from idea to doorstep - fitforcommerce€¦ · introduction between 2010 and 2014, ecommerce grew...
TRANSCRIPT
From Idea to Doorstep
John Kinsella, Vice President, Sr. Consultant, FitForCommerce
Agenda
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1. Introduction
2. The Foundation
3. Merchandising
4. Planning and Sourcing
5. Content
6. User Experience
7. Marketing Acquisition
8. Marketing Retention
9. Selling
10. Marketplaces
11. Order Management
12. Payments
13. In-Store
14. Fulfillment
15. Customer Service
16. Analytics & Reporting
17. Conclusion
Introduction
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The evolution of technology and the Internet has a direct correlation with the acceleration of digital commerce, challenging the survival of traditional retail.
Introduction
▪ Between 2010 and 2014, ecommerce grew by an average of $30 billion annually. Over the past three years, average annual growth has increased to $40 billion.
▪ Online and other non-store sales are expected to grow 8 to 12 percent this year, and digital’s influence on in-store sales continues to grow.
▪ The importance of digital commerce continues to rise – brick and mortar retail is not dead, but traditional retail as we once knew it no longer exists. The industry is changing and it is upon all of us to reinvent what traditional retail means.
➢ As we look ahead, we expect to see further consolidation of the retail market, improved use of data and a greater need to connect and blend in-store and digital experiences.
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Did you know?
Our Take
Pro
cess &
Tech
no
log
ies
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The Foundation
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The Silo Approach The Cross-Functional Approach
People Technology Innovation
Foundation: Our Take
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People are your greatest innovationThe right people are the most valuable asset for your organization. Ensure that you give them the tools to keep
developing their skills and the technology to empower them to collaborate and best serve your customers.
It’s all about the common goalRemember that your customer has a relationship with your brand, not a series of channels and departments. Ensure
your organization structure, goals, performance measurements, metrics and rewards are designed to achieve strategic
‘above the channel’ objectives for a world-class customer experience and long-term customer value.
66% of digital commerce selections end in divorceChoosing the right platform or solution to meet identified requirements is a time-consuming and resource-intensive – but
necessary – project. Investing in, and implementing, the wrong solution can have a detrimental impact on your overall
business.
Separate the wheat from the chaffCreate ‘Innovation Pods’ or team up with a partner to develop and prioritize projects, and recommend innovative
solutions to improve the customer experience.
Proper training is keyContinually look for ways to improve and optimize the use of your technology platforms. Review performance ongoing
and hold the selected provider accountable 60-90 days after implementation to find other ways to improve performance.
Merchandising
Tools:
▪Product Assortment Management
▪Product Content Management
▪Advanced Analytics Platform
▪Catalog Management
▪Searchandising
▪Recommendations
▪Gifting
▪Price Optimization
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Recommendation
Price & Color Filter
Product Content
Searchandising
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3 Strategies to Increase Digital Commerce Conversion Rates over 40%
Increase Product AssortmentDrive customers directly from
Social Media to your store
Implement multi-pricing
strategies
Offer products from other sellers
in your online store.
Offering these products will
increase your assortment and
reduce you Customer Acquisition
Cost (CAC) simply and
conveniently.
Actively engage social media
users who wish to buy online.
Add a “Buy Now” button to make
a seamless shopping experience
with fewer clicks.
Offer the right item, to the right
people, at the right time, AT THE
RIGHT PRICE.
Competitiveness depends on
the campaign, target, and
competitors.
$
Merchandising: Our Take
Understand your customers’ journey to drive them to product
Develop processes to get them to the desired product as easily as possible. Test content and optimize on-site search, banners, product recommendations, landing pages, categories pages, and product detail pages.
Know what you need and assess what you have
Many retailers struggle with determining whether their chosen digital commerce platform’s merchandising capabilities are sufficient to support their strategy. The answer is: “It depends.” You need to assess your merchandising needs and internal resources, and then select technologies that fit.
