When all else is equal in retail, the thing that helps retailers stand out is the customer experience they provide. As Maya Angelou once said, “people will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel.”
That is more true than ever in retail. The market is saturated with merchants selling everything imaginable and it’s not always possible to have an incredibly unique assortment or have prices lower than competitors due to minimum advertised price policies. That’s why it’s time to get back to basics in retail and focus on delighting the shopper in every interaction.
The best mobile experiences are the least complicated
Shopping isn’t always rational and that’s a good thing for retailers. It’s about building rapport and evoking emotion, no matter how small of a screen the shopper is using – and assuring that mobile literacy is rampant in your organization.
So what can retailers do to accomplish this online and specifically on mobile?
- Clear, concise copy: Sure, the saying “content is king” is true, but long blocks of text just won’t do on mobile. Mobile shoppers want information quickly and concisely, otherwise they have to scroll endlessly and are much more likely to abandon the purchase. Get your message across in as few words as possible and give them a reason to check out, instead of frustrating them.
- Image based: Let your high quality and informative images do the talking for you. A short description of the product will always be needed, but images are better than any description could be. User generated content is even better than the manufacturer’s photos because it is authentic and gives shoppers ideas of how they could use or style the product.
- Uniform pricing: Shoppers want the same pricing on every channel, otherwise they might feel a bit cheated knowing they could have paid less elsewhere. But there are several examples of companies that ignore this. When I book a hotel, I generally check Hotels.com first. I often see a message encouraging me to download their app for “app-only prices.” Of course that makes me use the app because who doesn’t want to get a better deal with little to no extra effort? Either offer uniform pricing or additional perks on the channels with higher prices.
- Easy to connect: Finding a real person to talk to shouldn’t be a chore. Every page on your mobile site should provide a way to get questions answered. FAQ sections are a tried and true way to convey common questions and answers. A phone number with an easy way to be connected to an operator should also be on each page. Even think about offering assistance via text or having a button to send a question via tweet, as long as you have the staff power to get back to shoppers quickly.
- Check-outable: Buttons to check out should be big and colorful, so there is no chance that a shopper could miss it. But beyond that, shoppers need to have a visual representation of where they are in the checkout process with minimized fields. As on desktop sites, they should have an option to check out as a guest because creating an account on a site when you’re in a hurry or don’t plan to revisit can be a pain.
Overall, the best mobile customer experiences are straightforward at their core, but still offer a few options. Shop your own mobile site to see how seamless it is, as well as offering incentives for shoppers to give feedback based on their experience on your mobile site or app.
Understanding how shoppers use your site and what would make it easier for them to navigate or checkout will help you provide the experience customers are looking for. The best marketing is word of mouth, so work to have a mobile site that customers want to tell their friends and family about.
