Here are 3 ways retailers can elevate their in-store experiences to draw customers out of their homes.
Source: ‘Reimagining Space in Asia Pacific’, Visa 2018
Make it now or never
When a store is always there with the same old collection, there is no rush to come and visit. As customers become familiar with the products, the need to touch and feel the goods is no longer enough to justify a trip.
But when retailers depart from business as usual with unique offerings and experiences, suddenly there is excitement. Customers want to go because they never know when the experience is going to disappear, and they cannot get it elsewhere. Think Insta-worthy pop-up concepts and one-off retail installations. The transient aspect of these experiences create FOMO — the Fear of Missing Out — in customers to drive them to the stores.
Across Asia Pacific, the concept of limited-time experience is booming among modern merchants. Cities are crawling with exhibitions, pop-up markets, and festivals. It intrigues the younger generation looking for interesting, novel activities to engage in and share on social media.
Example: Morioka Shoten, a bookstore in Tokyo, is a room with a single book. The title changes weekly, building curiosity as to what is next, intriguing customers and luring them to come back.
Opportunity in payments: The trend of modern pop-up drives the need for mobile point-of-sale devices. It enables retailers to accept cards wherever they are, in the store or on the road.
Combine the best of both worlds
Customers do not want to choose between online and offline; they want the best shopping experience. Retail integration with the virtual world makes the physical shopping experience simpler and more engaging. Augmented Reality’s (AR) immersive capabilities like virtual mirrors minimise the hassle of trying on too many outfits to find the perfect fit. AR in-store navigation guides customers to the right lane and shelf to track down the items they are looking for. While physically inspecting goods in-store, customers can scan the items to unlock useful information online. These seamless online-offline experiences enhance customers’ confidence to make the purchase. Furthermore, the online touchpoints enable retailers to capture customers’ data for personalisation and opportunities to engage them after a store visit.
Technology can bring magic to a retail experience. Virtual Reality (VR) can transport customers out of the four walls of a retail store to another dimension. This unlocks new grounds for brands to immerse customers in the product experience and heighten their senses. For technology to be more than just a cool factor, it has to be rooted in the consumption experience.
Example: The Rift in Malaysia is a theme park in a retail space, offering up to 24 virtual worlds that combine VR and physical activities.
Opportunity in payments: Omnichannel payments (e.g. place an order online and pay in-store, browse offline and pay in-app) and virtual in-experience payments (e.g. biometric payments in an AR/VR setting).
Turn commerce into community
Community spirit has been an integral part of Asian cultures. In countries like China and South Korea, it is common to make decisions as a family, and for actions to reflect community values. In Southeast Asia, the spirit of gotong royong (cooperation in the community) is the norm especially in rural areas.
As social interactions are moving to the digital realm, consumers are feeling the disconnect from community and craving face-to-face engagements. This is especially true for young digital natives who did not have as many opportunities as the older generation to be part of a physical community. They are looking for a place to maintain social connections and meet people outside their social circles.
More than a place for transactions, retailers can serve a greater purpose by bringing customers together in the physical world. The key is to identify aspects of the in-store experience that can be reimagined as a communal experience. For example, they can host social activities around shared passion that amplifies the product experience (e.g. a grocery shop organising a cooking class that uses ingredients from the store).
Beyond facilitating convenience and speed, retailers can think about how the design of their stores can support relationship building.
Example: One of Singapore’s largest banks transformed its branch from a traditional cubical/ over-the-counter setting to a communal space complete with a café to facilitate stronger connections between customers and staff.
Opportunity in payments: There are opportunities to embed seamless payment technologies in the communal spaces.
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