Kitchen & Bath Business - January 2016 - 36

Tech Savvy

Connecting the in-showroom

include shoppers being able to get product immediately, they like to support their local retailers,
they enjoy the atmosphere of the in-store shopping experience as opposed to shopping online
and, finally, the perception that returns are easier.
So developing a co-op strategy - connecting your
online version to your brick-and-mortar showroom - is an important discussion. It is one that is
evolving as you are reading this article and might
be where resources would be well spent.

experience to the online version

IN STORE VS. ONLINE

Open for Business

The challenge for the smaller kitchen and bath
guys is that the big shops are becoming more and
more adept at co-opting. Closing the divide between consumers'reasons for not coming in to buy
with their reasons to buy online instead is key. It
is true, as this study concludes, that shoppers buy
online primarily for the following six reasons:

is a co-op worth exploring

MOST OF US would have to agree that the word "disruptive," although overused as a business concept, does describe at least in part the current business
climate and one that we will be dealing with for the foreseeable future. And
because we will always need a go-to when it comes to conversing about the
state of the marketplace of change for this article, "disrupt" still works.

 Lower prices 
 Shop 24/7
 No need to travel
 Endless product variety
 Readily available customer reviews 
 Access to better product information

DISRUPTORS 101

According to PwC's "Total Retail 2015: Retailers and the Age of Disruption,"
an annual global total retail consumer survey, there are four disruptors
that have now become challenges to our own innovative strategies
and are changing consumer-buying behavior:
 The changing role of the store
 The proliferation of social networks, mobile phone technology
and global demographic shifts like our aging populations

 Wealth redistribution
 How different generations are using information

Let's take the first disruptor, the changing role of the
store. According to the PwC report, "If there was ever an
institution that has proven historically powerful, long-lived
and adaptable, it is the store. As shopkeepers and shops have
been around for centuries, it's a pretty safe bet - mobile apps
or not - that stores will still be around in very familiar forms for
at least the next few decades." That's good news for brick-andmortar kitchen and bath showrooms and dealers, but we shouldn't
breathe a sigh of relief too soon.
COOPERATIVE CO-OPS

Although the top three reasons for shopping in store - the ability for customers to see, touch and try merchandise; to get product immediately; and to be
more certain about suitability and quality of product - cannot be achieved
online, this could be changing. For example, according to the report, where
consumer groups were found to buy predominantly online, a number of
consumers are researching online and then coming in to buy. Also, websites
of those with physical stores are perceived as branches of the physical store
not separate entities, an important point.
Shoppers buy online because of price and convenience; however, shoppers
buy in store for reasons often exclusive to the physical store. Some of those

36

BY KATY GARRETT,
producer of Design Tech
Summit and co-founder of Connexionsoftware.com. Follow her
on Twitter @designtechie and
@DesignTechSummit
on Facebook.

In the perfect world, customers
would travel from your website to
your store and vice versa. To get
your customers to take advantage
of both, take this list of six reasons
for not coming in to your brick
and mortar and use it to your
competitive advantage. The ease
and acceptability of buying online is increasing, so give this list
your studied attention and create
a co-opted marketing approach
so that your customers stick in both
directions and through both channels. 
Using technology and bringing digital
experiences into your showroom to create
an in-store experience that feels more like the
Internet is an idea savvy retailers have just begun to experiment with. If your customers feel
great about doing business with you because your
brand's messaging is telling them they will get
great quality, the best price with the least amount
of hassle - whether in your store or sitting in front
of their laptop - you've closed the divide.  
By closing the gap and co-opting online behavior
with the in-store shopping experience, kitchen and
bath showrooms might begin to see huge benefits and
experience their most innovative disruptions yet. 

Kitchen & Bath Business / JAN. 2016 / KBBONLINE.COM / The official sponsor of KBIS (KBIS.com)
http://www.Connexionsoftware.com http://www.Connexionsoftware.com http://www.KBBONLINE.COM http://www.KBIS.com
Kitchen & Bath Business - January 2016

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Kitchen & Bath Business - January 2016
