3 Ways to Create Content that Attracts Webroom & Showroom Shoppers
30
2017
Webroom and showroom shoppers have become crucial target markets for businesses in today’s economy. In fact, over two-thirds of consumers now webroom by researching items online before buying them in a physical store, while nearly half showroom by doing research in stores before buying online, a Harris Poll shows. During the holiday season, these numbers increase, with over eight out of 10 Christmas shoppers webrooming and showrooming in 2016, according to Accenture. Creating content that appeals to these shopping segments is vital for successful sales today. Here are three ways to create content that attracts both webroom and showroom shoppers.
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Provide Price Comparisons and Inventory Information
For both webroomers and showroomers, comparing prices is one of the main reasons for doing shopping research online. Making it easy for consumers to compare prices on your website can help you appeal to both consumer types. Capterra provides online reviews of pricing optimization software you can use to automatically monitor and match competitor prices.
Research by eMarketer shows that showroomers are also interested in checking inventory availability, motivated by a desire to pick up products immediately instead of waiting. Listing your inventory levels is another way you can attract showroom shoppers as well as webroomers who want to order now.
Offer Product Reviews and Previews
In addition to pricing information, consider providing other important consumer information, like product reviews. Retail Perceptions’ research found that webroomers are also motivated by wanting to compare products and conduct product research. Providing product reviews can be a way to attract online shoppers looking for this type of information.
Meanwhile showroomers want to experience what products are like. Providing an online preview can appeal to this shopping segment. For instance, cosmetics retailer Sephora offers an app that allows users to use digital photos to try on makeup virtually. Videos and virtual reality tools are other ways to provide effective online previews of your products.
Offer Discounts and Loyalty Rewards
Another tactic Sephora has used successfully is making special offers to their social media followers and in-store customers. For instance, the company offers firsts to its Facebook followers, while in-store customers can get free makeovers with minimum purchases.
During the holidays last year, 37 percent of showroomers said they went online while in-store to search for digital coupons and discounts, eMarketer’s research reports. A Deloitte study similarly showed that 56 percent of holiday shoppers went online to find better deals, coupons, and prices. These numbers indicate that extending discount and loyalty reward offers can appeal to webroom and showroom shoppers. Accuracast recommends using coupon and loyalty ID codes on websites that can be keyed to offline purchases to allow you to give deals to shoppers who first found your offer online. You can likewise use beacons to extend personalized offers to in-store shoppers.