Retail Observer

RETAILOBSERVER.COM OCTOBER 2014 52 A recent study by Mastercard surveyed 270 retailers. Ninety percent had online presences, but only 20 percent could accept electronic payment through their website at the time of the study. Why? The two biggest barriers to adopting retail and payment technology were high costs (46 percent) and a lack of know-how (31 percent). While other hurtles such as data security and privacy worries were also concerns (27 percent), the issues of cost and lack of understanding have small retailers running scared. But what these retailers are not doing online is hurting them in a big way. A Forbes.com article "Small Businesses Lag in E-commerce" gave the illustrative example of a college-age kid ordering pizza. While the local pizzeria might be better in terms of quality and service, the kid wants to order the pie online or using an app, track its progress, have preferences saved, not have to repeat an address to a surly worker over the phone next time they order, etc. In cases like these, the big guys like Papa Johns will win over the local mom-and- pop every time. "The gap in technology resources between global retailers and smaller-scale merchants is glaring," the Mastercard report states. Of course, none of this really matters if you can't get users to your site in the first place, and that means moving up in search rankings on Google. Dynamic content, blogs, user reviews, key- words, and search engine optimization are all very important to your site's health and relevance. Building a vibrant social media community is also key for communicating with your customers and driving traffic across platforms. Constantly refresh and update your E-commerce site with content, promotions, and the newest and most exciting products. Provide constant customer incentives to buy on your site and watch as loyalty grows. Because more and more consumers are shopping on their mobile devices, your site should also be easy to use and optimized for mobile shopping and browsing. If a user has trouble navigating your site in the first few seconds while searching for something on an iPhone, you can forget that sale, and more than likely that customer, forever. One pitfall smaller retailers often fall prey to is ignoring the data passing through your POS system. "POS Systems are leveraged for the authorization of transactions, but not as a potential window into customer behavior and providing insights. Consumers don't just want to receive discounts; they want to be offered discounts on the products they care about," the Mastercard study explains. Developing ways to legally use consumer purchase behavior data to offer customers the things they really want and need is a recipe for success. If you're ignoring this data, you really are throwing a valuable facet of your business away: Information. In the era where data is perhaps the most valuable tool in your arsenal, this is a huge mistake. Whatever your strategy, one thing is clear, shopping online is not going anywhere, but will continue to grow and become more intuitive and pleasing for end users. By building a robust and dedicated E-commerce strategy, you might just be able to compete with the current kings of E-commerce industry. RO John White Appliance Trends John White is a 20-year veteran of the appliance industry and is currently serving as the Executive Vice President of Appliances for BrandSource. THE E-COMMERCE GAME OF THRONES In the war for online consumer dollars, it's Tyrion versus Tywin

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