Brick and Mortar Baby Retailers Can Compete with E-Commerce By Offering Full Solutions

Focusing on “jobs to be done” instead of products will win market share

2018 saw a disturbing trend in the baby retail space – the Baby Bust. Once seen as an impenetrable retail category, several veteran kids and baby brands, like Toys R Us, fell victim to trends affecting the entire retail industry. Analysts suggest the downturn in baby product sales is a byproduct of greater social trends – millennials are marrying and starting families later, and many people are still proceeding with caution after suffering financial hardship during the 2008 financial crisis. Other analysts point to the Amazon effect – many baby brands were ill-equipped to migrate online or meet the shipping demands created by the tech giant. Though plausible, these causes evade the real issue.

 Sure, there may be fewer babies born today than 10 years ago, but there are still an estimated 4 million live births in the U.S. every year. That’s 4 million families that need products to put babies to sleep, and that’s also a huge opportunity for baby-focused businesses to excel. Not to mention, baby care products amount to a $74 billion global market. Yet still, baby brands are struggling. There has to be more to the story.

 As an example, look to Gymboree. The storied kids brand, which also includes the sub-brands Crazy 8 and Janie and Jack, filed for bankruptcy in January 2019 and is shuttering all 800 of it's brick and mortar stores. However, it’s holding onto its websites and e-commerce businesses. Gymboree and all its associated brands focus on one thing – clothing. You can outfit a newborn at their stores, but you can’t do much else. When a baby is crying throughout the night, a new fleece sweater can’t solve the problem. Parents looking for something more head home emptyhanded.

 The same goes for Toys R Us and Babies R Us. In one of the highest-profile downfalls of 2018, both brands filed for bankruptcy and closed down all stores and websites. Toys R Us suffered from the same problem as Gymboree, but instead of clothing, they were singularly focused on entertainment. Babies R Us offered more solution-oriented products, but their offerings didn’t extend beyond what you could buy. You could shop there if you knew exactly what you needed, but if a parent sought more guidance, they were out of luck.

What these brands were missing, and what could have saved their businesses, was a more expansive approach to childcare – an acknowledgment that parents don’t shop looking for specific products but for total solutions. They have jobs to get done, such as putting a baby to sleep or stopping their toddler’s bed wetting problem. If a baby cries at night, a parent doesn’t head to the store looking for a specific pacifier brand. They look for as many ways as they can possibly find to soothe that baby and keep them quiet for long periods of time. If your brand only sells pacifiers, you’re likely to be passed up for a brand that offers more.

Brick and mortar has a future

Despite the growth of digital giants like Amazon, online isn’t everything. 78% of parents still prefer shopping in-store, and 70% of them shop throughout the year (not seasonally). Most will have their first encounter with your brand online, so an optimized digital storefront still matters. But the in-store experience remains a big draw for this market segment. 

There’s a place for your brand and your brick and mortar shop to succeed. However, you need to think of your business as a total solution for parents and not just a specialty brand for a single category or product. Think of the job to be done, not the product to be sold.

Putting a baby to sleep

A parent who enters a baby store may ask for a specific item, but as the business owner, it’s your job to uncover that parent’s underlying need. Ultimately, they don’t want the perfect crib or the best resource book; they want to put their baby to sleep. And you can be a total solution for them by offering help in the following categories:

Community

59% of moms spend time online each day, and on average, their online activity amounts to 214 minutes. This time represents a great way for you to engage parents. Don’t just chase them via social media – create an online resource for them.

By creating an online community, you give them a destination to spend time and find value. This community can include:

-      Secured chat, where parents can ask questions about difficult issues

-      Community sharing, where parents can offer tips and share best practices

-      Recognition, for the most effective or most shared ideas

This type of community engagement can open itself up for more niche communities and activities, like a Colic Baby Counsel or an opportunity for community members to co-compose a lullaby. They can even share quirky ideas and home remedies.This gives parents a chance to share, learn, and connect with other parents, all while maintaining a meaningful connection to your brand.

Products

Though the goal here is to think bigger than just products, the products you sell still matter. Product success means stocking your shelves with more than clothes or toys. It means offering state-of-the-art technology, like IoT diapers and cradles, baby cams, temperature controls, cooling fans, baby wearables, and breathable pajamas. This also means fragrances, swaddling blankets, and baby shower supply products.

 You can even offer parent training courses, which continually bring your customers back to your store and provide even greater value. And when they aren’t in-store, find creative ways to get the product to them. Think – 1-hour delivery for curated kits.Create a product offering that’s holistic. Drive revenue but do so in a modern, inventive way that solves problems for your customers. Don’t curate products that are nice to have; find items and services that parents can’t live without.

Pushing this even further, utilize AI and machine learning to personalize their experience. When they log on to your site, they’ll see products that are relevant to their needs. They’ll see their profile, complete with their photos and information about their children. They’ll have a shopping experience that’s customized for them, each and every time. Additionally, AI and machine learning can keep track of what’s not working. Your system can learn from the products each customer returns and ensure they’re being offered alternatives that better suit their preferences, in turn driving up your conversion and revenue.

Applications

92% of moms own smartphones and 64% own tablets. That means a lot of their online activity takes place on a mobile device. Since they’re already there, create apps that they can easily access and that are relevant to their parental needs.

These apps could range from the essential (self-help tools, medical checkups, alerts, light controller apps, etc.) to the creative (intelligent playlists to put babies to sleep, massage tips, emotions readers, and white noise apps).

Concierge

Make it easy for parents to access help and resources without leaving home. Parents are often more likely to use telemedicine services for immediate, non-life-threatening health concerns. Make this part of your brand’s offering. Think virtual nannies and babysitters on-demand, virtual pharmacists and pediatricians, chatbots for common questions, and virtual nurses or psychologists.

There is also a large elderly population, and elderly care centers serve as abundant resources for baby care. By employing virtual grandparents, you can solve two issues – concerned parents can receive wisdom and help with their babies from trusted sources, and you can create a source of income for the aging population.

 The strategy

So, how does this all work once you have the various pieces in place? First, you can set your pricing. Parents can pay per product when they visit your store, or you can curate a monthly product box of essentials and refills for a flat rate of $19.99. Access to your apps and community should be free. Concierge services could be priced at $10 per month. And other on-demand services would employ a pay-per-use fee structure.

 Concerning logistics, you’ll need to organize your products by problem solution, with separate areas like a “putting a baby to sleep” area or a “bed wetting” area. Think of solution-focused merchandising instead of product-focused merchandising. By doing this, you’re creating a site, and a store, that thinks and acts like a customer and not like a business owner. Also, you’ll need an efficient supply chain. Your stores can be used as micro fulfillment centers where your customized product kits are assembled, which enables you to deliver kits to customers’ homes in one hour or less.

The engagement with your brand starts online. Local Google searches lead 50% of mobile users to visit a store within 1 day, and 72% of customers who find your business via a local search will head in-store if they’re within 5 miles of your location. So, it’s critical to ensure all of this information is well-represented and easy to navigate online. 

 From there, customers will enter your shop. Here, you can do so much more than convince customers to buy – you can sign them up for training courses, teach them how to download your apps, and encourage them to join your community. You can also explain the range of concierge services.

 With all this information in tow, your store will function as a home base for your customers. And because of the apps and community, their relationship with your brand continues when they’re at home.

Conclusion

Parents need ongoing help, and for a baby brand to succeed during the continued rise of e-commerce, you need to anticipate their needs and create an experience that extends beyond a single visit. Engaging your customers repeatedly through multiple touchpoints is a surefire way to maintain a sustainable business. This is how you build brand loyalty and longevity in the digital age.