The modern “Little Black Book”

By Casey Gannon

For luxury retail, it is all about personal service.

For store associates working in the luxury world, it is critical to maintain customer relationships to ensure ongoing loyalty. Historically, this was accomplished using a handwritten “little black book” that associates used to keep track of regular customers’ contact information and shopping preferences.

This treasured book helped luxury retail associates deepen the relationships they have with their customers by keeping track of special events that a customer would like to attend, alerting them when an item is back in stock and, of course, to putting products they know they will love aside for them.

The white-glove experience made possible by the concept of the little black book created a personal touch for shoppers and gave them a reason to keep coming back again.

Today, store associates in luxury retail and beyond can easily approach customers in the aisle, armed with key information about their shoppers and the products that they are interested in without having to manually write it down in a little black book.

Let us explore how modern luxury retailers can understand their customers and equip their store associates with the right shopper data to make the in-store experience better than ever.

Get to know your customers
To earn shopper loyalty, store associates need to know their customers and what their shopping preferences are.

In fact, according to Infosys, 31 percent of consumers say they wish their shopping experience was far more personalized than it currently is.

Basic data such as birthday and emails will not do anymore – retailers must have a more in depth understanding of what will make the most impact on a customer and what influences their purchasing decisions.

For example, when Kristen walks into her favorite luxury shoe store, the associate should already know who she is, what shoe size she wears and have a few suggestions ready for her to try-on.

The associate can create a personalized experience for Kristen by having access to key data such as inventory levels across stores and product reviews. It is this special treatment that will keep Kristen coming back every time.

Arm store associates with key information
To meet consumers’ demands, luxury retailers must create an exceptionally remarkable in-store experience that shoppers simply cannot get online.

To do this, they should ensure that store associates are armed with the proper tools to generate additional selling opportunities and provide excellent customer service while doing so.

A technologically empowered store associate can create more value for the customer and enhance the overall experience, including the ability to:

• Nail the sale with personalization

Store associates can create detailed customer profiles with a shopper’s personal information, point of contact, previous purchases, wish lists, and other important data on a mobile device, making it easy to access data from anywhere.

• Deliver timely, relevant messaging

Retailers can also keep customers coming back to the store by delivering timely, relevant messaging that goes beyond the doors of their bricks-and-mortar stores. This can be done by sending relevant offers, reminders and info using automated push notifications, SMS and in-app chat.

• Become trusted advisers

With the right digital technology, luxury sale associates can create hyper-relevant, personalized experiences and become trusted advisers that customers can rely on for their shopping needs.

STORE ASSOCIATES can increase upsell and cross-sell opportunities by making the customer experience more personal, aided by access to invaluable data.

Equipping store associates with the right tools will make this happen, easily lifting sales and cultivating long-term relationships.

The luxury retail business is undeniably about creating best-in-class experiences, and with informed store associates, both retailers and customers can sit back, relax and enjoy the finer things in life.

Casey Gannon is vice president of global marketing at Shopgate, Austin, TX. Reach her at casey.gannon@shopgate.com.