June 20, 2024

Maximizing Walk In Conversions

Written by: Shopwindow

12min read

A key touchpoint for your customer base is walk-ins. Walk-ins might be looking to make a purchase that day or gather more information to make a purchase later. It is important to utilize this touchpoint, so people get everything they need to choose you when they make their purchase decision. Walk-ins present a valuable opportunity to make a lasting impression and secure future business.

Unknown to Known - Guiding the Customer Journey

When a potential customer walks into your business, there is a reason. Maybe something caught their eye or they're actively looking for what you offer or they are seeking information. Either way, this person is unknown. That means you don't have any information on them like name, contact information, interests, or buying timeline. If they don't make a purchase during their visit, or they leave and you don't know how to reach out to them effectively. You want to make sure you're capturing information about your walk-ins to bring them from unknown to known. When someone is known, you are equipped with the information you need to send out relevant content and follow up with them to guide them towards a sale.

If your walk-in customer is ready to make a purchase, knowing what they are interested in allows you to make suggestions that they may not have thought of. You can package these products or services together to increase their deal size.

Following Up With Relevant Content

Sending your leads information and content tailored to their needs after they leave your store is essential is converting your foot traffic into sales. Your lead may not remember everything you talked about or they may want to discuss their purchase decision with someone else like their spouse. Sending information after a phone call gives your lead everything they need right at their fingertips so they can refer back to any details they may have missed.

When talking to potential buyers, we're always building the value of what we can do for them. If someone is asking questions, they're trying to imagine how their life will look using your products or services. Your staff paints that picture for them, but once they leave, we want them to have information that matches their specific needs or interests on their device. The permission moment helps us do that by opening the door and flipping the script so buyers are now asking us to send over that information.

The Permission Moment

The Permission Moment is set up in two parts. First, you're building value for the content you want to send them using the words "I'll include..." before listing the information you'll send relevant to the conversation you just had. Second, you ask for permission with "would you like that?" This sets the stage for a two way relationship with your customer and helps build trust and rapport. You're not shoving content down their throat, you're telling them about the information other customers like them have found helpful, potentially offering them a coupon, and asking them to give you the go ahead before you hit send.

We found that 9.5/10 times, people say yes to being sent this relevant information. You can use their go ahead to ask for their preferred method of communication: text or email. You're personalizing not only the content, but also your delivery method to their exact interests and needs. By catering to the specific needs and interests of your buyer, you're improving customer satisfaction and providing excellent customer service.

Customer Engagement Metrics

After you've gained insight on your potential buyers and sent out relevant content, you can track the exact interactions your leads are having with your content. Shopwindow's PeopleStream feature shows you all the interactions across all your touchpoints. Every time a person views, clicks, or interacts with any of your content, PeopleStream keeps track so you have the best customer insight possible. You can segment out specific groups like the people who interacted with instore content like QR Codes to get specific foot traffic analytics. Then, see exactly what content they've been interacting with to get a deeper understanding of that lead's interests. Use that customer insight to identify potential sales opportunities, so you can put yourself in the winning position.

Create An In Store Customer Experience That Benefits You And Your Customers

Consumers want a shopping experience that has a wow-factor. By tailoring relevant content to each potential customer, you're using a customer engagement strategy that is the most effective. Shopwindow's conversational forms are the perfect method for creating a tailored experience for your potential buyers without spending the time and resources on time consuming outreach and follow ups.

Conversational Forms

Conversational forms are like having a conversation with a person. They listen to responses and formulate their next questions based on previous answers. Then, they automatically send content relevant to your lead's responses, so you create a personalized experience for every lead. You can utilize conversational forms with walk-in customers through QR Codes or staff interactions. Either way, your business is gaining a deeper understanding of who your potential customers are and what they are looking for, so you can keep them engaged with your business.

Store Signage

Signage outside your business like sandwich boards can help direct nearby shoppers into your business while in store signage can direct potential buyers to crucial information or promote additional purchases.

In store signage or flyers can lead your potential buyers to scan a QR Code in exchange for a discount, personalized information, or other content your people might be interested in. While your customers are in-store, they can scan the code and fill out a conversational form that only asks questions relevant to their needs. They put in their preferred contact information (phone number or email address) and automatically receive the information theyre looking for. You dont have to lift a finger to get your potential buyers the information they need.

For example, apartment complexes frequently have people that come to visit friends or family. They go into the elevator or community amenities, but they dont often end up in the leasing office. Apartments can utilize flyers with a call to action that leads people to QR Code for a discount on renewals or referrals. Someone can scan the QR code that leads them to a conversational form that only asks relevant questions. For example, if someone already lives there, they get a question about what unit theyre renewing. If the lead is doing a referral, the form asks who is referring them. When the form is submitted, each person gets relevant information about their specific situation, and the apartment complex gets the information they need to follow up and get a lease signed. Theyre getting information about potential buyers who may never get the chance to interact with staff even though theyre on the property.

Using Conversational Forms During Interactions With Staff

Your staff might walk around with their smartphone or a tablet with a form pulled up. They can target potential customers and ask a few questions to see exactly what they are interested in and what information they need to move them towards a sale. By using conversational forms, your staff can quickly fill out the information relevant to a specific lead and get relevant content onto their device at the end of the conversation.

For example, Elena from Nova Medical Day Spa has a conversational form with her top treatments, products, and services. She can approach a walk in customer while holding her iPad with the form pulled up. She talks with her lead to discuss what they are interested in. She selects from her form which products and services are right for her lead and can even select a coupon to add in. She uses the permission moment to get the lead to agree to be sent this helpful content, and her lead has all the information they need right there. Elena's database automatically updates with the new leads information and interests, so she can use targeted offers and information to reel the customer in for follow up visits.

