Latest Future Stores Report Finds Retailers Embracing Digital Strategies to Drive In-Store Customer Experiences, Next-Gen Technology Adoption
Nearly 40% still lagging in incorporating personalization into their in-store brand strategy, WBR Insights study finds.
NEW YORK, April 29, 2019 /PRNewswire-PRWeb/ -- Retailers are embracing digital channels to connect with their customers both in-store and online, but 39% of retailers have not adapted their overall brand strategy to incorporate a more inclusive and personalized in-store experience, according to the 2019 Future Stores report announced today.
Developed by WBR Insights (the custom research division of Worldwide Business Research) and created in cooperation with retail-solution providers Annex Cloud, Arm Treasure Data, Blis, and PlayerLync, Brick and Mortar Loyalty: How Brand and In-Store Engagement Strategies Go Hand in Hand explores how the most successful retailers create a unified, seamless experience between digital and physical channels for a competitive advantage in today's digital economy.
Among those digital strategies is location-based marketing, which delivers contextually relevant offers at the ideal time when customers are most receptive to receiving ads. Location data gives marketers the ability to combine and activate online and offline customer data enabling insightful targeting based on real-world intelligence.
Additional key findings include:
- 77% of retailers consider social or experiential environments for customers an important or critical and strategic part of their in-store appeal; 55% of retailers use augmented reality for this purpose.
- Fewer than half of the retailers surveyed (49%) currently supply in-store teams with online and offline data to increase personalization and drive loyalty, but 40% more will do so in 2019.
- 63% of retailers are utilizing online appointment scheduling to bridge the gap between digital and in-store, enabling customers to schedule 1-to-1 in-store appointments as a means of building both online/in-store engagement and loyalty.
"[Ensuring] the best in user experiences while in our physical stores by keeping track of [customers'] past purchases and offerings has been a primary focus of investment to ensure we build relationships," says one retail marketing director from the study.
"New technologies like augmented reality have opened up exciting opportunities for retailers to create unique, engaging, and personalized in-store environments to drive brand awareness and loyalty with consumers," says Chris Rand, Analyst and Digital Content Manager at WBR Insights. "However, without a true omnichannel, data-driven brand strategy to inform them, they'll amount to little more than 'window dressing' in regards to generating sales ROI."
For more information about Future Stores Seattle and to download a full copy of the report, please visit http://bit.ly/futurestoresreport2019.
SOURCE WBR Insights
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