Customers are king! This is more true now than ever before, with many retailers offering free shipping and returns. Customers are spoilt for choice in ordering almost anything including travel, groceries, electronics, furniture and fashion. The competitive retail environment has increased pressure on retail execs to improve service and customer-centricity.
Although this new retail norm is terrific for customers, it is a challenging, complex environment for retailers. E-commerce is expensive for retailers, with most reporting lower margins on e-commerce sales versus their brick-and-mortar stores. Containing fulfilment costs, with increased expectations from customers, is bound to reduce the overall margins of many retailers over time.
Amazon reported, in July 2022, that its fulfilment and shipping costs were a staggering 33% of net sales (Statista.com, 2022). This figure was 15.6% in 2009.
So, what are the options available to customers and what should retailers do to adapt?
The graphic below shows the options that customers will become accustomed to.
The traditional online buying process didn’t rely on retail stores to engage with customers who had bought something online. The store of the future will, however, be a critical component of customer centricity. Stores will need highly integrated and enabled systems to assist store associates to serve customers. Empowering store associates with critical information will allow them to help customers feel that their online experience is similar to that in-store, winning customer loyalty.
Stores need to serve the customer through their buying lifecycle including browsing, buying, preparing for delivery or collection, and managing returns and replacements seamlessly.
Selecting systems and designing processes to support this complex environment can be daunting.
Let BusinessChain help you with this journey. We have the systems and supply chain knowledge and experience to deliver solutions that work for your customers and your company.
Why not give BusinessChain a call today?
Visit www.businesschain.co.za for other interesting articles.