The secret sauce is the data
One of the advantages of digital commerce is the easy access it provides to merchandising data, transactional data, and customer behavior data. The combination is a powerful instrument to optimize your ROI. Don’t let your data go under-utilized.
Your gift card program should be a revenue generator
Merchandise your gift card program as thoughtfully as you would any major product line. Allocate enough resources (cash, time, and site real estate) to ensure its success.
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Planning and Sourcing
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Tools:
▪Enterprise Resource Planning
▪ Inventory/Merchandise Planning
▪Vendor Managed Inventory (VMI)
▪Demand Planning
Did you know that 63% of retailers upgrade their Merchandising Planning systems every 2 years?
Collaborative Supply Chain Mgmt System
Planning: Our Take
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Don’t risk losing repeat customersGenerally, the more often you can turn over and refresh your merchandise assortment, the more loyal and frequent
customers will be. In order to keep customers coming back, both in store and online, you must constantly update
your inventory assortment and release new products in order to stay relevant.
It’s their world (consumers) - we just live in it (retailers)Consumers constantly demand new, better and more personalized products and choices. And they demand it on
their schedule. In other words: they want what they want when they want it. It’s your job to give it to them, and that
requires careful planning.
Change management starts earlyMarket the project internally, especially to customer-facing employees. Involve end-users in testing and
certification. Budget enough money for training. Don’t forget external stakeholders like customers, suppliers and
other partners.
Don’t let a volatile marketplace dictate your successThe right planning tools will leverage data to help you predict demand and proactively meet customer expectations.
Inventory planning should be customer-centricYour inventory planning should be customer-centric rather than product-centric. With the right tools you should
leverage what you learn about your customers from digital commerce to inform your inventory strategies.
Content
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Content tools:
▪Personalization
▪Photography/Video
▪Lifestyle/Editorial
▪Content Management
▪Product Information Management
▪Asset Management
▪User Generated content
▪ Influence the Influencers
How-Tos & Buying Guides
Stories, Photos, Videos on HP
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85%
73%
59%
44%
39%
Enhance Product Content
Create more Editorial Content
Incorporate User-Generated content on site (e.g. Instagram)
Create Videos – Shoppable and Lifestyle
Focus on influencer content (Youtubers, bloggers, stylists, etc.)
Focus areas for your content strategyPersonalizing Content
Content: Our Take
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While content is king, context is queenWith the right data, content assets, and technology in place, you can determine the personalization strategy that is
right for your customers – and for you!
Kick it up a notchProduct descriptions and catchy headings are no longer enough. Retailers need to create more engaging, visual, and
personalized content in order to capture the attention of an ever-fleeting audience.
Make it matterWhile many brands have invested and adopted content marketing into their overall strategy, many still struggle to
properly integrate content into the purchase path. Integrate content into product pages and provide shoppable
functionality (add-to-cart or “save for later” lists) in lifestyle and educational content.
Make your content social-friendly• Allow content to be shareable to increase its reach and likelihood for recommendation.
• Provide a way for users to share or upload their own content onto your site when it features your products.
• Enable UGC wherever possible, particularly with product detail pages.
A picture is worth a thousand wordsDon’t cut corners around product photography. Be sure to include multiple rich photos, detailed imagery, swatches,
and even video when appropriate.
User Experience
Tools:
▪Design and Creative
▪Usability
▪Web Application Optimization
▪Site Search/Navigation
▪Reviews and ratings
▪Personalization
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Responsive Site
Ratings & Reviews
Personalization
User Experience: Our Take
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Don't lose customers because they had a poor user experienceA minor mishap or poor experience can result in a lost sale and the possibility that the shopper will never return.
User Experience extends beyond the design teamAlthough much of the user experience work might fall under the responsibility of the design and development team, every
member of a retail organization must consider the impact of every decision they make about the user experience – that includes
buyers, merchandisers, marketers, operations, fulfillment, and of course, designers and UX/UI employees.
