Getting Phygital

Let’s get phygital…phygital…let’s get into phygital. Wait; what was that? What is phygital? It’s the concept in retail execution and customer experience that has marketers, key account managers, and retailers making sure that the customer experience is seamless across every channel, both online and in-store. One of the more popular ways to shop, BOPIS (Buy online, pick up in-store) grew out of the attempt to lift sales and improve customer experience in brick and mortar locations.  It also allows customers quick access to product information, reviews, and discounts that their e-commerce platforms provide.

So how can your brand benefit from mixing digital and in-store strategies? Here are a few key elements that will make sure your products can reach the next level in sales and customer engagement. 

1)   Data that is visible, in real-time, and available anywhere you are is a critical part of any brand’s strategy. Roughly 90% of sales still happen in physical stores. Data generated on the sales floor is massive, often scattered, and, at times, too late to drive actionable insights. ThirdChannel’s suite of cloud-based retail analytic tools can provide your brand with a detailed snapshot of what is happening at the point of sale and beyond. We curate the data you already have and create a custom, private Activity Feed that is available 24/7 and includes every bit of information, from loyalty program details to sales figures, inventory management issues and even supply chain strategy.

2)   A top-notch cadre of Brand Reps that are ready to demo new products, educate store associates, and make it happen on the sales floor. Brands that partnered with ThirdChannel to augment their in-store presence found that product demonstrations will sway 29% of consumer purchase decisions. Promotional events in stores provided a 58% increase in sales for a national health and wellness brand on the day of the promo, and this increase was still at 34% four weeks later.

The boom in creating a “phygital” retail experience represents a hot opportunity for retailers to both reorganize their brick-and-mortar stores to provide a unique customer experience and optimize their digital platforms to offer precisely what customers want across all channels.