Creating the Right In Store Marketing Plan

Getting more people into a brick-and-mortar store can be a challenge, but with the right marketing strategy you can increase foot traffic and sales.

Retail Events

One way to boost customer traffic is by hosting special events at your retail location. Depending on your vertical, there are many options for the types of events you can host. Events can be directly related to your products and services or highlight additional services that your customers would be interested in.

For example, pet stores may host puppy socials or a training class for pet owners. A retail business might have an event for new product launches. You're bringing more people into your physical store for a service or event you might not normally offer.

Retail Promotions

Creating special promotions for customers helps increase your customer traffic at retail stores. Add a call to action to flyers that invites potential customers to visit your physical location for a discount or a bonus item. You can also partner with other local businesses with a loyal customer base to bring in new customers.

Find Partners For Cross Promotion

Create buzz for your business by partnering with other local businesses to create cross promotions that benefit all involved parties. Ideal partners are businesses that have a similar customer base or complementary products and services to your business.

Finding The Right Promotion Concept

Your cross promotion should take into consideration the customer base of your business and your partner company. Its important to find a clear reason your potential partner's loyal customers would benefit from your business as well. Then, use your customer insight to tailor cross promotion campaigns to individuals' interests.

Customer Engagement Ideas

Create ways for potential customers to engage with your business through cross promotions. Use that engagement to capture information on your potential customers or to target future promotions to the right people.

Host an event or workshop that highlights the overlap between both businesses in collaboration. Gather customer information when they sign up for your event or workshop, so you know exactly who to follow up with.

Promotional materials can include interactive elements like quizzes that lead people towards the perfect product or service for them. People can scan a QR Code, take a quiz, and get a tailored recommendation or a special offer while you gain valuable insights about potential buyers like their interests and contact information.

Turning Customers Into Repeat Customers

Once a walk-in customer makes a purchase, you have the opportunity to collect valuable information from them like a testimonial or put them into a campaign that promotes repeat purchases.

Collecting Customer Reviews

Testimonials are essential to your business, and it can be difficult to get them from your customers. When you do get customer feedback, it goes directly to Yelp or Google and you have to manually collect them to use them in your communications. They can be hard to get and hard to use, but they're essential to driving more business.

Shopwindow makes testimonials easy. Set up automations to send content that encourages customers to rate their experience. Positive feedback is automatically added to your Google or Facebook reviews. Plus, you can easily use them for word of mouth marketing in your future content. You get notified about any negative reviews, so you can address their concerns promptly. Using testimonials in your communication helps build trust and credibility, increasing the chances of converting walk-ins into loyal customers.

We understand that today's consumer wants to see a real human promoting your product or service. We have a Video Story Testimonial feature that gives you the power to gather those positive experiences and testimonials from your happy customers. Video Stories make it easy for your current customers to sell your next customers. It is social proof on steroids. Think of it like TikTok style marketing right at your fingertips. You will be able to create authentic, diverse content with your best influencer: your customers. By using prompts, your happy customer can easily give you a strong video testimonial that you can use across social media and in your communications.

Customer Video Testimonials

Shawn at Cosmic Air, a family entertainment center, approaches customers who are having the best time at his family entertainment center. He tells them he can give them a free soda if they shoot a quick video review. The customer is having a blast and would love a free drink, so they say yes. Shawn points to a QR Code on the wall. The customer scans the QR Code, is taken to his Shopwindow Video Stories interface, films a short video about the amazing experience they are having, and gets sent a coupon for a free soda after they submit their video.

These steps are all done in Shopwindow so Shawn doesn't have to lift a finger. The customer is thrilled to get their drink, and Shawn has access to a great customer testimonial that he posts on his social media. One parent, Anna, sees the video of a teen around her sons age having so much fun, and she decides to book her sons birthday party at Cosmic Air the following month.

Shawn is getting new customers and party bookings all for the price of a single soda. By getting reviews from his walk-in customers, Shawn has increased leads, improved conversion rates, increased sales size, and created two happy loyal customers.

Creating Customer Loyalty

Using information about what your consumer is interested in will help you sell them on their next purchase. You can use automations to create a wonderful customer experience that promotes repeat business without having to lift a finger. Because you're capturing information about your buyers, you have a deep understanding of each person's needs. You can make offers at the appropriate time because you know when their birthday is, what their preferences are, or what purchases they've made previously.

For example, a family entertainment center can send birthday party attendees an offer for a discount on their next visit to keep the party going. Shopwindow sends the right content to each individual, so parents of a teen might get a coupon for a free game of laser tag while families with younger children receive a discount on the bouncy castle. You're using their interests, and then the system markets to them around those interests to send targeted content that hits the person squarely between the eyes. By micro-targeting to their specific needs, you're dramatically improving the chance they come back into your business.

Ready to Take Your Walk-in Touchpoint Up a Notch?

There is a tremendous amount of market noise that you have to rise above. Shopwindow is here to help make the most of the walk-in touchpoint and help you stand out in the crowd. We work with hundreds of consumer facing businesses who must make a name for themselves amongst competitors. Shopwindow is a Marketing Touchpoint Solution Software that enables businesses to have more intelligent, automated, and instant communications using tools and techniques so they can compete like big brands and do it better. If you'd like to hear more about how we can help you increase your leads, increase conversion rates, shorten the sales process, increase the size of your sales, and increase the satisfaction and number of repeat customers, contact us.