Kitchen retailers can deliver value throughout the business if they channel data effectively to drive consumer insight.
As the uncertainty of current events continues to influence customer decisions and keep them away from physical stores, kitchen retailers need to pivot their strategies to embrace the full potential of e-commerce and digital transformation. In addition to omnichannel communications and a steady migration to increased e-commerce, a third critical driver for the success of digital transformation is the ability to acquire meaningful customer insight from data, at scale. Seeing as digital customer service interactions are expected to rise by 40% due to the pandemic, it is recognized that data-driven insights are vital in order to inform new meaningful communications with customers, build loyalty and advocacy, and help navigate future success.
Establishing an omnichannel presence
A recent survey has indicated that 75% of people in the US who used e-commerce for the first time during the lockdowns of 2020, will continue to use them post-crisis. Kitchen retailers now have the opportunity to connect the dots with a sophisticated digital strategy encompassing omnichannel, e-commerce and consumer insight.
Putting in place online shopping capabilities and omnichannel experiences will not deliver on the full potential of digital transformation. Analytics of consumer-generated data already present on retailer systems is essential. Consumer insight needs to form the foundation of a sophisticated online presence, which kitchen retailers can then use to optimize the customer journey with the right omnichannel experiences and streamline business processes. Analytics can also help kitchen retailers to inform other operational, sales and marketing decisions throughout the business. If retailers are not leveraging their data effectively, you could say they are essentially driving their business with no headlights.
Forecasting demand and scalability
As recent global events have shown, supply and demand can change in an instant. Data analytics help kitchen retailers keep up with these trends – for example, a consumer-facing 3D planning solution can yield rich insights on what trends and styles customers are gravitating towards, helping to forecast demand.
The key to forecasting is understanding the story of the data and incorporating that understanding into research and planning moving forward. With improved data analytics, kitchen retailers can improve reaction times to emerging design trends. At the same time, this insight can also be used to inform marketing, sales and promotional decisions.
For example, in 2019, about a quarter of consumers in the US wanted their kitchen faucets to be more water-efficient and not leave fingerprints. Insights into trends such as this can enable kitchen retailers to adapt their stocking and marketing strategies accordingly.
Data from a 3D planning solution can enable sales teams to gather important information on what items, layouts and styles consumers like and dislike. In-store experts can use this understanding to adapt merchandising and displays, make appropriate recommendations to consumers and run promotions that are more likely to succeed. Analytics also provide insights into which channels consumers use to reach their website or store front – important for long lead, big ticket items such as kitchens, where multichannel consultation is the new norm.
Data is not just for the customer journey
Improving data analytics isn’t just about giving kitchen retailers greater control over the customer journey, but also over the supply chain. A seamless supply chain enables more streamlined operations and increased operational efficiency. Sharing analytics-driven insights across the supply chain can minimize issues such as slow or inaccurate delivery of products, which can frustrate customers and lead to a negative experience. In fact, 84% of consumers said they are unlikely to shop with a brand again after a poor last mile delivery experience.
A 3D planning solution is a rich source of data about consumer behavior and preferences that kitchen retailers can use to improve and inform purchasing, reduce stock issues and returns while protecting profit at every stage of fulfillment.
Conclusion
Now more than ever, kitchen retailers must get to grips with customer data, and use it to better understand the narrative and adapt their sales strategy. It is no longer about simply having more data. Retailers must shift their focus to having the right data at the right time to tailor the customer journey.
By leveraging the data story of powerful insights offered by flexible solutions such as HomeByMe for Kitchen Retailers and through integration into existing systems, retailers have at their fingertips powerful consumer insights which can be used to build and optimize a unique customer experience, with an easy to use platform. It gives consumers the power to develop and customize their dream kitchen build while helping the retailer streamline all aspects of the customer journey, allow for scalability and forecasting, and inform future marketing decisions.
To further explore how a 3D planning solution can improve your data insights, visit our website built to serve kitchen retailers. Get in touch today to organize a demonstration of the platform with a member of our design experts.
