StORES Magazine - September 2007 - (Page 30) EXECUTIVE SUITE / COVER STORY QVC makes multi-channel click BY SUSAN REDA, EXECUTIVE EDITOR Sitting in the green room during a presentation of beauty products, one can almost feel the adrenaline rush. . . . Four minutes are allotted to present the product. . . . Before it’s even officially presented, hundreds of units have sold thanks to a sneak peek at the top of the hour. The minute the cameras start rolling, data starts pouring in. . . . The “medium” shade is selling fastest. . . . Every time the camera shows the model in the center, sales spike. Viewers are calling in, online shoppers are clicking the “buy” button, the number of products remaining tumbles precipitously and — just 2 minutes, 47 seconds into the segment — a red “sold out” banner flashes across the screen. C ongratulations if you got that,” host Lisa Robinson says as her attention quickly shifts to the next item. Welcome to QVC. Though best known for its TV shopping broadcasts, it has emerged as a multichannel powerhouse, flexing its merchandising and marketing muscle on air and online using a variety of media to educate, entertain and engage shoppers – and to sell a few million units along the way. QVC shoppers can watch an on-air broadcast or tune into a live streaming feed from QVC.com, where they also can read product reviews, watch video archives, blog with other shoppers – even take part in a live chat with a celebrity. Still, vice president of merchandising, brand development Doug Rose insists the phrase “multi-channel” is not really part of the QVC vernacular. “Our approach is to think of our various ‘store windows’ the way a customer would,” he says. “She doesn’t distinguish between online and on air: She’s shopping from QVC and she defines us by our point of view. We try to be true to the customer perspective rather than a retail-channel-centric perspective.” Bob Myers, senior vice president of QVC.com, agrees. “It’s really about having a seamless, integrated experience, regardless of which channel the customer chooses. “When the vision is that it’s one brand in the customer’s eye, it makes everything clear,” he says. WWW.STORES.ORG 30 STORES / SEPTEMBER 2007 http://QVC.com http://QVC.com http://WWW.STORES.ORG
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