Getting people to come to your store is one thing, but getting them to make a purchase and consider doing business with you is another. While many people still prefer the in-store experience to online purchasing, brick-and-mortar locations have to work twice as hard to provide a comfortable, convenient, and entertaining environment that meets the growing expectations of their target audience. Those who are successful in providing a positive in-store experience for their customers increase their chances of gaining new and repeat business daily.
If you’ve recently opened a retail location whether it be clothes and shoes or groceries, here are some effective tips to motivate customers to continue visiting your store.
Train Your Staff
A great in-store experience starts with quality customer service. When customers feel they are treated right they are more inclined to do business with you. Great service starts and ends with your staff. Not only is it important that you have enough people on hand to service customers, but they must also possess the necessary skills and etiquettte to tend to the needs of your ideals customers. From how to greet people as they come in to how to offer advice and drive sales without being pushy, your team needs to be trained at on-boarding and throughout their careers.
Embrace Technology For Convenience
What makes online shopping so convenient is speed. With various technological platforms, people are able to search for what they want and make a purchase with ease. The same needs to take place in your store to provide the best experience. Utilize tools for business that allow you to expedite transactions and get your customers in and out efficiently. From point-of-sale technology to advanced cash registers and credit card machines, there are plenty of resources you can use to streamline the checkout process and provide convenience to your customers. You do not have to implement all of this in-house or on your own. You can take help from companies like Code Corp that offer state-of-the-art barcode scanning technology to retailers of all sizes, and other technology companies that help out with retail technology.
Create a Clean and Safe Space
When people pass by and enter your retail store they should feel that the space is clean and safe. There should be no garbage or debris in or around the property, any foul odors need to be eliminated, surfaces need to be cleaned and sanitized regularly, everything in the store needs to have a place that does not create tripping hazards or other safety issues. To provide a safe space, you will also need to ensure that all the property systems are kept up to par including the heating, cooling, plumbing, and electrical.
As doing this all yourself is time-consuming and tedious, it is recommended that you hire a professional cleaning service as well as commercial contractors to maintain the property for you. When problems arise (as they sometimes do), you can call on these service providers to help you rectify the matter right away.
Tap Into The Senses
If you want to improve customer experience find ways to tap into their senses. When they walk into your storefront, they should be able to see, smell, touch, hear, and even taste things that appeal to them. Start with the overall design of your store. The colors chosen should be easy on the eyes but attractive to your target audience. Products should be displayed in a manner that is easy to see, touch, taste, and experience. The right music selection can also help to add to the overall mood and culture of the store. Follow all of this up with aromatherapy using oil diffusers, air fresheners, candles, and other items to enhance the smell.
Make it Comfortable
Last, but not least, your retail store should provide comfort to all those who enter it. There are a lot of ways this can be accomplished depending on the type of shop you run. Having a comfortable seating or waiting area with plenty of chairs, tables, and forms of entertainment like magazines, books, and a television for customers who have to wait makes their waiting experience more comfortable.
Offering light refreshments like water, tea, coffee, donuts, or cookies for clients or customers keeps those hunger cravings away as they do business. Providing shopping carts or baskets for customers to hold the items they’re going to purchase keeps them from straining to hold it themselves. Essentially, anything that is going to make your customers’ shopping experience more comfortable is worth looking into.
Retail stores aren’t dead. Though consumers do appreciate the convenience of being able to shop for things they want and need online, many still prefer the in-store experience. If you’re going to continue to attract and retain customers to your store, it is essential that you utilize methods such as those described above to create an experience they’ll appreciate, tell others about, and keep coming back for.