We often hear from retailers that winter can be a challenging time of the year. Some retailers experience harsh weather and lots of business in preparation for storms. Others see a slowdown in sales once the holidays end.
During our first Fireside Chat of 2021, we dive into the different ways retailers experience winter, how to take advantage of this time of the year, and the Rosie tools helping them do it. Alexa Dash (Dash’s Market), Susan Hoopes (Belmont Market), and Irene Cooper (Lake Region IGA) provided their perspectives on these questions and more.
Deliver personalized recommendations for out of stock items
When sales are up during winter’s busiest times, out of stocks can be a real problem. Alexa Dash, Director of Ecommerce and Marketing at Dash’s Market, notes there’s nothing worse than getting your groceries and realizing you have to change your dinner plan because of missing ingredients. To ensure this doesn’t happen, all three panelists agree it’s essential for pickers to make courtesy phone calls to customers in out of stock situations. Irene Cooper, Project Manager at Lake Region IGA, even says sometimes when pickers call and suggest a substitution, customers like the suggested item even more! A phone call gives customers the option to add new items to their order over the phone, netting a larger basket and delivering an extra personalized shopping experience.
Keep customers coming back for more
Belmont Market, located in Wakefield, RI, is a popular beach destination in the spring and summer. During the winter months, Susan Hoopes, Marketing Director at Belmont Market, focuses much of her time on customer retention to keep those loyal customers who shop during the busy season coming back when the weather gets cold. From special promotions, personal notes celebrating shopper’s order milestones, and service that goes above and beyond that of competitors, Susan finds it’s the little things that go a long way.
Build a marketing plan
The first half of winter can go by in a flash thanks to the hectic holiday season. Once January and February roll around, you don’t want to be caught without a marketing strategy. Alexa suggests thinking ahead with your marketing well in advance so you know exactly what you want to promote and when, throughout the duration of the season. Using the Control Panel, upload marketing panels and Collections well in advance by setting the future date you’d like them to go live.
Create space for online orders
There’s a lot to consider when fulfilling online orders: the number of slots open, how many pickers you have working, and the time each order takes to pick. One important aspect to consider investing in is also space. Without registers and refrigerator space, you may be missing out on the number of online orders your store can fulfill. Recently, Belmont Market acquired an addition to their store with brand new space to process and store online orders. To make your online program as successful as it can be, think about ways you can rearrange physical space in your store so you can meet your potential with online orders.
Use Rosie features to stand out
With the launch of Collections, you can curate products from different departments that you want to highlight on your store. For Irene and Lake Region IGA, this means using Collections to support their mission of “Local Equals Fresh” by highlighting the local products they stock in dedicated Collections right on the homepage. Use winter to make a plan and hone on in the Collections of products unique to your store that customers will want to buy.
Want to learn how Rosie’s tools can take your online program to the next level? Contact a member of our team at support@rosieapp.com.
