Page 65 - Lighting Magazine February 2019

■ Facebook Exchange (FBX)
■ LinkedIn and other social media
■ Inbound and outbound marketing
■ Brick and click (both brick-and-mortar stores and online sales)
■ CRM (Customer Relationship Manage- ment) combined with Constant Contact, Mail Chimp, etc.
Three is also a new search trend used by cus- tomers where they enter what they are seeking followed by “near me now.” Are all of these options economically viable options for lighting retailers? Probably not, but some can be very useful.
Former President Harry S. Truman once said, “Not all readers are leaders but, all leaders are readers.” His statement still holds true. There are three books that I recommend to lighting retailers:
1. Michael Dart and Robin Lewis’s book Retail’s Seismic Shi – How to Shi Faster, Respond Be er and Win Customer Loyalty
2. Daniel Priestley’s book Oversubscribed — How to Get People Lining Up to Do Business With You
3. Renée Mauborgne and W. Chan Kim’s book
Blue Ocean Strategy — Creating New Market Space and Making the Competition Irrelevant
There is very similar and useful information in all three books regarding connecting to the cus- tomer. According to Michael Dart, retailers who will be successful in the future are those who o er engaging experience centers.
A customer who spends a bit of time combined with a bit of money at a lighting retailer will have gained improved quality of life. The reality is that most customers “do not know what they do not know.” Education is a powerful tool. Education/ experience combined with entertainment is the ultimate secret weapon.
Entertainment can be as simple as making the showroom visit fun, or even o ering a sensible (not expensive) drink or snack to shoppers. There is a dive shop in my area that boasts, “We sell fun!” Everyone who walks in the door is immediately approached and o ered a cold bo le of water to enjoy. They do not try to sell the customer any- thing, just o er the bo le of water. Not only have they earned the reputation as the “go to” source
“It is not the strongest of the species that survive or the most intelligent that survives. It is the one that is most adaptable to change.” —Charles Darwin
for the latest in dive gear and instruction, they have also earned a reputation for being honest and fair.
The mission is to entertain and educate the customer until they are totally comfortable with the idea of buying from you. Make the event all about them and be respectful of their time. I sug- gest an approach of le ing the customer know what is available rather than trying to sell them something. This process will make them want to buy rather than pushing a sale.
There are some customers who make decisions on the spot, and others who go back and do re- search before re-contacting you or your team that they are ready to buy some of the awesome new lighting they saw at your event. Make sure your sta is prepared for both. You may also want to consider a no cost/no obligation home evaluation (this is not a lighting design — just a summary of what is possible in their home). Yes, this means driving to the customer’s home. Provide a sign-up list for receiving email newsle ers and announce- ments of exciting new products, and always give them the option to “opt out.” Limit the information you provide to something of real value to them.
During the educational process, it is important to inform the customer that not all control systems and luminaires work well together. You and your team have spent countless hours in training and research to nd the latest and best technology. Your team can match the luminaires with controls and vice versa. This is also a good time to mention your sta ’s completion of educational programs through the American Lighting Association (ALA) as well as a endance at the Dallas Market. This type of educational experience is not something they can typically get from visiting a big box store or shopping online.
Build a database of clients (CRM systems are very inexpensive and easy to use) to keep track of the control systems and lighting they have
retail stratEgy
february 2019 | enLIGHTenment Magazine 61