By Amber Hovious, VP Marketing and Partnerships at Teamwork Commerce
Black Friday, the curtain raiser for the festive season, is fast approaching. Increased customer footfall during the shopping extravaganza provides retailers with enormous opportunities to drive sales. According to Statista, shoppers were expected to spend a total of £8.74 billion over the course of Black Friday weekend in 2023. Meanwhile, recent Statista forecasts indicate the total value of retail sales made during the 2024 holiday season as a whole is estimated to reach £96 billion in the UK, up from approximately £93 billion in 2023.
While the festive season brings significant opportunities to drive sales volumes, it can also help brands boost consumer loyalty and expand their customer base. The opposite can happen if retailers fail to meet consumer expectations. From delivering seamless and convenient shopping experiences to personalizing each interaction, retailers must ensure customer satisfaction during Black Friday to capitalize on increased opportunities during and after the busy shopping day.
Delivering real convenience
Amidst the chaos of Black Friday, retailers must be able to facilitate convenience at every touchpoint of the customer shopping journey. Whether using RFID to help customers easily navigate items they're looking for, or deploying mobile point-of-sale and RFID-powered self-checkout systems to streamline the checkout process, there are multiple ways retailers can lean on tech innovations to deliver convenience.
By leveraging mobile POS technology, retailers can empower associates to bring POS to the customer and complete transactions from any part of a store, dramatically reducing checkout queues while letting customers complete checkout seamlessly. Store associates aren't tied to a traditional checkout terminal; they can move around the store, helping customers, answering queries, and completing transactions. RFID-powered self-checkout systems can facilitate similarly seamless experiences, automatically scanning items placed in a customer's scanning basket and completing the transaction within seconds.
Personalizing interactions
While convenience significantly improves the customer experience, interactions can be enhanced further when combined with other elements, including inventory availability and visibility, high-quality personalization, and exciting discounts. Today's mobile POS solutions feature integrated customer relationship management systems that function in real time. Associates can use these tools to personalize interactions, from suggesting products that match a customer's size and style to offering tailored discounts.
Based on in-store data provided by mobile POS solutions, retailers can also tailor online experiences to be more consistent for customers. By analyzing recent in-store purchases, brands can make informed suggestions when the same customer shops online, enhancing the experience while also increasing sales.
Turning festive footfall into loyal customers
Using Black Friday footfall to drive sales volumes is important for retailers, but if brands want to thrive in the long term, they must not treat short-term sales as their primary and end goal. The true value lies in expanding the customer base, converting first-time shoppers into loyal customers, and understanding evolving customer habits. Retailers can achieve this by focusing not only on pushing sales but on improving the shopping and post-purchase experience, whether through loyalty programs powered by advanced CRM tools, or by using customer information to wisely tailor communications.
Ultimately, brands need to understand that no single element can help them achieve everything. Retailers must bring several factors together to meet evolving customer expectations. An integrated, all-encompassing approach to tech can help brands thrive in the market. Those who prepare now can significantly benefit during the busy shopping season and the new year ahead.