Online Business Strategy
Modern companies are faced with challenges as they now have to compete with not only other brick-and-mortar stores but also with online "space" oriented competitors; they need to develop online business strategies in addition to offline business strategies. For legacy companies and small "mom and pop" shops to survive they need to satisfy the changing demands of their customer base. They need to offer "place" services and "space" services to satisfy its entire potential customer base. After all a business that doesn't serve all of its customers including its online customers will likely not survive.
Online Business Strategy
Today's companies are faced with challenges that companies of past generations never encountered. In today's environment customers are no longer interested in merely a product or a service but they are increasingly more demanding on the physical presence of the company involved in delivering that product or service. This means that legacy companies with huge brand familiarity and customer trust have faced challenges simply by not integrating a "space" or in this case a web presence into their business plan. The lack of an effective online strategy is unavoidable.
Some of these companies have even come to their demise due to this lack of consideration. The market has obviously spoken when "big box" and "small box" retailers are continually failing due to their lack of competition with the newer online businesses and those older retailers who have added this online retailer space. Those that haven't adapted remain heavily branded and well known but many are only now playing catch-up in the "space race" as they try to win their customers back.
Business Marketing Strategy
In order for modern companies to become or remain successful in today's marketplace they need to develop the concept of space into their place; they need to develop a strong sales and marketing strategy that works online. In other words they need to build a business presence outside of the typical storefront possibly through an online storefront with a developed email marketing campaign in place.
Think about Blockbuster video. Blockbuster temporarily lost it's luster with its customer base simply because it's online rival Netflix captured the customers attention with the ease of subscription rental plans through the mail, lack of late fees, and with the introduction of online rental downloads for the internet centered household. Blockbuster countered with the duplication of the online rental subscription plans and upped the service by allowing free in-store exchanges of movies for immediate movie cravings.
This is niche marketing at its finest. It's an offering that Netflix cannot match because they lack a physical place. Blockbuster now offers its customers all of the place they could ask for at the corner store and they now offer the space options that an internet savvy customer requires.
Build A Better Business Plan
My recommendations for companies to provide the whole experience for their customers first and foremost is to build a strong online presence and web brand for your products and services. Modern customers do not often consider trying new businesses that don't have some sort of web presence. Personally if I am considering a new business to try I don't try them at all unless they have a website or profiles on business listings online.
There are a number of directories for customer reviews of businesses I would recommend brick-and-mortar businesses to get involved with these networks to build trust in their online brand and implement their online business strategy. I would then recommend each business to consider their online business competitors and look for ways to provide the same products and services as the competitors do without sacrificing the advantages of having a physical presence in the community.
Offer online shopping with in-store pickup. Offer comparison shopping for transparency and an expanded product catalogue online for those products that cannot be warehoused in the storefront. The physical store can even offer online kiosks for those in-store customers to that are looking for items that can only be purchased online or pre-ordered. A robust online business strategy can enhance the success of the offline business on a day to day occurrence.
Implementing The Best Business Plan
The whole concept of a business satisfying the "place" and "space" requirement of modern customers is to tailor a business to satisfy both customers that prefer one method of delivery over the other. Once the business can satisfy either customer then a solid plan built upon sound industry forecasting to strengthen to business model is needed to link the two business plans together in some way and increase the lifetime value of the customer base.
Let your internet customers have the convenience of doing something in the store like pick-up or returns. Conversely let your in store customers experience the advantages of having online presence from within the store itself by allowing online expanded catalog shopping, or offering wish-list shopping, etc. The important thing is to offer methods for all types of customers and merge the satisfaction of the customer's needs with all other business procedures. That is an effective online business strategy that fits in perfectly with a traditional brick and mortar business.
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