Let "Personas" set the directionCreate between 2 to 4 User Personas to identify similar customer types. Understanding the demographics, motivations, goals,
task flows, and desired functionality of your customers will help you prioritize and improve site design.
Consult the expertsConsider partnering with an agency that understands your brand, customers, and, most importantly, digital commerce best
practices.
A slow-performing site is simply unacceptableIn today’s fast-paced world, it only takes a few seconds to drive shoppers away due to a slow site. You don’t have to trim the
applications you use, but instead, leverage tools to ensure optimal performance of your site at all times.
Marketing Acquisition
Tools:▪ Paid Search
▪ Search Engine Optimization
▪ Display/Targeting
▪ Mobile
▪ Social
▪ Affiliates
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Ranking #1 in natural & paid search
Using content in display ad for content site
Marketing Acquisition: Our Take
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Give them what they wantThe goal of a successful marketing acquisition strategy is to anticipate shopper needs – where and when they
search – to make sure they find you and the products you sell.
You cannot do it all – at least, not alonePaid search is constantly evolving. The deployment and management of a successful search engine marketing
strategy requires highly-skilled expertise and is extremely time consuming. Don’t be afraid to go outside for help.
Quality mattersWhile shopper traffic is great, it doesn’t matter much unless it is the right people (those who will actually buy your
products). It is critical to know your prospective customers and target your acquisition strategies to your audience.
Don't get too comfortableAs Google’s algorithms get more sophisticated, SEO strategies must become more sophisticated, too. It is almost
impossible for retailers to stay up-to-date on SEO best practices without a dedicated SEO resource or the help of
an external partner.
Marketing Retention
Tools: ▪ Email/Marketing Automation
▪ CRM
▪ Loyalty
▪ Personalization
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Email triggered by local weather
Member-based loyalty program
Personalized Birthday email w/ coupon
Marketing Retention: Our Take
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Tap into the customer lifecycleThe most successful retention marketing strategies involve leveraging data to identify where the individual shopper
is in the customer journey and using those insights to create relevant marketing messages at key moments.
Devices matterDesign with delivery formats (mobile, desktop, tablet) in mind. Work with your email partner and creative to deliver
email based on optimized formats. Emails optimized for mobile greatly increase conversion, sales, and ROI.
Make sure the program is omnichannelMany shoppers engage with brands in multiple ways – online, mobile, and in-store. Make sure that customers can
use the program across all channels.
Use your dataUsing customer and behavioral data to target customers with the best products and offers will help to increase their
loyalty. Retention strategies, specifically email, involve CRM and targeting the best customer at the right time with
the best message.
Selling
Tools:
▪ Ecommerce/Digital Commerce Platforms
▪ Mobile Ecommerce
▪ Global
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Platform w/ content management & responsive design
Digital Commerce Platform Best Practice Functionality
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Choosing the Right Deployment Model:
CloudSoftware hosted in the cloud, with cloud environments such as Amazon, Azure, Google, Dimension Data, etc.
SaaSSoftware as a service, hosted either in the cloud or by the ecommerce platform company inside their hosting environment
On premiseSoftware and hardware is hosted by the retailer either in their location or a hosting facility
Selling: Our Take
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Do your homeworkWhether starting a new business, re-platforming, or expanding into a new channel or global market, the
options for digital commerce platforms are seemingly endless and potentially overwhelming.
Validate need. Define requirementsYou need to perform thorough due diligence to understand your immediate functional and long-term business
requirements and consider which deployment or delivery model is the best fit for your organization.
Know your requirements, validate their importanceDecide what you must have versus what you can live without or build later. Having the best new widget is great, but
if it is very expensive and only leads to a small improvement in sales, it may not be worth it.
Think aheadDon’t forget to consider innovations that will emerge to become a focal point for digital commerce tomorrow. Do your
own research and leverage the exposure to technology providers during the process as an education on best
practices and future innovations.
