In a time when the retail industry, like the music and newspaper industries before it, is going through major changes thanks to the Internet there’s a tendency to think in black and white – that you’re either online or you aren’t.
This is a mistake as the choice between going online or not isn’t a black and white issue, it’s a matter of degrees.
A good example of flawed thinking was the announcement that Just Jeans would close 50 stores and move to online selling. This idea ignores that Just Jeans’ management has little online retail experience they would be better to be using an online presence to compliment their existing strengths and drive traffic into their stores.
A bricks and mortar store still needs online presence, even if there’s no intention to sell online. A shop or café needs a website that at least tells customers who they are, what they sell, where they are and when they are open.
For many businesses, online is a new channel and opportunity that complements existing channels. The web, and particularly social media tools, offer an opportunity to connect to customers, build loyalty and spread the word about the business.
Even the online tools themselves suffer this where we have arguments about whether a business should use one social media tool like Twitter, Facebook or LinkedIn. The real answer is you should have a presence in all of them, even though most businesses will find one channel is more effective than others.
Similarly an online business needs a credible physical presence such as real call centres, phone numbers and office contact details. Indeed the lack of customer service is the Achilles Heel of many online retailers.
A lack of understanding that there is little real difference between the online and physical worlds is shared by many in the community; the idea that what someone does online is not related to their reputation or legal responsibilities in the real world persists despite it being constantly proved wrong.
In the online world the answer isn’t usually one choice or another, it’s a matter of how one channel will help you more than others.
Thinking you have to use one tool at the expense of others or make a choice between being wholly online or ignoring the Internet totally is a false, dangerous choice.
A more sensible way of dealing with the online world for established retailers, or any existing business is to experiment with what works for their customers and markets.
It may well be that shutting down physical stores and moving online is the solution for some, but for many others it will make more sense to use what the online world does well to build on existing advantages.
For the retail industry, salvation is probably going to lie in providing service. It’s those managers and business owners that see qualified, helpful staff as an asset rather than a cost who will thrive in the next decade.