No matter what it is that you sell there are more people on the internet to buy than can ever walk through your door. Does that mean that I think you should close your doors and just operate online? No I believe that there are some huge advantages to combining the strengths of both channels. That was Barnes and Noble's biggest mistake when Amazon was just a small online bookstore that was bleeding cash. If Barnes and Noble had focused on their strength in brick and mortar locations and combined their "clicks with their bricks" they would be the largest online bookseller today and Amazon would be gone or limping along.
What are these 7 vital ingredients that I'm talking about?
1. You get to look a customer in the eye and ask them questions.
There are some amazing analytics tools available on the internet for tracking and surveying customers. I use Google Analytics everyday, but in my opinion they still are not a substitute for years of looking a customer in the eye, asking them questions and watching their response. Most internet marketers never get this opportunity. That is a strength of your offline business. I believe that that if Barnes and Noble or Blockbuster had handled this better then we wouldn't have Amazon or NetFlix.
2. Many people still like the idea of going into a store.
The shopping experience is changing, but retail stores will not go away for a long, long time. I appreciate the convenience of the web for items that I know I want. But when I want to browse nothing beats a funky little store or browsing the book or movie aisles to decide what I want to buy.
3. You can send people from your retail location to your online store.
This is a great marketing channel. You can have a slightly different inventory available online. Many successful Online/offline stores will have their hottest, seasonal items ont their shelves and all of their inventory online.
4. Your local clients will tell their out of town friends.
If you do a good job of servicing your local clients they will evangelize you to their friends. You can even provide incentives to those that bring you new customers. Start
5. You can form a relationship with your customers.
This is similar to #1 but the differences are that you will see them at church the ball games etc. They will see you as a real person, and probably refer to you as your business. You'll be the furniture guy or the jewelry lady, but it will make a difference in your business.
6. In store Pickup
This is especially strong if you have multiple locations - like Barnes and Noble had. You can allow people to pay for their items online and pick them up in your store. This will give you another chance to upsell to them. And there is nothing better than upselling someone who is picking something up that they already paid for because they feel like they are getting a gift.
7. In store returns
Yes, none of us likes to take returns. But there are some great advantages to having them return it to your store. First it gives you the chance to find why they really returned it. Rarely will you get the real answer online. Second it gives you a chance to change it into an exchange or upselling them something else.