Marketplaces
Tools:
▪ Amazon
▪ Global
▪ Retailer Operated
▪ Niche/Vertical
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Brands partnering with Amazon
Expanding into non-core product categories
Home improvement app turned into marketplace
Marketplaces: Our Take
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Don't disregard marketplacesIf trends in China are any indication of where the industry is going, marketplaces are poised to take up a large percentage of
ecommerce over the next 2-3 years. Retailers should already have a marketplace strategy in place, or at the very least, be
working on one.
It is OK to double dipRetailers should leverage marketplaces to increase their domestic and international sales and learn from them.
Amazon: the search engineWith approximately one of every three product searches starting on Amazon, it has surpassed Google as the top destination
for shopping research. Rather than looking at Amazon as a competitor, look at the marketplace as a search engine.
Dip your toes in the global poolUse marketplaces to tap into an already-established customer base in global markets. Entry into new markets using a
marketplace strategy is a fairly low-risk approach.
Order Management
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Tools:
▪ Order Management System
▪ Omnichannel Order Management
Back ordered item notification w/ date available
Added benefit: additional purchases during in-store pick up
Order Management: Our Take
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Beyond order managementModern OMS must include advanced, cross-channel order processing functionality and provide insight into critical data
that can help you make better business decisions regarding merchandising, returns, inventory, marketing, and more.
It takes a village…Involve your entire organization when selecting and implementing an OMS. Any department can sabotage the effort if
they’re not on board. Get the team together early and align their objectives.
Do you need an OMS?We see much confusion regarding retailers’ need for an OMS when they have an ECP, ERP, WMS, PIM, or any
combination of those systems. The answer is, “It depends.” You need to evaluate the capabilities of the systems you have
in place, document the gaps, and progress from there. This will help you determine your need for an OMS and the
specific type of OMS you require.
Integration is keyEnsure that your OMS integrates easily with your other retail systems. If integration is clunky and cumbersome, the
system has little value.
Payments
Tools:
▪ Payment Gateways
▪ Mobile Payments
▪ Loyalty and Marketing
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Taco Bell’s mobile ordering and payment
Social media payment
Aggregate loyalty program across retailers
Apple pay
Payments: Our Take
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Allow for multiple payment typesDon’t limit how your customers can shop. On top of your debit/credit cards, offer alternative payment options such
as Digital Wallets (i.e., Google Wallet), Dwolla, PayPal, Amazon Payments, Masterpass, Square, etc.
Security vs. conveniencePayment security concerns still exist among consumers. But, the lack of confidence in the security of online
transactions has not trumped the convenience and other benefits that ecommerce offers.
Take security seriouslySecure payment gateways can also be used in conjunction with payment processing services to protect your online
customers with layers of security for all kinds of payments.
Understand the pros and cons of Guest CheckoutGuest Checkout simplifies the purchasing process to drive more sales, but it also calls for significant security
considerations. If you decide to enable guest checkout, in addition to validating the card number and expiration
date, be sure to validate the name and address as well to minimize fraud.
Now is the time to adopt contactless paymentsLong lines are often enough to make customers abandon in-store purchases. Contactless payments significantly
speed transaction time, resulting in shorter lines and increased probability of purchase completion.
In-Store
Tools:
▪ Sales Enablement/Clientelling
▪ Interactive/Digital Signage
▪ Analytics
▪ Mobile
▪ POS
▪ CRM
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Empowering sales associates w/ mobile clienteling
Interactive mirror
Mobile store navigator
In-Store: Our Take
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You've got to UP your gameThe retail store is not dead. But, you must step up your game to meet the expectations of today’s digitally-savvy
shoppers. That means introducing new digital in-store technologies that bridge online and in-store shopping
experiences and providing better training and tools for store associates.
Go 360If your business is multichannel, consider viewing POS as another order-taking channel. A POS system that
supports the same customer experience (pricing, promotions, products, loyalty, gift cards, order history, etc.) as
your other sales channels reflects the centrality of the customer to your business.
Trust the expertsPOS is a system that you would never develop in-house. Produce a formal requirements package that
documents your in-store selling service, management pain points, and business needs.
