In this white paper we argue the importance of putting the customer at the centre in order to achieve a great shopping experience. It is well known that customers are keen to save time and money – and therefore more than anything they want their shopping to be a simple matter.

In today’s digital world, there are opportunities to do things in new ways, but this does not, however, always mean that things become easier for customers. Internet shopping does not mean the end of physical shops. At the same time, many retailers find it very beneficial to combine physical shops with Internet shopping. The best retailers also understand their role as service providers. They ensure that their customers feel that they are being attended to and that their customers complete their shopping and leave with a positive impression.

See how retailers use design to win the battle for customers.

Time

Most customers like to shop quickly. Many take only five minutes to buy their dinner when they go into their local shop. This means that the shop must make sure that they lead the customer to where they want him/her to go. The most important categories must be easy to find and clearly visible, so that the customer finds what they need within a reasonable distance in the shop. It is also an advantage if the products have fixed places. The success of Internet shopping has a lot to do with the amount of time that it can save for the customer. Quick navigation, clear and logical directions during the shopping process, and a fast and easy check-out and payment system is essential here. A combination of digital and analogue tools are advantageous only as long as this makes it easier and faster for the customer to buy what they want. If the customer has decided to buy a bed, there is not much point in them receiving e-mails with offers on book shelves and office equipment. The same can be said about app offers which are not relevant to what the customer has actually thought of buying.

The technological development in this field is happening quickly and we see many retailers using app and beacon technology in an intelligent way. But the rule here is, as it has always been, that offers must be personal, relevant and help the customer to save time, shop within their budget and that the experience must be a simple one.

“The definition of quality is when the customer comes back, not the product.”

Budget

It is important to remember that customers have a ceiling on how much they are willing to spend – they have a budget. This applies particularly when they are buying larger things, like white goods or a car. But most of us also have a budget when we shop for a family dinner or look for tickets for the next holiday. Sales personnel in physical shops must pay particular attention to this and be able to offer good solutions within a customer’s budget. Customers are often not willing to reveal what sort of price range they have in mind, so it is important here that sales personnel and Internet developers think intelligently, so that customers do not feel embarrassed. Because if they do, there is a good chance that they will not complete their purchase. Good sales personnel have the right combination of intuition, empathy, an outgoing personality and enough courage to offer suggestions. Internet shops also take their customers’ budgets into account, and that is why we often find ways of defining budgets when we shop on the Internet, usually in the form of menus where one can enter a budget between two amounts, e.g. from 7 000 – 10 000 kroner.

Simplicity

Many customers find shopping causes them a lot of stress, and they want to able to shop simply. In physical shops, this means that the goods must be intelligently and logically placed. Product categorisation is incredibly important for the sales process. The local shop knows that people often think in terms of meals when they are shopping. I’m going to cook chicken for dinner, what do I need? Or, I’m going to have friends over for lunch on Sunday. What might go well with eggs? Competent people in charge of product categories in these shops take care, therefore, to place products within the same category close to each other so that you as a customer can find them more easily.

Some people have perhaps noticed the ice spoons that are often hanging over the freezer counter when they buy a packet of ice. Even though ice and ice spoons are from two different categories, the one provides an associative link to the other. Such thematic links are more usual than one might think: if you are going to buy sausages, you will usually find barbecues, ignition liquid, sauces and lettuce nearby. If you are looking for Kvikk Lunsj to take with you over Easter, you will most likely find Easter marzipan, oranges and yellow Easter napkins very close by.

Logical product associations make the shopping experience more interesting and easier for the customer, and we often see this as well in Internet shops. If you are looking for boxer shorts from Zalando, you do not want to be sent to the Internet shop’s home page, but directly to the underwear pages. Once you are there, the Internet pages may also suggest other relevant products. Internet developers are also working on making it easy to check-out and pay. Everything that takes time here creates unnecessary friction and negatively affects the transaction experience.

With online stores, it has definitely become easier to shop, and customers can choose between picking up their purchase in-store, having it sent by post or getting it delivered to their door. There is reason to believe that those who manage to make pick-up and delivery simple, will be the winners in this segment.

“Your most dissatisfied customers are your greatest source of learning.”
–Bill Gates

The X-factor = the customer wants to be seen and involved

In addition to the three above-mentioned elements, i.e. time, budget and simplicity, those who really manage to engage their customershave something else in common. They are able to involve their customers. In the Internet shop, we see this in customers being able to ‘like’, comment or write a product appraisal. This again gives kudos and contributes to an improved shopping experience for others. At Tripadvisor you get points each time you write a review and you build up your trustworthiness and know-how in which other users can put their trust. Other actors invite their customers to share photos on social media sites such as Instagram. These sorts of things provide the smartest people in the business with valuable brand ambassadors completely free. Clever retailers know to play along with their customers in order to build up a good reputation for their brand.

It is not only Internet shops that manage to involve their customers, there are also several physical shops that are very good at doing this. Many chain-stores offer loyalty cards which give their customers tangible advantages like discounts on selected products, e.g Trumf-kort, Statoil-kort, Coop-kort, to name a few. The use of such cards gives the shops valuable insights into their customers’ shopping habits, which they again use to make marketing more personal.

“You are serving a customer, not a life sentence. Learn how to enjoy your work.”
– Laurie McIntosh

Many people have no doubt noticed differences between shops here at home and those they have shopped in on their travels. If we take, for example, countries like the USA and the UK, we find many employees in the sales-and-service industry who really stick to their guns and give their all in order to satisfy their customers. In the USA, customers’ tips are, as we know, also an important part of an employee’s earnings. Without wanting to introduce this type of wage practice in Norway, it is still worth noting that customers want to feel that they are being well received and that they feel welcome.

My impression is that here in this country things that should be obvious in physical shops are often done in a slipshod manner, namely to greet and look at your customer, approach your customer while they are in your shop to find out what they are looking for, and last but not least say good-bye when your customer leaves. It is a disservice not to require that your sales personnel actually sell, and this also means lost income for the shop and less satisfied customers. Shop assistants are there for the customer, not the other way around.

There are, of course, several honourable exceptions, and what they have in common is that they work actively with staff; training their staff in customer service, how to sell and approach customers. In this way, one ends up developing competent, loyal and engaged sales personnel who have a better chance of succeeding in and enjoying their role as a salesperson. And selling is good customer service.

Checklist

Customers do not have a lot of time, so remember to plan meticulously how you can get your customer to buy most within the shortest period of time, always ensuring that the customer feels that the experience is relevant and valuable.
The customer rarely shops without a budget. As a salesperson you must make sure that you give your customer a feeling of getting the most possible within the budget they have.
Customers want things to be simple. Make sure that you have clear and well-planned solutions, clear category classifications and pricing in physical shops. In the same ways, make the customer’s shopping experience on the Internet simple and smooth, so that they do not disappear before they have paid.
Offer that little extra. Think through how you can involve your customer at different stages along the customer journey.
It cannot be repeated too often: a smile creates a cheerful tone, and you often get a smile in return. Invest in personnel who enjoy being salespeople and do not take on staff who think it is scary to speak to customers.