By Jamie Crespi, Blis
Direct-to-consumer
brands have been wildly successful the last few years — look at makeup and
skincare company Glossier, which was just valued at $1.2 billion. They have thrived because they were able to offer unique
customer products, exploit the inefficiency and high prices of legacy players
and create brands and experiences that appeal to digital native consumers.
Today, DTC brands are
moving from thriving online businesses to the early stages of a physical
location strategy. Everlane, Warby Parker and Casper have all made the
move from online into brick-and-mortar locations. And they’re not alone — a
2017 study showed that 67% of e-Commerce brands have opened physical spaces in the past several years. Their
evolution from digital-only brands into physical storefronts is yet another
indication that, contrary to public perception, brick-and-mortar retail isn’t going anywhere. Brands that can make it work will be able to expand and offer
another layer into their customer experience, and give themselves a further
competitive edge against legacy brands.
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In order to be
successful in-store, DTC brands need to merge their consumer loyalty and e-Commerce
strategies with proven marketing tools used by physical retailers, like
location data strategies to drive traffic to their physical locations. We
live in a retail environment where consumers continue to demand more and more
of the brands they buy from, or risk shuttering (as we’ve seen with Sears and
Payless.) For DTCs to really thrive, they must bring their best online tactics
into the offline world.
Omnichannel Is A Must
Traditional retailers
are still struggling to develop e-Commerce strategies to complement their
decades-old locations rather than cannibalizing them. DTC brands are in exactly
the opposite position: they have understood from their inception how to leverage
e- and m-Commerce. The challenge is to successfully migrate into a
physical environment — which means extending their consumer loyalty across
platforms. In this situation, a solid omnichannel strategy is a must.
Omnichannel is crucial
for brands in 2019 because consumers aren’t shopping through one specific
channel. Having an ongoing two-way conversation where customers and brands can
communicate online needs to be translated into a physical retailer. If a
customer is browsing in-store, they should be able to see the same product on
their mobile devices (according to our study, 75% of consumers
between the ages of 25-44 are mobile-first shoppers) and receive a coupon or ad
for a product based on their shopping history. This cross-channel strategy
takes a holistic look at consumers and is able to give them what they want,
when they want it, all based on data.
Unlocking The Power Of Location
According to a research
study we conducted on omnichannel strategy, one-third of consumers reported
that in-store browsing remains their primary product discovery channel.
Physical location provides another layer of context for consumers during the
discovery process.
What lesson does this
hold for DTC brands? Simply that they can’t rely entirely on the tactics that
succeeded online when they move into a physical location. DTC brands are great at
providing visuals that make their products more appealing and a frictionless
retail experience. But that is of limited use if consumers aren’t entering the
retail location in the first place. Combining location data with the best of
online targeting can help DTC brands connect with their consumers for offline behavior.
For example, a brand can
retarget a consumer that previously browsed for a pair of sunglasses online
with a coupon as the consumer physically passes by the retail store on their
way to work. Even if they don’t purchase immediately, it will help brands play
the long game with consumers: 62% of shoppers indicated they would visit a
store a minimum of two or three times before making a purchase that was between
$250-$750, so having a physical location to provide another layer of context
and be a source of information for consumers will help guide them through the
discovery process.
Bring The Best Of Online,
Offline
DTC brands thrived
because they eliminated the middleman and made it easier for consumers to buy.
It’s crucial for DTC brands to not forget what they’re best at — offering
customers a streamlined and more personalized experience from the comfort of
any screen. The concept of bringing the best of that experience into the
physical world is simple to imagine.
The challenge is that
these DTC brands succeeded by appealing directly to their target consumer
online with a curated experience, an option that isn’t available in brick-and-mortar
stores. Physical locations have to compete with dozens of other storefronts and
all the other places consumers need to be. Relying on passersby to take an
interest is simply not an option: DTC brands have to be investing time and
dollars in bringing their consumers to the location. That means making sure
they know who and where their target customer is on a daily and even hourly
basis. Those that embrace this challenge will succeed, while others will wonder
why footfall still doesn’t match online traffic.
As VP of Marketing, Americas for Blis,
Jamie Crespi is responsible for leading the U.S. marketing efforts by providing
creative market planning and execution that maps to the sales and product
strategy. She is responsible for all client and prospect marketing
communication in North America and works hand in hand with the U.S. sales team
to drive revenue.
