Has the internet changed the nature of the way shopping occurs in stores these days? more
To a society fascinated with the process of buying and consumption, a great retail experience should be of significant importance; yet despite the fact that 90% of dollars are spent “in store,” the media are crowded with stories and analysis of “online experience” but scant mention is made of the ways in which we can improve the “in-store” experience for consumers.
Search Engine ad networks represent a very lucrative and seemingly limitless channel for advertisers. What could be better than to have access to the customer when they are searching for your product? Want to advertise your flat screen TV’s, to people who are looking for flat screen TV’s? Bid for the right keywords and you will certainly reach your potential buyers!
So,what might be the equivalent to this advertising nirvana for the offline world (where 90% of spending still takes place), and how do we achieve similar targeting and relevance?
The power of the Google AdWords model lies in the customers’ state of mind at the time of the impression. A person searching for ‘flat screen TV’ is receptive, and much more likely to be in a buying mode than someone on a social media or news site. So when the searcher is presented with an ad they are, in theory at least, more likely to click, due both the ads relevance and their current mode.
So how do we match this buying mode for the physical browser, in-store?
Suppose for now, that entering a store is the equivalent of entering a search term online. The shopper has demonstrated an interest in merchandise within that store, and they are in a ‘browsing’, ‘evaluating’, ‘comparing’, or in ‘buying’ mode. So now, how do we make them a targeted, relevant offer? Online the ad network algorithm selects the best-chance ads and delivers them alongside the search results. To do this in-store we need to know that the customer is present, and we need to be able to deliver a relevant ad or, even better, a compelling offer as an incentive to take action now and buy based on their buying patterns.
However,with Presence Marketing you can make targeted offers in real-time, in-store based on the presence of the customer and their past buying behaviors. A Presence Marketing solution detects the customer’s loyalty card via hot-spots in the store then delivers a chosen, targeted, relevant offer to the customer’s mobile phone, together with a 2D barcode for redemption at the POS.
In the next blog I’ll go on to explain how these in-store offers are more targeted, more powerful, and more likely to create action than on-line offers. What's your viewpoint - we would love to hear from you!
