Ah, yes, we live in the technology age. We get our news, entertainment, health information and appointments, and even schooling online. Shopping habits have also evolved to online in the past decade — and certainly even more so in the past 9 months. Whether you’re in the market for a new car, storage unit or just a pair of shoes, chances are that you’ll do your research and purchasing online – without ever having seen (or touched) the product. It’s become so easy to search for what you need by filtering the specifics you’re looking for, weeding out different brands and options, and getting an apples-to-apples comparison before making your purchasing decision. Some online retailers will even display a comparison chart for you, which makes it super easy. The ball is definitely in the consumer’s court, and it’s digitally driven. Here are some ways our industry can stay ahead of the digital curve from the experts at Boxwell.
Know Your Customers
Today’s shoppers can take their time browsing through sites, getting to know a brand and reading its reviews. There are shoppers who just “know when they know” and don’t need much pondering before they make the decision to purchase, and there are those who put items in their cart and return to it later (often multiple times). As a business owner, it’s important to make the shopping process clean and transparent for all varieties of shoppers. Think about what’s important to those looking to purchase your product or service — and know your competition. What other brands are your potential customers considering? Be sure to showcase your goods in a way that allows visitors to your website easily see (and understand) what they’re really getting with your brand – especially if they’re looking solely online. Figure out which features are going to secure the sale.
Top 4 Considerations When Browsing Self-Storage
Let’s take a look at the things that will obviously make a difference when a consumer is looking at their options:
- QUALITY – does your product stand the test of time? Is it guaranteed? It is comforting when a company stands behind their product 100% and is willing to replace or refund an item based upon its quality.
- INNOVATION – what sort of research has the company done to make their product the best it can be? With new materials and creative ideas, just about everything can be updated to its finer self. If you’ve done a lot of market research and made improvements to your product, be sure to highlight that.
- VALUE – just because it’s good does not mean it has to be expensive. Consumers are constantly looking for a good cost to benefit ratio. If you can offer incentives or coupons to your customers, do so. Sometimes even just the smallest deal will make the sale.
- TESTIMONIALS – it’s definitely helpful to be able to read about other consumers’ experiences with a product or service. As a society, we’ve grown accustomed to letting others do the test runs. What are the pro’s and con’s? Read a review. Be sure to proudly display these reviews on your site.