Everyone knows that the retail landscape is evolving at a rate so fast that it’s nearly impossible to keep up.
While many retailers have fallen behind, others are experimenting with new business models, operations, and store management, as well as capitalizing on new technologies in order to grow in an increasingly tough market.
Nordstrom, in particular, is doing all it can to bridge the gap between bricks and clicks by focusing more attention and resources on technology platforms, fulfillment capabilities, and personalization in an attempt to create the most seamless experience possible for its customers.
For example, Nordstrom’s recent acquisition of Trunk Club – an e-commerce company that offers personal styling and shopping services for men – reflects Nordstrom’s dedication to its long-term, strategic growth priorities.
Furthermore, the acquisition of Trunk Club not only capitalizes on the fastest growing segment in apparel and the increased popularity of the personal styling space, but it also perfectly integrates the online and offline customer experience – which is perhaps one of the most crucial steps retailers can take to remain relevant to consumers.
Trunk Club customers can seamlessly experience the service across both the web and in-store with showrooms in Chicago, Dallas, Washington, D.C., and soon in LA. These showrooms allow shoppers to try on their selections as well as meet face-to-face with their stylists.
And now with the support of Nordstrom, customers can go to any Nordstrom department store location and have access to its experienced tailors.
Retail Redefined
You see, even as online channels increase in importance, brick and mortar retail is far from dead – it’s just evolving.
The majority of sales and profits will continue to come from and be directly influenced by brick and mortar stores.
As such, the retail concepts that will ultimately win – whether they started as pure-play e-commerce sites or physical stores – are going to have seamless experiences across all touchpoints, including physical store locations.
And when you really boil that down, the retailers that will experience the most growth are the ones who move past the so called “average” customer and the latest trends.
Successful retailers will dive deeply into data and apply the customer insights gleaned to develop solid acquisition, growth and retention strategies.
Because in this new world, there are no one-size fits all strategies. Everything must be personalized to who your customers are – and that includes your online channels as well as the technology you integrate into your stores.
The Bottom Line:
It all comes down to this extremely important point: customer data and insight are essential when shaping retail strategies, setting business goals, optimizing marketing activity, refining e-commerce strategies and implementing solutions that are aligned with company objectives and customer behavior.
Without the proper insight, it becomes nearly impossible to meet customer expectations or optimize marketing and sales channels, and the consequences of that can be devastating.
However, with the proper analytic solution, it’s possible to achieve the type of understanding necessary to reveal the specific values, needs and expectations of your customers. This, in turn, will allow you to focus your resources on the channels and technology that will deliver the greatest ROI.
If you need help or just a little guidance on how to shape all your business strategies based on what your customers actually want, then we should talk.
