What Starbucks did in 2017 and why you should follow suit

Starbucks. The coffee giant. You'd think they wouldn't need elaborate marketing strategies at this point. But they do and so does every business that wants to stay relevant in this digital age.

If the 1.66 billion people who shopped online in 2017 doesn't scare you, I don't know what will.

What's wrong with shopping online, you ask? Nothing. I do it all the time. It's convenient, easy and I don't have to wait forever at the checkout counter.

But for physical retail spaces and brands, this is of a growing concern.

So, let me start by telling you what Starbucks did and what you can do.

Unified cross channel approach -

You've obviously heard of the omni-channel approach and the cross-channel approach. But the trick is to give your users a uniform experience. For example, if I see an advertisement on Instagram, I'm bound to go check out the brand's store-page or Facebook page. But do you know how many marketers measure the effect of one channel on the other? Only 28%. SMH.

This is where Starbucks nailed with their Happy Frappuccino Hour Campaign. They used similar images across all platforms. Their in-app messaging let users text 'WOOHOO' to receive a list of summer surprises at their nearest outlet. They also updated their website and released a TV commercial to that end.

So what can you do?

Before I explain what you should do, let me explain the WHY.

Amazon Go. Ring a bell?

Here's how its gonna play out. A shopper who doesn't have to wait in long lines, ask unavailable salespersons information about the product and can just walk in and take whatever they need and go is not going to want to come into a brick-and-mortal store where they have to wait in long checkout lines, be disappointed because of product unavailability and go through the entire hassle of paying, waiting for the exact change and so on and so forth.

I'm sure you agree that there are problems with the current retail ecosystem.

Which brings us back to 'what can you do?'

1. Ditch the short and don the long-tail keywords

Since voice assistants like Siri. Google Assistant and Alexa are becoming more advanced, people are also starting to rely more on their phones to help them purchase items. As voice searches become more common, you may want to tweak your online content to incorporate more natural keywords. This is what you can do online. As third-party app developers tie up with Voice Assistants and help them learn more 'skills', Bluetooth beacons can be hooked up to them to give shoppers a more personalised experience at the store. For example - Alexa will use beacons to let you know that your order is ready and the store gets notified that you're in the vicinity.

2. Automated retail is the future

Identify the problems a potential shopper may face at your store. Ease of purchase is the most important thing that you should focus on to nullify cases of cart abandonment. Beacons can be tied to the POS that lets a shopper pay from anywhere in the store. Again, you can also use push promotional campaigns and discounts that they can avail of.

3. Gamify your store

Gently nudge customers to the areas you want them to go by creating a digital treasure hunt. Offer incentives if they buy a certain product and watch your ROI grow. This form of subtle marketing goes a long way to help you retain customers and give them a solid reason to come down to your store.

4. Personalise, Personalise, Personalise

If you don't do this already, start. NOW. Sephora uses AI chatbots to offer recommendations to its shoppers. You can use beacons to store information about a shopper's last purchase or simply recommend them a product based on their location inside the store. Beacons can also let you know when someone has entered or exited a store which means you can send them a 'Welcome' and 'Goodbye' message. 91% of males are swayed by personalised in-store advertising and 76% of females are influenced by in-store beacon tech. That's all the reason you need.

Retail isn't just about selling products anymore. It's about selling an experience which is what you need to do.

Stay Relevant.