For years, we’ve heard stories of this apparent decline of the high street and the subsequent rise of the world wide web, like this was a trajectory impossible to undo. But since the desire for experiences has risen, such as millennials said 52 percent of the holiday spending goes on experience-related purchases compared to 39 percent of elderly customers, this trend might be about to reverse.
As consumers decide to invest in experiences instead of products, retailers will need to respond to satisfy the needs of their clients. Customers don’t need just to buy your merchandise and leave because they can do it in the comfort of their own home. However, by developing a more immersive retail experience, retailers can push people towards their shops and make sure they leave not only with your goods but also memories. Retailtainment is known to dominate the business, the fusion of entertainment and retail, an attempt for retailers to provide customers with exciting, memorable experiences that elevate shopping above anything it has been.
Traditional marketing strategies were successful through analytical, quantitative methods focused on operational characteristics and benefits. However, with our ever changing environment and the retail sector entering into a new age, it’s imperative to shift attention from the features-and-benefits approach to completely customer experiences. Managers need to understand new concepts and strategies to increase the consumer expertise, and a new strategy within the business to capitalise on the new opportunities provided by experiential marketing.
Consumers have an array of options when it comes to where they invest their cash. Experiential marketing is everywhere and also to ensure that your business is successful you want to supply your customers with the desired experience to drive earnings. Create a network around you of commercial agents in Melbourne so they’re always keeping an eye on the market for you.
Farfetch
The creator of Farfetch, José Neves, talked about his concern that physical retail is decreasing, where it accounts for 93% of earnings now, but by 2025 it is called to account for only 80 per cent. With this thought, the retail entrepreneur produced Farfetch’s Store of the Future — an augmented retail option which”links the offline and online worlds, using the information to improve the retail experience.” The Store of the Future aims at offering the in-store experience of the future by providing visibility to retailers on what is going on in the shop.
In their latest temporary retail shop in London, the luxury e-commerce platform supplied connected clothing racks, touch-screen-enhanced mirrors and sign-in stations which might help place data collected from clients on the internet to use in shops. There’s also an intelligent mirror so that they can request various sizes, alternative products or even pay without leaving the dressing room. Their high tech advancements also give the clients the opportunity to personalise and purchase shoes, with unique styles and fabrics.
Farfetch’s invention has led them to be tagged as”The Retail of the Future”, as it enables customers to enjoy a bespoke and effortless experience that harmonises the best areas of boutique shopping with all the speed and ease of eCommerce.
Vans
An easy shopping excursion? Now that is an experience I am sure all of us want. An area where art, music, BMX, road culture and style converge, it is possible to find almost everything you can imagine in the 30,000 square feet construction. There are sessions for BMX riders and skaters, and clients are actively invited to walk in daily. The House of Vans is the best illustration of how experiential retail may be used to make a day your client will remember.
Space Ninety 8
For a spin-off from Urban Outfitters, you may expect Space Ninety 8 to home particular classic pieces, and that will be about it. You couldn’t be more wrong. The shared retail area spans five flooring, full of retailers, galleries and a restaurant and bar, Space Ninety 8 provides such a vast variety of experiences you could spend all day there and never get bored.
Taking a scan of the Instagram, you can observe the selection of what Space Ninety 8 must offer beyond only retail. Advertised next to yoga courses is a record signing by Big Boi, alongside images of art classes and Lady GaGa merchandise. By reflecting the elastic nature of contemporary life by producing a versatile shop that conflating retail and social area, Space Ninety 8 have perfect the art of retailtainment.
TOMS’
Experiences do not have to become a permanent feature of a shop to make an impact on customers. In 2015 TOMS’ put VR headsets into 100 shops, allowing them to virtually transport customers to Peru to observe the effect of their One for One giving campaign on local men and women.
As you walk through the village with natives grinning and waving at you, it’s impossible not to feel warmed by the friendly atmosphere.
Beerwolf Novels
While incorporated bookshops and coffee shops are the standards, the idea of a bar in a bookshop is a lot more novel. Werewolf Books in Falmouth provides a broad assortment of literature, both old and new in 1 corner, while at the other a bar stocked with a variety of locally brewed beers and ciders.
By day it functions as a comfy coffee shop filled with students writing essays and reading novels, perfect to stop and reflect or catch up with friends and possibly buy something unique. By night, it is the ideal pub to get a pint and navigate the bookcases before going home. Werewolf Books is the best example of how to make somewhere people will create as a destination they need to see and will continue revisiting owing to its distinctive charm. By appointment only, you can get an excellent assortment of eco-aware items from”mainline designers” and new gift that aim to uphold their ethos of saying honesty and ethics. They transcend what a shop represents and ought to be, by making themselves a shop inside an art installation, as opposed to vice versa.
For people who like to unwind, the out of print and first edition library produces a treasure trove for book fans, while exclusive and rare vinyl is also available for hipsters. A pub and club area provides a collection of all natural beverages, which strengthens the eco-aware expression of the entire store.
How to offer Retail-tainment which Drive Traffic and Revenue
These case studies stress the importance of providing an in-store experience. It might appear hard and unusual, but there are five connected underlying components they use to ensure a remarkable customer experience.
- Originality: All these ideas were authentic and natural, which makes the customer feel as though they’ve entered another world.
- Connectedness: Customers must believe the experience was created for them. This may be achieved through the utilisation of components from prior visits or the layout of products targeted at clients’ niche tastes. This is observed in Farfetch’s strategy, where clients have the ability to personalise their shoes.
- Unexpectedness: These unique experiences are critical to ensuring your brand is recalled.
- Reliability: The expertise is accomplished through tested approaches to achieve excellence and consistency. This is to make sure that the in-store encounter strives and can be correctly implemented.
Thinking that you might be ready to go from boring retail to retailtainment, keep an eye on your local commercial real estate agents for something right for you.
Experiential marketing is not about spending many fancy gadgets for your retail store. These case studies highlight how it’s possible to follow similar measures to overcome the challenges eCommerce has attracted.