think beacon technology, web-rooming (versus show-rooming), geolocation-based coupon alerts and apps, and anything else that invites the mobile experience into the storefront.
