4 best practices retail leaders use (And how we did it)

With technology soaring sky-high, the retail market is always changing. Brick-and-mortar retailers are expanding their digital selling capabilities and online service providers are rapidly learning how to go physical.  

When talking about advances in augmented reality, artificial intelligence, and retail technology, the picture becomes much more complicated. However, the right balance between technology best practices and customer personalization efforts is key to making human connections boom. 

Let’s have a look at 4 acceptable practices that top retailers are employing in 2022 to give a personal feel to their brand image.   

Practice #1- Taking the untraditional route  

What makes retail leaders stand out in the market? The answer is simple – a differentiated approach to doing business.  

As complex as it may sound, a unique approach is closely tied to doing the basics right, which means delivering a consistent experience to your customers that is personal to them on all levels.  

Making an untraditional decision does not need to look like opening a 5-star superstore with automated bots, instead, shifting focus on creating as much ‘value’ as possible for your customer.   

And the key to this value addition is closely rooted in getting personalization right for your customer. Experts at McKinsey found that companies that deliver personalized experiences generate 40% more growth in revenue when compared with those not having a human-centric approach in action. 

Along the way, you can always experiment with pop-ups, partnerships, or opening brick-and-mortar stores if you operate digital-only.  

Practice #2- Focusing on inclusivity  

If there’s one thing that makes your customers feel more connected to your brand, it’s you making them part of the whole process.  

Customer inclusivity is part and parcel of every leading retail brand out there dominating the market because they know it is the fastest and easiest way to engage and garner more and more customers.  

In the past couple of years, as much as 75% of consumers have changed how they interact and buy from retail brands. That being said, your customer engagement efforts can best perform when you start ‘giving’ more to customers than taking from them.  

Your brand and business need to recognize that giving corresponds to hearing your customers and reinventing your operating styles, given the need and size of the consumer base to whom you are offering retail services.  

Reaching out to influencers to create credibility, maintaining a transparent brand identity, and connecting with consumers through an omnichannel approach chips in its part for the inclusive customer and their needs.   

Practice #3- Crafting the value prop 

More than 75% of B2B buyers consider three or more sources of advocacy before making a purchase decision. This means that as a retailer you need to create a strong brand identity that your customers will remember.  

A memorable experience ties in with how much ‘value’ your customer gets from either a single interaction or even the whole buying journey. Many retail brands often struggle with their true value proposition because they haven’t asked themselves these questions: 

• How can we position our product differently in the market? 
• What are some other ways to package this product? 
• Does this product solve our intended customer’s problem? 
• Shouldn’t we make a trend-based campaign for this product?  

What leaders in retail have realized is customers don’t want you to sell them products, rather they want to find a solution to their problem – feel valued and listened to.  

While these aspects are linked more to non-functional aspects of your retail business, they contribute a lot when it comes to crafting the right value pro for your customer.  

Practice #4- Leveraging the right technology  

Technology is important.  

But customer-facing technology is inevitable, particularly if you’re a retail business operating in these uncertain times.  

Retail technology is rapidly shifting from selling consumer products to creating personalized in-person human interactions, whether virtually or inside a brick-and-mortar store.  

What allows big retail chains to lead the industry from the forefront?  

Using retail technology to empower those who empower your customers – your retail workforce. The right tech framework will help you implement omnichannel strategies through which you can accelerate hyper-personalization for your customers by bringing end-users, associate entities, and suppliers all under one roof.  

Thinking through your digital transformation goals will also help your retail business to scale better with end-to-end capabilities. You may need to invest in technical training for your teams that can improve the information flow for your retail business in the long run.  

Khaadi’s Retail Revolution by Systems Limited 

Premier fashionwear chain, Khaadi, partnered with Systems Limited for its retail revolution. As Pakistan’s highest-profile clothing brand, Khaadi has more than 45 stores in Pakistan and 15 international locations, including 40-hour nonstop sales, with footfall exceeding 200,000 visitors on a typical weekend at their largest retail locations. 

While identifying Khaadi’s need for expansion in both domestic and international markets, we made sure Khaadi’s customers remained at the centrepiece of the whole buyer journey. Our team of field experts carefully handpicked the finest enterprise solutions tailor-made to meet Khaadi’s specific retail business needs.   

With a reinforced supply chain and retail business optimization, Khaadi garnered a 37% increase in its year-over-year growth in sales revenue, a year after the implementation, strengthening its presence as a retail leader in the global industry.  

Want to read more retail success stories? Browse our case studies section for more. 

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