Don't let shoppers out-stage youShoppers are often better-informed regarding product selection, product details, and promotions than the store
associate. Retailers need to invest in educating their associates and provide the tools that enable them to provide
exceptional customer service.
Fulfillment
Tools:
▪ Fulfilment Tools
▪ Warehouse Management System (WMS)
▪ Shipping
▪ Logistics
▪ Cross-Boarder Shipping
▪ Returns Management
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Options to ship or pick up in store
Store fulfilling online purchases
Fulfillment: Our take
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Focus on what you do bestMany retailers initially outsource fulfillment due to the capital investment required, labor costs, physical facility, lack of
expertise, and the required focus on their core competency – the business itself.
Consider the cloudAs is the case with most digital commerce technologies, cloud-based warehouse management systems are gaining in
popularity, mainly due to lower capital investment, quicker implementation, subscription models, and automatic upgrades.
Free shipping is a givenOnce considered a competitive advantage, free shipping has become table stakes. In today’s marketplace, it is simply too
easy for your customers to find competitive products elsewhere. Don’t risk losing a sale because you haven’t joined the
majority of retailers that offer free shipping.
Consider using multiple carriers, ship by lowest costMany retailers only ship via one carrier, as it is easiest to manage. Since each carrier calculates costs differently, using
multiple carriers and selecting the carrier and method to use for each order can help save shipping costs and reduce transit
times for customers. Having multiple shippers may help you offer shipping upgrades with little additional cost.
Customer Service
Tools:
▪ Customer Service Tools
▪ CRM/Customer Database
▪ Call Centers
▪ Live Chat
▪ Social
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Texting with a chatbot
Customer service via Twitter
Options to call or email during checkout
Customer Service: Our Take
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Treat others as you want to be treatedCustomers who feel treated as individuals and with respect are generally more satisfied with their overall
shopping experience, and more inclined to remain loyal. Loyal customers buy more, purchase more
frequently, cost less to serve, and have higher retention rates.
Be accessible via various channelsGive your customers different channels to contact you: Email, Social Networks, forums/message boards,
live chat (video, phone), support page, mobile (text, messengers), and of course, your store associates.
Don’t offer channels you’re not good atThere’s nothing more frustrating then contacting a seller and not getting a response, so be sure to have
resources for channels you decide to have. If you can’t support all the social networks, then focus on ones
your shoppers are using the most.
In-house, domestic or off-shore, outsourcing all have costs, benefits and risksAll require significant management attention. Develop and review quantitative models with your executive
management team based on tracking metrics before undertaking any major effort in this area.
Analytics & Reporting
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Tools:
• CRM/Customer Database
• Campaign Management /
Marketing Automation
• Business Intelligence
• Web Analytics
BI platform tied to Alexa
Analytics dashboard
Analytics: Our Take
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Data is the easy partYou already have access to basic customer data such as demographics and order history. In digital commerce, even
more information on the customer is usually available. However, the trick is to ensure that the data captured is easily
accessible and can be presented in an actionable way.
Improve your ROITracking ROI for Pay-Per-Click, advertising, affiliate networks, email campaigns, etc., will show which initiatives
work best and for how long. When calculating ROI, include online sales, returns and post sale metrics as they
affect long-term ROI.
Make analytics and reporting a priorityThe analytics and reporting platform should be one of your highest priorities - understanding business performance
is instrumental in developing your strategy and decision-making for budget planning, spending and timing.
Data-driven decisions ruleEveryone on your team should be able to access and analyze relevant data to make better decisions based on real
insights.
Conclusion: Coming Full Circle
In today’s retail reality, there is no end to the story. The “Idea to Doorstep” process is, like the path-to-purchase, no longer linear.
After the product arrives at the customer’s doorstep, the post-purchase process begins. This is when you find out if all your hard work has paid off.
If you succeeded, you’ll be rewarded with a loyal customer who might even turn into your most powerful marketing asset if you continue to keep them happy.
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