¿Online? ¿Offline? time to reinvent the trade (I)

Peter walks into the store. Has finally been able to save the money needed to buy the camera that had so long dreamed. Once inside the store, a large area, Peter knows where it should go. Meet the shelf where the camera because he's been there many times. But something does not respond to what was familiar was the last time: model he likes is "shoulder to shoulder" with the model immediately below, which now has a great price because it is accompanied by a wide variety of accessories.

The doubts come into play: what if by buying the top model is missing a great deal? Concerned about the final quality you can offer in the store but nobody knows how to give answers to your questions with absolute certainty. Among other things, that the caretakers have not used the products. Peter draws from his pocket the smartphone into a reflex. It takes little typing in the search model who wants to get opinions. And after a few minutes, have enough information to opt for one model or another.

But is also where you can buy cheaper ...

Welcome to the re-invention of trade.

For over a decade living under the banner of e-commerce and online it is part of our daily lives. But if there is a feature associated with the birth of the first e-commerce during the 90's, is the expectations that were never fulfilled. The lush supply that occurs in those early years gives way to reality: the sales did not come. And that led to the collapse of a large part of those initiatives. And what is more remarkable, mistrust on the part of traders "lifetime" against such initiatives.

However, today online sales is well established and various reports suggest that follow this route. In fact Forrester estimates that in total U.S. sales are approaching $ 200 billion and may represent 9% of total sales in the trade. In Great Britain would be 10% and 2% in Latin America. But compared to sales data, others indicate that the real benefit of this type of sale is higher than the known traditional retailers: Amazon gives a 17% ROI in 5-year average, though for the rest traditional trade, the figure can be placed in 6%.

The example of Peter, so common that it is not surprising, is the common denominator facing retailers: if the consumer buying process begins at home and end up buying at the store, or get to the store to buy, but after checking their smartphone decide to purchase online Is e-commerce? Traditional do you buy? Are both? None?. Asked to define a word that best reflects the current state of retailing, from department stores to the neighborhood store, you can not be other than "Multichannel".

Never before have traders now had the opportunity to work in many channels: websites, physical stores, mailings, catalogs, social media, television ... And many traders are feeling threatened by the almost endless list of ways to contact customers. Y are facing a rising tide where comments online, product testing, opinions, product and price comparisons, flow everywhere. To the extent that over 50% of consumers are influenced in their purchase decision for this information online. Perhaps there is a real threat: that of being overtaken by their competition if they do not move in that direction.

What then makes traditional retailers are going so slowly in this world? The main problem to address a situation like this is that this sector is mainly installed in analog. His knowledge is very high in terms of how to arrange products in their stores to get higher sales. But probably his knowledge and use of technology is far below what is necessary. What other reasons could be causing them to "resist" to embrace multi-channel decision, when the indicators suggest that it is essential? Among others:

• The exaggerated importance given to the e-commerce during the bubble "dot com". Many professionals and businesses were burned literally intensive efforts to achieve expectations that never came.
• The focus on metrics imported from the traditional world, instead of trying new ways to measure results, and the medium was new. The yield based on profit margins Amazon would have left with "only" 4% compared to 6% of the department store sector. However, the ability of Amazon to rotate your stock and failure to maintain stores, makes the double value of invested capital to the rest of the sector.
• The groundbreaking innovation experience has left a good taste in general. To the extent that if they propose a new idea, many wonder if it's as good "how come no one has done." Few people want to break what has for years running.

But they face in short traders? Do not care if they are large stores or small shopkeepers, the world of multi-channel is the biggest tsunami in terms of customer relationship in years. Traders tend to think that their customers will always be there, something we think all companies. But the reality is quite different: as we as consumers feel more comfortable with shopping through any channel, we become more picky about what we find in stores.


Time to set up a multichannel strategy before your competition does.'ll Be working on it already, right? ;-)

Photo: Condomerie.com, Amsterdam. © juanluispolo-2012
Permiido non-commercial use, citing the author.