As the economic outlook shows no signs of improving anytime soon, businesses find themselves in a constant battle to turn a profit at the same time as cutting costs and ensuring sufficient resources are available to survive. If that wasn’t enough of a juggling act there’s also trying to increase customer numbers, innovating, driving business group, and the list can go on. With all of this going on, some businesses have decided to change tactic entirely – a recent example being high street retailer, Argos.
With consumer spending at an all-time low coupled with disappointing sales figures, Argos decided to completely alter its business and focus much more on digital channels. This overhaul is an attempt to not only modernise the company but diminish the importance of its traditional catalogue. However, Argos is still a firm believer in the traditional print medium which will continue to be part of the business and they’re right to do so. Just because more new and social channels appear, it doesn’t mean businesses should give up on older channels. They simply need to learn to combine them with newer ones and get the benefits of both.
Only time will tell if this digital drive pays off for the retailer, but it is interesting to see that other brands are fully embracing this mix – John Lewis has been labeled by Retail Week as ‘among the UK’s savviest online players’, using a mix of channels to reach wider, more mobile and digitally-savvy audiences. The payoff? In 2010/11 it outperformed online market growth as stated by IMRG. That same industry association has subsequently reported that retailers are driving the mobile trend with 17% of the UK market now being web-based because consumers find these channels much more convenient. By incorporating technology such as mobile-optimised sites that enable customers to make payments on the move, digital catalogues or the latest QR code campaign, businesses will be able to grow their customer base and increase sales. While many businesses may feel that such digital strategies are costly and require specific expertise, this really isn’t the case with options available to suit all sizes of business.
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