The other day I talked about the importance of not putting too much emphasis on your web and social efforts prior to putting in the hard work of building the right shopping experience in your physical store. Some of you die hard webbies might look at this as an old school or overly traditional approach to marketing. But let’s not forget that only 8% of retail sales occurs online. Do the math. That means that 92% of retail sales is occurring in actual brick and mortar locations.
Like many of you, I am a die hard believer in the game changing potential that the right web and social media strategy can bring to a small business. I love blogging, appreciate beautiful web design, and have blown way too much time on Twitter and Facebook. I have also been guilty of overly prioritizing these tools ahead of real world touch points that matter more. That was my whole point with my earlier article:
- Your best marketing always should start with the touch points that matter most to your customers
- Second, as you nail down these primary touch points, then move onto your secondary areas that can add value to your in-store experience
- Finally, and only after you have steps 1 and 2 in place, you should start looking for additional opportunities to expand your marketing reach
Using this 3-step approach as an example, a traditional retailer should begin by placing a major focus on creating the right in-store experience for her customers. This could include everything from perfecting the right checkout experience to making sure that the merchandising and signing is exceptional. Got the experience right? Then move onto things like your website, facebook page, or for the adventurous maybe a blog. This would be a good time to ensure that your weekly flyer or direct mail campaigns have the same look and feel as the in-store experience you have devoted so much time to. Finally, you can expand from there and create more elaborate campaigns and events while taking advantage of more expensive advertising media.
Here’s the key to this discussion. Remember that 92% of retail sales are being generated out of traditional stores. Your success will be derived from your ability to focus on the things that will give you the biggest impact.
