Clienteling

As already discussed several time before and we all know cross-channel shopping becomes a more then common and familiar way for customers. In view of that it becomes important that every customer experience strategy incorporate a reliable, consistent, and customer-focused approach to every product, service, and transaction.

And as brick and mortar stores still represent the largest part of revenue for most retailers, the in-store experience is the area that demands a great attention. Sad but true the reality is different in most cases and for most vendors. Local stores are disconnected from their other channels, points of sales and information and as a result they are unable to provide tight connections to critical data and activities store personnel require. This lack of timely information makes it difficult for store associates to provide the level of service that is only possible when they communicate effectively and frequently with their best customers.

Still too much sales people focus just on ‘numbers‘ such as click-through, conversion , and cart abandonment rates, and and and – than to step back and asking a few essential and crucial questions— such as ...
Who is my customer?’ and
How can I meet their needs?
Do I know him well enough in order to support him best?
What did he look at in past?
What was the customer's last order or purchase?’  and and and …

A big mistake retailers make is not realizing that customer satisfaction does not always transform to loyalty. A satisfied customer is simply someone who has received what he was promised —nothing more, nothing less.

Such a clienteling app has to run on various devices. On local interfaces but in any case on mobile devices which retail employees can carry around the store, will supply information about customers, such as their previous purchases, items they've browsed on the store website, and their likes and dislikes. The app will also show inventory available in other stores and online, allow retail workers to order another size or color directly from the mobile device, and suggest purchases based on the shopper's style and preferences.

Clienteling solutions have to provide these information down to the individual customer, the customer's buying habits and preferences. Clienteling applications are built on a powerful cloud backbone ( Supply Chain Management SCM, Customer Relation Management CRM, Warehouse Data, etc. and last but not least real-time analytics, reports, planing, etc.) and designed to build a stronger buying relationship. By proactively creating and managing client relationship, brands seek to increase satisfaction and return sales, of course.
A powerful clienteling app is an important and helful element to build up a strong customer relationship with your customers in order to
  • engage and fully understand customers
  • become a trusted adviser
  • build up and maintain open and omni communication channels
  • act in real time

And keep in mind your customers aren't homogenous - as your products your customers arn't off-the-peg - they are individuals, not numbers!

Putting the benefits of Clienteling in a nutshell:

  • Increase customer experience
  • Progress loyalty
  • Optimize productivity
  • Enhance effectiveness
  • Improve the local associates by a 360° view of the stock (offline, across locations and online) 
Here is a 6:10min clip from Sapphire 2012 - Burberry Demo



Associates, call agents, service employees, and managers need tools and applications which connect the customers' touch point to the enterprise to break down the silos that often exist between sales channels. Each customer touch point, every sales, and service person need a complete 360 degree view of every customer in every channel, every time they visit their brand.



And such a tool have to support of course PC, all sizes of mobile devices and tablets, but also kiosk UIs and other touchable interactive surfaces - and the sales person as well as the customer/consumer should be free to jump from one UI to the other without loosing information, thing they have on their wish list or in their cart - and without loosing joy of use.










You might also be interested in these articles...




Touchpoint - Interactive Window


http://ux4dotcom.blogspot.de/2014/03/touchpoint-interactive-window.html






Customer Experience / Expectation vs. Retail Experiences – Closing the Omni-Channel Gap


http://ux4dotcom.blogspot.de/2014/02/customer-experience-expectation-vs.html








Social-Commerce & Social-Shopping


http://ux4dotcom.blogspot.de/2014/02/social-commerce-social-shopping.html







e-commerce trends in 2014


http://ux4dotcom.blogspot.de/2014/02/e-commerce-trends-in-2014.html






Shaping Future eCommerce:


http://ux4dotcom.blogspot.de/2013/09/shaping-future-ecommerce.html










Growth in m-commerce today:


http://ux4dotcom.blogspot.de/2013/10/growth-in-m-commerce-today.html






Comments