Retailers are trying to take things to the next level – innovation is key, that’s for sure. I recently came across an article listing 10 innovative ideas to keep customers coming back for more. They revolve, of course, on making the customer journey easy and fun.
I think my favorite is from New York based Coco-Mat, whose premise is that “customers are hardly ever offered an exciting shopping experience or the chance to learn if something really suits their needs, before they buy it.” To that end, they’ve created a nap room where customers can try out the bed while they take a nap. According to their website, it’s quite the experience:
Nappers are also offered a complimentary pair of COCO-MAT slippers and access to a private full bathroom, a stereo and LCD TV within the nap chamber. Couples are welcome too.
You can wake up and have a freshly brewed espresso while our sales staff answers your questions. There is no obligation to purchase anything, but it’s the best way to experience our mattresses, pillows, duvets and linens in private.
Two other ideas from the list make life easier for shoppers. The first is a mobile app that allows customers to skip the checkout lines. This mobile app works with the store’s POS system, allowing customers to scan items as they are shopping. At the end of their experience, they enter a passcode, swipe their credit card, and show their receipt to the employee as they are leaving.
Finally, for those who dislike clothes shopping as much as I do, there is an app for that. This app is designed for men (but hopefully expanded to include those women who aren’t fans of shopping) to scan a pair of jeans they’re interested in, and it will help them locate their size and have them delivered to the fitting room to be tried on. It eliminates the need to wade through racks of clothing looking for the right size and speeds up the entire process. The jeans can be purchased on the mobile device. Yep, it’s that easy.
Retailers are doing what they can to stay one step ahead of the competition and to offer products and services to make customers’ lives easier. You can read the entire list of innovative retail ideas and share your thoughts below.
