Warc, 13 May 2014
BOSTON: Bricks-and-mortar retailers should be more concerned
with exploiting the opportunities offered by "webrooming" than
fearing the impact of showrooming a payment technology company has claimed.
Merchant Warehouse reviewed the data on
"webrooming" – the practice of browsing online and then shopping in
store – and pointed out that while close to 50% of consumers had showroomed, or
purchased an item online after browsing for the item in a store, nearly 66% had
done the reverse.
There were varying motivations for webrooming but many could
be easily addressed by physical retailers, said Merchant Warehouse.
So, for example, 47% of consumers wanted to avoid shipping
costs, 23% didn't want to wait for delivery of the items, and 42% wanted to
check product availability. But providing online order forms, allowing in-store
pick-up and including product descriptions and availability met these concerns.
Further, said Merchant Warehouse, offering savings or
coupons to consumers who browsed the website but made in-store purchases could
expand the actual customer base as well. Other advice included the provision of
alerts regarding last-chance purchases and inventory restock.
Webroomers were also keen to experience stress-free
shopping. Some 37% preferred to look online before shopping in store because
they found it easier to return a product to the actual store. Almost half (46%)
liked to feel or see an item before making a purchase, while a third (36%) said
it was important to them to be able to pay online prices for store-bought
products.
Again, there were simple ways for bricks-and-mortar
retailers to capitalise on these preferences, by offering hassle-free returns
for any online or store purchase and offering free wi-fi so customers can
research costs in store.
Product testing and authoritative advice to help customers
find the best items were other possibilities.
Merchant Warehouse also noted that it was a simple matter to
adapt some in-store features for the webrooming population – by providing an
up-to-date summary of internet reviews, for example, to entice those who
research products before buying. "This includes 85% of modern-day
shoppers, so making the small effort can pay off," it said.
Data sourced from PR Newswire, Merchant Warehouse;
additional content by Warc staff
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