RAISING THE RETAIL GAME
TIMES ARE TOUGH for independent retailers, yet small shops do not have to put up the shutters. The pedestrian pound can keep on walking to the tills. Simply, local operators have to fight back against problems such as high business rates and crippling parking restrictions. Crucially, they must raise their games in the face of dramatically changed, online-inspired consumer habits. Take heart that the switch from traditional shopping to ecommerce is far from unstoppable.
Survival isn’t going to be a stroll down the aisles and many more traders will close their doors for good. Recent research concluded that four out of five sales in the UK are influenced by what is seen online.
By now, shoppers who want to browse the super highway before they buy are in the majority. Yet many are happy to complete the deal locally – although they might take the click and collect route.
What these prospects need as their starting point is an abundance of quality information. The best of the smaller retailers know they have to feed this demand.
It is essential that they present an easy-to-navigate website. Not necessarily an ecommerce site, but it has to generate a worthwhile experience, and, most definitely, be optimised for smartphones and tablets. Statistics show that over 40% of users will switch straight to the main competitor after a bad mobile encounter.
REFRESHED OFTEN
The site should explain the total offering: simply, logically and graphically. Refreshed often, of course. Answer those frequently asked questions and be totally transparent on issues such as discounts and returns policies. Traffic in trust and you will build business. Online, your shop is open all day, every day.
People are switched on to sizing up choices from the comfort of home surroundings. Thereafter, they may well pre-order, then take themselves off to the shops.
Often, staff know customers by name. Consumers like to chat while they are being served. It is much harder for bigger rivals or those without bricks and mortar to develop these direct relationships.
Customer satisfaction is key. How often buyers return to your shop or website is vital for continued survival and likely growth. So, listen to feedback and act where necessary. Use social media to reach out further. Engage people on a regular basis, soliciting dialogue.
EFFORTS WORKING
These are the sorts of efforts that seem to be working. In addition to positive reactions to the Internet threat, there is evidence of a fightback against the multiples.
Scrutiny highlighted by ‘The Telegraph’ newspaper has shown that one in every five consumers is doing more of his or her shopping at small outlets than in previous years and 13% deliberately seek out indie retailers.
A study by market researchers The Leadership Factor, polling 2,000 adults across the UK, indicates that over half of UK consumers shop with the relative minnows of retailing at least once per week. There is a clear rise in the ‘little and often’ shopping trend, in place of the overloaded weekly supermarket trolley.
Independent purveyors are popular because they offer better service, often with higher quality goods, and, significantly, they are becoming easier to find on the Internet. This ability to cope with moves to online perusal and to take part in what’s going on look like saving the day.
Shops of every shape and size face stiff and stiffening challenges. Local high streets will never be the same again. Eventually, though, there could be an improvement on what went before. Might it pay to be small, after all?
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