Rewir Trend Review #05

REWIR TREND REVIEW #05

How does retail of today keep up with the consumers of tomorrow?

Photo Vilainecrevette, Shutterstock

YOUR MONTHLY BRAND & BUSINESS UPDATE THE APRIL ISSUE, 2015

Brands, trying to herd cats… Seriously, trying to get in to consumers’ minds is like surfing with a blindfold. Is it even possible to find opportunities to make the brand experience seamless from online to brick-and-mortar stores? Consumers of today (and of the future) are better-informed, more educated, tech savvy and lead multi tasking lives on high levels of complexity. Take the Millennials for example. On the one hand, they’re not overly excited about ownership – they might rent their evening gown online and ride to the party in a cool, black car from Uber. On the other hand, they totally outsize other market segments when it comes to using the smartphone as point of purchase, from midnight

THE SCENE

pizza to round the globe travel. In other words, brands must transform their process, changing the overall brand experience from the physical stores in to the smartphones of the ever growing, picky consumer base. They need to not only get their attention, but even contribute with inspiration and storytelling in order to bring their audience added value. Only then a brand is truly relevant and choosable. Welcome to this issue of the Rewir Trend Review where we will give you the latest on where retail is going, why and when. And most importantly, what you need to do to keep up with the consumers of tomorrow.

Photo Rawpixel, Shutterstock

I want it all, now!

Consumers expect to get what they want, when they want it. Increasing e-commerce makes consumers impatient and intolerant – not wanting to wait a few days for delivery. Stores being open 24/7, customer service that never sleeps and an engaging way of communicating between brands and their consumers is a must. Going out shopping can be done from the sofa in a living room, research shows that the average consumer reaches for their

smartphone between 150-200 times/day, often to window shop and buy goods. The lines between online and real stores are blurred and a consumer pattern called BOPIS is coming strong – buy online pick up in store. New business models are created so consumer brands can reach their target audiences with relevant, personal offerings and messages within the consumer’s mobile context and mindset.

MINDSET

Photo David Lillewarg

Care for a glass, madam?

The good thing is, physical stores are far from becoming obsolete. To create an authentic in-store experience, retailers need to find out the true reason for building their store in the first place. Is it a place for social gatherings or is it where customers are educated about products and offerings or even pick up?

EXPERIMENTAL

Photo Steve Cukrov, Shutterstock

In the UK, Hedonism is a good example of having created an immersive experience around its product, wine. It has everything one could ask for in a wine – tastings, décor, education. Clearly defining the purpose behind the store will go a long way towards creating a memorable, synergetic experience that may very well begin on the screen of the customer’s smartphone.

Photo http://estimote.com

This way, please!

NEW PERSPECTIVES

The brand’s iBeacon-based technology uses Bluetooth Low Energy to send messages to customers when they enter a store. To access these, shoppers need to have downloaded the retailer’s mobile app. Now they can view product information, get personalized deals along with reviews by placing their smartphone near a Shelfbucks device. While the retailer can access detailed customer analytics.

The now established relationship between shoppers and their smartphones perfectly facilitates the ever increasing advancement in geo-location opportunities. Brands can fine-tune their offerings at the right occasion and environment to the right target audiences. Since February 2014, Shelfbucks mobile shopping services have tried their solutions in pilot shops across the US.

I love your look.

Since social platforms will continue to be a dominant centerpiece within our lives, smart retailers need to understand on-line social behaviors. Mastering these insights will help influence future transactions. Covet Me is an app, recently launched in Berlin (December 2014). With the app, consumers get the opportunity to earn vouchers by sharing all kinds of fashion

REWARDING

Photo Angela Blumen

related products on social media. The app allows fashionistas to post products, tag cool clothes or even create outfit posts for other users to watch. All these are viewable on social media platforms. Every time people click on a Covet Me link, members earn points which can be traded for vouchers to spend on apparel brands such as TopShop, ASOS and Net-A-Porter.

Get real!

Consumers seek brands that are real and authentic and not only in it for the money. MAMUT, an Uruguayan footwear brand, wanted to dig deeper into the hearts and minds of their customers. During a period of two weeks in February 2015, people could exchange plastic and glass bottles collected from the beaches – for discount on shoes. The campaign, designed to encourage people to make the beaches nice and tidy, gave $4 for every bottle which in turn could be spent on purchases of the brand’s summer collection. And there is a win-win situation for everyone!

DEMANDING

Photo https://www.mamutshop.com/site/shop

At your service! Neiman Marcus business operations went omnichannel in February 2015 – blending its online and offline shopping divisions to create a seamless experience for its customers. With its new service called Snap Find Shop, customers can take photos of almost any merchandise and find similar items from Neiman Marcus in a single click. The brand is successfully using technology to create a digital experience that is entirely centered around their customers.

GOING THE EXTRA MILE

Photo from http://www.neimanmarcus.com

Tailor made Sports brand Patagonia is using big data to identify predictable behaviour patterns in their consumer database. Then use the findings to fine-tune their marketing messages at a time that is right for each consumer. After analyzing the data in Patagonia’s customer database, it

determines the optimal email deployment time to maximize the likelihood that a customer will receive an email at a time that is most likely to result in a click, and ultimately, a conversion. Since Patagonia started with this, email-based campaigns have achieved an 33% increase in sales.

PATTERN RECOGNITION

Photo Curioso, Shutterstock

Get moving! In September, 2014, The North Face in Korea opened a pop-up store with a retractable floor, as part of the US outdoor apparel brand’s Never Stop Exploring campaign. As the floor disappeared, shoppers were forced to ‘climb’ up the walls, which featured rock-climbing holds. To exit the room, participants were forced to jump from the wall onto an inflated floor, attempting to capture a North Face jacket suspended from the ceiling in the process.

Photo The North Face Pop Up | South Korea

PUSHING FORWARD

Confused on a higher level? The sheer convenience and speed of making purchase decisions on mobile devices is unbeatable. Isn’t it therefore time for retailers to get back to basics? Understanding and capitalizing on the ways brands can thrive in the brick-and-mortar environment? What consumers obviously want is a unique experience that elevates and adds a dimension of intelligence and involvement to retail shopping.

Photo Chuck Wagner, Shutterstock

BRAND INNOVATION

It is no longer about picking from the shelf. Indeed it is more about creating engaging moments of experience. Taking the online into the in-store and vice versa. And dialling up on innovative ways and means that brands communicate to today’s device-savvy consumer.

Behind this issue

David Lillewarg, Editor in Chief [email protected]

Ruby Windrup, Editorial content [email protected]

Angela Blumen, Content design & distribution [email protected]

Photo John James, ImageShack

You can find our archive for Trend Reviews on www.rewir.com/trend-review Or on:

http://www.slideshare.net/Rewir/rewir-trend-review-04-2015 http://www.slideshare.net/Rewir/rewir-trendreview-032015-44307357 http://www.slideshare.net/Rewir/rewir-trend-review-the-december-issue-2014?related=3 http://www.slideshare.net/Rewir/rewir-trendreview-01-2014?related=2

Archive

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