The Value of Retail Lead Capture
We recently participated in a webinar by Alison Medina of Emerald and Ship Agarwal of Blutag. Both were talking about the current trends in retail. One of their main focuses was how events will change because of COVID-19, and how retail environments will adapt, namely to touchless commerce (using Google Assistant or Alexa powered devices to interact). As we closed out the last decade where retailers needed to react to a wave of “digital disruption” in how consumers engaged, they were met with a pandemic at the start of the new decade we are in. Many retailers were suddenly forced to close their doors. TJ Maxx, Bed Bath & Beyond, JCPenney, and many small to medium sized businesses shut down locations on a whim.
Retailers that didn’t have a customer continuity game plan were in a lot of trouble. They had no way to connect with customers that had come into their store – either once, or on a frequent basis.
How do retailers communicate with customers if they don’t know who they are?
How do they let their customers know when their store re-opens? How do they drive customers to their online store, or advise them of alternative ways to order (curbside pickup, DoorDash option, etc.)? How do they inform their customers of the omni-commerce presence that lets them order through different means?
They don’t, because they never took the time to identify and understand who their customers were.
Retailers need to stop thinking like home services businesses.
I can’t tell you how many times I’ve had someone come in to fix my A/C, work on plumbing, wire up something, or remodel this and that. They all pay for their leads in some way or another. There’s a ton of competition and everyone is vying for new business. In the B2B world, it’s 6x easier to sell to an existing customer. B2C is no different. Salesforce.com reports that “half of repeat buyers make their second purchase within 16 days of their initial purchase”.
Salesforce.com adds that,
“64% of shoppers say they feel retailers don’t truly know them” and “88% of retail and consumer goods marketers say personalization has improved their overall marketing program”.
Let’s get the hint retailers. When someone walks in your door, make an effort to identify and understand them.
Yeah, you’ve got your loyalty programs and email signups, but what about trying something new?
I had a personal experience I’d like to share with you that helped inspire what our company, Captello, is doing for retailers.
My family and I visited a New York style brick oven pizza chain. The store was called Firo Fire Kissed Pizza. We were greeted by one of their employees, ordered our three personal pizzas, and picked out our toppings. When we got to the cash register, the clerk fanned out a deck of cards. She said to us, “Pick a joker out of this deck and your meal is on us.”
My wife and I looked at each other with surprise. We thought, is this really happening? A sense of excitement exuded through our smiles. Unfortunately, we didn’t pick a joker. Now, this was a unique experience that we’ll never forget. No other retailer was doing this.
While the pizza was great (especially their Primo), we weren’t sure if they were still operating throughout the pandemic. We’re not clear on when they have specials. This means we’re not sure when we’ll be back.
If Firo collected our information before we played the game, or even after, they’d know who we are and would be able to communicate with us.
At Captello, we recognized this gap for retailers. We’ve since introduced our retail lead capture platform which captures leads, gamifies experiences, and sends data to point of sale, CRM, or marketing automation platforms all at once. A library of 30+ games can all be customized and branded to match the retailer’s brand image. The solution delivers a memorable experience for your customers and helps you create what we hope is a long-lasting relationship.
Every customer is gold. Don’t let your customers walk out the door without finding out who they are.
Thank you for reading and most importantly, for understanding the value of retail lead capture.
LEARN HOW YOUR RETAIL BUSINESS CAN BENEFIT TODAY.
