In the digital age where on-line shops are major influencers of purchasing behaviour, bricks and mortar shops have to go the extra mile. The days are long gone when all that was necessary was just to stack your products on the shelves and hang a sign outside the door. The reason is that anyone entering a shop nowadays is looking for an experience.
The principle is actually simple: one person has it, the other person wants it. Or does he really? Is he uncertain? Would he rather look around again? Does he just walk to the next supplier or even go on-line?
In a world full of alternatives the purchase decision is sometimes difficult. But this is generally only the case if the customer is not 100% convinced by the product he is shown. And more important: if he cannot identify with the brand behind the product. And that’s exactly where we come in.
We make every effort to ensure that the customer doesn’t just find what he is looking for, but that he discovers an experience he never knew meant so much to him. Designing a shop which remains in the memory requires no end of imagination, creativity and a pronounced awareness of the brand and its target group.
Purchasers nowadays are very demanding about their personal identity as an individual – something which must be satisfied. Technology is everywhere and reaches out to us personally in many different ways in our everyday life – whether on our smartphone, computer or in other interactive channels. We are accustomed to being shown exactly what we want. This in turn means that we expect few surprises. But who does not want to be surprised? Who does not want to discover something new? This fact offers plenty of opportunities to differentiate yourself from on-line businesses and to give an emotional lift to visitors to your shop. This occurs on several levels, sometimes very subtle, sometimes very obvious and direct.
We have distilled these down into six factors which are essential if you are to differentiate yourself.
The noise the door makes when you open it. The agreeable fragrance wafting gently towards you even before you have set foot in the shop. The sound the soles of your shoes make on the soft parquet floor or the hard stone floor. The light which gently embraces you or wakes you up with a shock. The coarse or fine material of the handles of the shopping bag you are holding in your hands as you leave the shop. All these things transport you into a new world and exercise a decisive influence on your mood and willingness to buy.
The unusual surprises us. As does the unexpected. This does not mean that everything that is usual should be abandoned but rather that a solid grounding allows you to experiment outside the usual methods. The surprises can be very small, for instance additional information which you can access via a screen or an unusual window display – the experience commences even before you have entered the shop. Perhaps the light or the music changes depending on where you go in the shop. What is important is to prompt the customer to learn something that is new or unexpected.
People love stories. Not just because they entertain but because they transform something small into a part of something bigger. Stories stimulate our imagination and give us the feeling that we can be who we want to be even, particularly because sometimes nothing is what it seems to be. Linking brands with a story creates the precondition for brand loyalty, for emotional anchor points and makes it possible to create a world which is also separate from the product and the transaction. The story can be the actual genesis of something. But it can also be a complete invention and take place on a different planet. So long as you bring the product to life, make the brand and its values more comprehensible and tangible, you have the right story.
To a certain extent this point combines the remaining points, but for this reason it deserves to be mentioned separately. If you can remember a shop really well it is probably because one or more of these small details have lodged themselves deep in your memory. The fittings don’t appear to be out of place but are relevant to the product, supplement it and bring it to the forefront. Or the flowers are not just arranged in vases but are to be seen on the wallpaper or are used as a seal on the box containing your purchase. The shop has a lounge where you can rest or perhaps drink something and review your enjoyable afternoon off. All these details transform a shop into a place which one simply likes to visit.
Identity is at the heart of our existence. A brand is no different and it must therefore also be discernible in the shop. We want to know who it is and what this brand stands for. We want to see and feel it so that we can identify with it. Mankind is always looking for a mirror in whatever form. It is the only way we can ask, “Is that me or someone else? In a shop this applies of course to its general appearance. Up-market or modest, premium quality or good value for money, general or specialist, sporty or elegant, close to nature or technical, exuberant or reserved. Each of the major attributes must be integrated into the design to give the brand an identity to which you can say “Yes” or “No”.
The buying experience should not end with the purchase. Ideally. the effect of all the above nuances continues long afterwards and leads to something we call brand loyalty. An after-effect which is as favourable as this can only be created if you, the customer, develop the need to return or tell other people about your experience. We must therefore give you the opportunity to retain this experience. On the one hand what you experienced leaves images with you so that you do not forget it so rapidly. On the other hand there are tangible, physical things which still remind you of your visit when you are at home, for example perfumed tissue paper spreading the perfume of the shop around the house. Or a souvenir you could take home. Perhaps you were given one of the flowers from the vase or a photo of when you tried on your suit for the first time. Or perhaps just a personal “goodbye” and a friendly handshake. The first impression remains but the final impression accompanies you on your way.
