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On the surface, doing business on
the Internet and in a bricks-and-mortar retail location would seem
like the best of both worlds. If nothing else, no matter how your
customers like to shop, a suitable option is available.
But sometimes that can prove a bumpy
marriage. Rather than a complementary partnership, an Internet and
bricks-and-mortar store can conflict -- to the detriment of your
bottom line.
It doesn't have to be that way. Here
are five potential issues that can crop up when you're selling in
cyberspace and in a retail location, along with some suggestions
that can help promote a proper balance. |
1. You forget the people you're
serving.
This can happen, for example, to a retail
business that started on the Internet or, by the same token, begins in a
physical location and later branches heavily into cyberspace. Simply put, a
business can lose sight of its customer -- who they are, what they want and
what they value. Because the Internet isn't the most intimate of mediums and
speed can often take precedence over personal touch, this approach can carry
over to your face-to-face dealings at your physical place of business. If
you fell you're losing that touch from your Internet sales, use your
bricks-and-mortar location to re-establish contact with your customers. Talk
to your customers, and get to know their interests and priorities. You'll
begin to reconnect with both the cyber and the flesh-and-bones variety of
customers. "You want more contact with your customers so that you can get a
sampling of the population you're serving." say Jennifer Varner of
BellabluMaternity.com, a Cary N.C. maternity boutique, which started online
but has since opened several stores. "It really serves as a reminder of your
customer base."
2. The website shows one business,
the sore another.
A customer sees a store's website and later
decides to visit the business' physical location, only to find the store
drastically differs from the image presented on the Web. That's confusing to
the customer and it also hints that consistency and careful planning are
afterthoughts for this business. Make sure that the operation shoppers see
on your Web site is an accurate reflection of what they will experience in
person. "I recently worked with a couple who have a gift store in Montana
featuring the cowboy lifestyle. They told me that people love coming to
their store for the decor and ambience, but the website was sterile and
lacked the atmosphere [of the store]," says Santa Cruz, California, website
consultant Phillippa Gamse. "If happy customers have been to the store and
come back to the website as a result of some -mail promotion, they're likely
to be very disappointed if it doesn't continue in their real-world
experience and emotional connection."
3. Same item, different prices.
Nothing can be more maddening than seeing
an item that's appealing, only to discover a different price than the one
you expected to pay. That's an ongoing issue in the physical store / website
relationship. Granted, there can always be cyberspace-only specials or you
can promote items that are occasionally less expensive in the store than
they are online. But for the most part, keep pricing consistent. "It's
important to make your pricing as uniform as you can," says Rodney Spriggs,
head of Vintage Stock, which sells new and vintage entertainment items and
headquartered in Joplin, Mo. "It should be the same as thought you were
offering the same items at the same price in two different stores."
4. One items, available
everywhere.
Again, occasionally it can be effective to offer something in a
Web-exclusive or store-only arrangement. (This can prove particularly
effective if you're trying to build traffic in either venue.} But customers,
as a rule, embrace consistency and predictability. "You can use Internet to
drive traffic into stores, but if you offer it in the store, make sure it's
available on the Internet as well," says Spriggs.
5. Let the Internet offer more
than a buying option.
One final pitfall is having your website
present itself merely as a site that allows people to shop. That's terrific
and obviously the goal of many sites. But rather than just being a
cyber-based mirror image of your physical store, make sure your website
augments a shopper's experience. How do you do this? Remember to provide
product information, comparison tools and other resources that a visitor can
use to become better informed about your products. From there, encourage
them to place and order or follow up on their interest to visit your
physical store. "It's clear that people are researching products and
services online before going to a physical store to make a purchase," says
Gamse. "For example, I work with Harley-Davidson. One of their target
markets is women, who can find it very empowering to go to the Web to inform
themselves before the potentially-intimidating experience of going to the
dealership."
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