In furniture retail, customer experience is no longer shaped by the showroom alone.
Whereas once upon a time, customers would visit your store, browse and – if they were genuinely in the market to buy – make a decision, today the sales process is a lot more involved.
Customers will browse online, visit stores, compare prices, enquire about availability, discuss delivery and hopefully return at some point in the future to complete the purchase.
Today, every interaction matters.
And that in itself creates a huge challenge. Because one interaction may be online, another may be in-store, and many furniture retailers are striving to deliver a connected customer experience using severely disconnected systems.
EPOS, customer records, ecommerce, stock management, orders, payments and reporting often sit in different places, making life more difficult for staff, and often frustrating for customers.
That’s where bringing all of your data together can make such a significant difference.
Customers see one brand – not separate channels
Retailers often think in channels – store, website, warehouse, customer service and delivery. And often with good reason. Back in the day, in-store and online often operated as separate business lines while warehouse, customer service and delivery are individual departments.
However, customers don’t think in multiple channels. They don’t care about multiple channels.
Research shows they see one brand, which is essential to understand, especially in furniture retail, where purchases are considered, items are costly, and confidence is key.
If staff are checking different systems for different answers, confidence will likely wane.
Better data = better service
While customer experience is often talked about from the customer’s perspective it’s important to consider staff too – because their experience is just as important.
If teams are switching between systems, rekeying information and are wasting time searching for information, they’ve got less time and energy to focus on customers.
Research shows that around a quarter of UK workers spend seven or more hours per week moving information around between disconnected tools and internal systems.
This isn’t just an operation issue – it impacts morale, productivity and service quality, too.
In a furniture store, disconnected data can mean staff having to manually check whether an item is in stock, confirm the supplier costs and look up delivery availability. Every extra step slows down the interaction and increases the risk of error.
For staff, having access to unified data saves time, and enables them to do a better job. For customers, it means a better experience.
Unified data supports selling
Considered purchases rely on face-to-face contact and relationships – and furniture is no exception. Customers often want and need advice and guidance, reassurance and product knowledge before making a decision.
Technology doesn’t replace human service – it supports it, as outlined in KPMG’s UK Customer Experience Excellence Report, which describes the future as a fusion of technology and people rather than one replacing the other.
By being able to see a customer’s ordering history, and see what they’ve looked at online, staff can more easily guide customers along the journey they’re already on, rather than beginning from scratch.
Clear visibility helps decision making
By unifying your data, you can also make more informed business decisions, because you have created a clearer view of your business.
Retail Economics reports 40% of retailers say legacy systems are holding them back, and that’s significant as fragmented data makes it difficult to answer basic commercial questions.
Without all data in one place, it’s challenging to understand which products are underperforming, where margins are being squeezed and which promotions are driving sales.
In the KPMG report it states breaking down those silos helps retailers personalise experiences, optimise operations and empower employees at every touch point.
The business case for unifying systems? Customer experience and operational efficiency
By unifying data, you can create better experiences for customers and staff. And, as a business leader, you can achieve better visibility to make stronger business decisions.
In furniture retail, complexity is part of every day. The retailers best place to grow are those that can combine the best people and best tech – and unified data is what makes the magic happen.
Want to learn more about how smart furniture retailers are solving the key challenges you face? Download our ebook today.
