What exactly is Showrooming?
Searching for information on your mobile phone while in a physical store is a very common situation, and, in fact, 50% of visitors to a store do so, according to a study by IAB in the United States. Of these consumers, the majority will end up buying the same product, either in another physical store (57%), at the same time via mobile phone (53%, I confess that I belong to this group ) or from the computer once they get home (51%). But the most interesting thing is that many of these customers also end up buying in the same store in its online version. So why not take advantage of Showrooming to attract sales to our e-commerce?
But the opposite phenomenon also occurs, and it is called architect phone number list Webrooming (also known as ROPO: Research Online Purchase Offline). Many people prefer to do the online search for their ideal product, and then go to the physical store to buy it. And the fact is that 69% of buyers in physical stores say they have previously searched for information online (according to a Google study in the United States). This is very typical when buying cars, for example.
And to finish off the round of concepts… another new trend in recent years is Boomerooming , named by the e-commerce consultancy RedSnapper: consumers look for information about the product online, go to the physical store to see it in person, but then complete the purchase online looking for the best price. According to this consultancy, 62% of British online shoppers engage in boomerooming (and 67% of them are women).
In Spain, these trends seem to be gradually taking hold and the figures, for the moment, are not so impressive, since e-commerce is still expanding (only 43% of Spaniards buy online compared to 82% of British ones). But according to the IAB Spain study, with data from 2016, 10% of customers in physical stores end up buying online. This figure may not yet be a threat, but it will continue to grow as e-commerce habits become more established.
So how do I take advantage of these trends if I have an e-commerce?
The first rule is: get in the game . We must think of the mobile phone as an ally rather than an enemy, and we must use the same tools as our potential buyer. Although we may think that visitors to our physical store can easily leave after comparing products online, we can also take advantage of the many advantages that having an online presence offers us and the marketing actions that we can carry out.
Don't be afraid of showrooming! Here are some things you can do:
1. Become an omnichannel! Integrate your online and offline environments.
If you have a physical store as well as an online store, you are in luck because there are many points that you can and should integrate into your strategy in both media. Some of these may be:
Offer in-store delivery for online purchases (along with product availability in the physical store as well).
Accept returns in the physical store for both online and offline purchases.
Run cross-channel promotions, with discount codes valid for online and offline or other special offers.
2. Attract customers to your online store.
If you are worried about webrooming, why not take advantage of it to attract in-person customers to your e-commerce? To do this, you can offer them attractive discounts or value propositions with a loyalty program or actions (being part of the club or brand, frequent discounts, receiving interesting advice, etc.). Some options
Offer discounts in your online store: simply by announcing that certain products are cheaper in the e-commerce.
Offer discounts in exchange for customer data: this is how you get leads (contacts) for your online store's email marketing campaigns . This is a very common practice in which the physical store offers a certain discount at the moment, or for the future. But be careful, don't ask for too much data!
Engage your customers on social media – through giveaways, contests or simply encourage them to upload photos of your products or store to Instagram. This way you will connect with your most social millennial audience and gain followers along the way.
3. Help them make a decision: highlight the advantages in your physical store.
Your physical store strategy doesn't have to be connected to your online store, but you can highlight the advantages that traditional shopping still offers. Some of these differential advantages that you can promote next to your products or at the checkout:
Highlights the price comparison: Cheaper than in XX e-commerce (if it is famous, even better)
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4. And vice versa, if you want to take advantage of webrooming to attract physical clients.
If we have both an online and physical channel, it is essential to connect them as well, and attract visitors to your traditional store if you have a website or an e-commerce. In this case we are talking about:
Attract customers to your physical store with Google My Business: in addition to appearing on Google Maps and in local searches, your visitors can also leave reviews and add photos and visit your website from the Google listing.
