The challenge of digitation for the retail industry

A marketing challenge that the fashion industry faces right now is the digitation of shopping. More and more stores are closing down their brick and mortar shops due to not generating enough sales to keep their doors open in shopping centers and malls. Charlotte Russe, JC Penney, and Dressbarn are just a few stores that have recently had to close their doors.  These stores could not compete with online sales and are now trying to focus more on their online presence than physical stores.

             I have come up with a few ways to address these challenges. One thing retailers can do to attract more customers into their stores is using AI or VR technology inside the stores. Introducing these types of experiences to physical stores, like a VR mirror where customers can take photos within the mirror and then share them on social media. Customers would have to pay before using this mirror which can bring in revenue as well as add a fun new experience for the customers. This can also help the sales associates give advice and engage with the customer who is using the mirror, giving a more personal experience.

            Another way to draw in more customers to physical stores is to add to the buying experience. Give the customers something to talk about, for example, Topshop started a campaign where they put a water slide inside one of their stores and added a VR experience. This generated a lot of social media engagement and made customers want to go into the physical stores to experience for themselves. At first this may be an expensive venture for management to start up but it will hopefully add good experiences for the customers and they will tell their friends about it, also posting it on social media will gain them follows and more customers.

            Lastly, retailers need to put a bigger focus on ordering online and picking up in-store. This solution can be great for customers who don’t want to pay the extra money for next day delivery, but it has the ease of ordering online and being able to pick it up the same day. Another way to enhance this experience is by allowing the ability to scan an item that a customer finds in-store but might not be in stock and order it online right there in the store. This allows sales associates to help the customers rather than a website, which may not give them other options.  

Reference:

1. Balota, A., & Balota, A. (2018, November 16). Top 3 biggest challenges the fashion industry will face in 2019. Retrieved from https://medium.com/@alexandrabalota10/top-3-biggest-challenges-the-fashion-industry-will-face-in-2019-6ebaf61053a1
2. 11 Ways to Digitize the In-Store Shopping Experience. (2019, February 18). Retrieved from https://www.guided-selling.org/11-ways-digitize-in-store-shopping-experience/