Preventing potential buyers from walking out of your store could be easier than you think. A recent study has shown that improving the little things – like inventory management, staffing, customer service, and store layout – can go a long way in delivering sales.
The Deloitte & Touche survey, presented two weeks ago at the National Retail Federation (NRF) annual convention in New York, found that the majority of holiday shoppers who left stores empty handed were preventable. Of the 4,000 respondents, 64 per cent said the item or size they were looking for was out of stock, 57 per cent said the line at the register was too long, 52 per cent said a sales associate was not readily available to help them, and 32 per cent said a sales associate could not answer the question they asked.
Pat Conroy, vice chairman and national managing principal of Deloitte’s consumer business practice, explained how retailers could target the above operational sore spots to convert browsers into buyers and thereby improve sales and earnings.
“Better managing of inventory, ensuring that store staffing matches shopper traffic and improving selling behaviours are just some of the ways that retailers can enhance customer conversion,” he said. “These levers are all within retailers’ control and importantly, they help create long-term loyalty among shoppers, which is essential for a retailer’s survival in today’s competitive environment.”
The survey also reported that 26 per cent of respondents said they walked out of a store without buying because the store layout was too confusing. “Shoppers can’t buy it if they can’t find it,” said Conroy. “Improved store navigation and merchandise organization can increase both customer conversion and the total dollars spent.”
The Keys to Customer Conversion:
- Inventory management
- Store staffing
- Customer service/product knowledge
- Store layout
Conroy told the Associated Press that making the effort to convert shoppers into buyers is worth the effort: a 2 per cent conversion rate of shoppers to buyers leads to a 10 per cent sales gain.
Victoria’s Secret’s Staffing Secret Limited Brands Inc. (which operates Victoria’s Secret, Limited, Express, and Bath & Body Works) saw store sales increase once the company ensured there was enough staff per store during peak traffic hours, wrote Mae Anderson of the Associated Press.
For example, one Victoria’s Secret store manager scheduled more staff on Friday nights, Saturdays and Sundays – its most popular shopping days. The results were impressive: an increase of $124,000 in sales (according to a report by Dianna Dilworth on DMNews.com).
“We focused on converting shoppers, not average daily sales,” said Mark Giresi, executive vice-president of Limited Brands Inc, at the NRF convention. The company was pleased to discover that both went up in the end.
Giresi said converting shoppers by matching labour to traffic seems like a simple idea, but it’s not easy. Like Conroy, he insists it’s worth the extra effort.
“The average dollar sale of a person who walks out with nothing is zero.”
