Three Ways Brick-N-Mortar Stores Can Reach In-Store Customers

The folks who run traditional "brick-n-mortar" stores are constantly complain about how hard it is for them to compete with online retailers.  I think they need to stop whining and start thinking.  They need to capitalize on some of their advantages.

Inside a Target Store - photo by Mike Mozart from Funny YouTube, USA (Target) [CC BY 2.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0)], via Wikimedia Commons

Here are some of the advantages that traditional "brick-n-mortar" stores have over online merchants.

• Merchandise is on hand for immediate purchase.  
• Customers can closely examine or try on merchandise.
• Located close to where customers live.
• Customers may make impulse purchases.
• Customers can make returns more easily.
• Customers can get personal service.

Unfortunately, many merchants squander these advantages by staffing the stores with rude employees who don't care, by under-staffing key areas like cash registers, by maintaining insufficient stock, and by failing to inform customers of in-store specials and sales.


To reach customers, "brick-n-mortar" stores need to provide pleasant, inviting, and convenient shopping experiences.  Here are three things that "brick-n-mortar" stores can do to reach in-store customers:

1.  Inform Customers of Sales - Most big box stores have Muzak systems, Public Address speakers, wi-fi, large swathes of running televisions, and huge expanses of exterior walls facing outwards towards the community.  A sale flyer pinned to a bulletin board in the store entry just doesn't cut it anymore.  Why not announce sales over the P/A system?  Why not have a scrolling marquis or jumbo-tron score board showing sales right on the front of the building?  At least pay attention to basics and get signage up in individual departments that clearly labels sale merchandise.

2. Eliminate the stock-out - Most big-box stores have automated inventory systems.  Why not have kiosks throughout the store that provide electronic access to that inventory and allow customers to request items from the stockroom when nothing is available on the shelves.  When we are looking for something as customers, we usually leave the store when we encounter a stock out on the specific item we wanted.  Traditional merchants can capture that sale by bringing stock out from the back or by allowing customers to order merchandise online from the store.

Check out lines at Target - By Marlith (Own work) [CC BY-SA 3.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0) or GFDL (http://www.gnu.org/copyleft/fdl.html)], via Wikimedia Commons

3. Staff the registers - We often leave big box stores when we see large lines at the cash register.  Big box stores like Walmart and Target are often terrible about letting customers languish in long lines at the register.  These stores need to be more aggressive about opening new lines.