Retail looks different nowadays. COVID-19 changed how customers shop and, in turn, how retailers do business. Ecommerce is expected to reach $1 trillion in 2022, a milestone originally expected in 2024. Experts predict ecommerce will account for 24% of retail sales by 2025, up from 11% in 2019.
Going forward, retailers that wish to stay on top need to prioritize the convenience customers have come to expect. That means selling your products wherever and however customers expect to find them.
Offer your customers more ways to buy your products, and they’ll thank you with a boost in sales. In this post, we’re covering three ways to do just that.
1. Maximize online orders and social media sales
Making sales from your brick-and-mortar store is great, but to truly meet the needs of today’s consumers and boost your revenue, you need to be online. Remember, customers want omnichannel alternatives. They want the ability to click over to your product page from an ad or Google search, add to cart, and have your products come to their door.
Offering online sales creates a whole new stream of revenue for your store, as online revenues are assigned to the brick-and-mortar store that fulfills them. This strategy allows physical stores to continue making sales, even when their doors are closed to the public.
By using online sales, you can also reduce the cost of discounting merchandise that didn’t sell in-store. Simply put the products up for sale online and watch your stock sell out. Bonus tip: optimize your website with SEO keywords so customers can find you more easily online.
2. Leverage BOPIS to upsell and cross-sell
Buy online, pick up in-store (BOPIS) and curbside pickup are must-have options among consumers.
This is something big corporations have realized and are taking advantage of.
Research from The National Retail Federation shows that 70% of respondents believe BOPIS improved their shopping experience. Customers appreciate saving money on shipping fees and getting products as soon as possible.
In addition to making the initial sale, BOPIS allows you to upsell and cross-sell to your customers.
In an article by Supply Chain Dive, Jonathan Cherki, CEO of Contentsquare, explains that shoppers who buy online and pick up in-store tend to spend more money. This makes these customers an extremely valuable segment for retailers.
According to Target’s 2020 earnings report, multi-channel customers spent nearly 4 times more than store-only customers and 10 times more than online shoppers.
International Council of Shopping Centers data shows that out of the 50% of adult shoppers who use BOPIS, 67% of shoppers add additional items to their carts when they know they can pick them up immediately.
BOPIS also drives additional traffic to your stores. When customers who normally shop online choose to pick up in-store, that’s another person walking through your doors who may never have visited otherwise. And if you utilize smart product placement and sales tactics, there’s a chance they’ll purchase more than what they bought online.
3. Move dormant store inventory and reduce the need for discounts
Dormant store inventory can hurt retailers in a big way. When products aren’t moving, you’re losing money. You’re not selling those products, and they’re also taking away the opportunity to sell other merchandise on that shelf space. Storage costs can build up, too. In short, retailers need to focus on moving dormant store inventory as quickly and efficiently as possible.
By using your entire network of inventory, you can broaden the selection of products you’re able to offer online. This gives your customers more product choices, meaning they’ll be more likely to find what they’re looking for. Omnichannel order fulfillment can move products that linger on shelves, hogging valuable space for too long.
The most common way to get rid of dormant inventory is to cut the price, but that’s not a sustainable tactic. When you give your customers discounts, your sales may go up, but your overall profit margin goes down. In the long run, that’s a significant disadvantage to your company.
So how can you move dormant merchandise without resorting to deep discounts? If you’re selling online, try optimizing your SEO and product descriptions. For brick-and-mortar stores, experiment with product placement—the physical location of merchandise in the store. Leveraging your entire store inventory can help sell that slow merchandise. This will reduce the need to sell at deep discounts and save you money.
The bottom line is that you need to make your store inventory more accessible so your customers will make more purchases. Choose an OMS that is flexible, scalable, and efficient. Our platform is future-proof and composable, which means we provide a tailored solution to fit your needs. Our scalable business model allows you to start fast and grow as you go. We believe in enhancing what you already have, not ripping and replacing. We leverage your existing technology, so you don’t have to worry about costly re-platforming. We create the building blocks omnichannel retailers and grocers need to shape their commerce ecosystem.
