Types of Shoppers – Focused on the Mission
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This is Part 2 of the Types of Shoppers series. Read Part 1 here – The Bargain Hunter.
Understanding your customer is an important part of e-Commerce success. In tailoring your sales approach, however, there has to be a balance. You should be flexible enough to accommodate the variety of shoppers that will come across your webshop; you want to attract as many customers as possible. You should also be strict enough in coming up with your content design and messaging. A surefire way to fail is to try and please everybody. Take an honest look at who your audience is, both existing and potential, and create your content and sales strategy accordingly.
As an e-Commerce solution provider for Microsoft Dynamics™ NAV, Digital Vantage Point looks not only to our clients for inspiration but their end customers. We want to build solutions that work for both. In this article, we’re going to talk about the focused shopper whose mission is to get what they want, quickly and easily.
Your Mission, Should You Choose to Accept It…
Cue the Mission Impossible theme music. The mission-oriented shopper is single-minded and incredibly determined to meet their goals in shopping. Whether they hone in on that one item they need or they’ve got a checklist of items, they want to find it fast. They need to be able to see at a glance that this is exactly what they want, no surprises. They may or may not be flexible on price, depending on if it’s included in their list of criteria. When they are shopping online, advanced search is important to them and a smooth and quick checkout process so they can pull the trigger and accomplish their goal.
What is on their mind before they start this mission?
Before they put that all-important item in their basket and feel that immense satisfaction, there has to be a lot of preparation. In e-Commerce, this means research and reviews. Before getting what they want, they must define what it is they want.
Defining the Mission
This is the foundation of the shopping process. This kind of shopper knows what they want, either by name, item number, or even simply by a list of criteria (colour, size, features). When they come onto your e-Commerce website, they don’t want to browse or see what new items you have; they want to get straight to what they want. They’re not easily distracted.
Nav-to-Net™ Parametric Search
Parametric Search – This feature can help them narrow down an extensive product catalog by restricting the search based on properties for the item. By selecting criteria they’re looking for, they target their desired item. Search for multiple criteria simultaneously allows customers to be really specific. For example, if they are looking for a bicycle, they may narrow down their selection based on size, whether it’s a mountain bike or road bike, colour, and more. Webshops add value to the shopping experience with a parametric search function.
Keyword Search – Having a really good search function is important for your webshop. Shoppers have done their research. Perhaps they are showrooming; having tested the merchandise in person, they now want to buy it online. Qualities that make a good search function are speed, effectiveness, and thoroughness. If they know the product by name, a powerful search tool will locate exactly what they want. A quick confirmation of the item name is all they need to move ahead with their purchase.
Purchase History – If these shoppers are returning customers, easy access to previously purchased items will make re-ordering simple. Instead of trying to search for what it was that they bought before, a quick check into their purchase history can confirm it. With your webshop integrated with NAV, as it is in Nav-to-Net™, you can trust that the information will be correct and customers can log-in and access their information at any time.
Follow Through
Speed is of the essence here. They need to get what they want and move on with no complications, While they may not be necessarily in a hurry, they are so focused on their mission that they may not pay attention to upsells or cross sells.
For these shopper to be confident in their purchase decisions, ensure that item names, pictures, and descriptions can be seen easily and allow customers to confirm at a glance that they are indeed getting what they came for. While they are very focused on their mission, perhaps the item they want is not at the price they’re looking for. Price alerts allow them to keep tabs on their desired items. They can pounce on the purchase when the price is right.
Mission Accomplished
These shoppers have found what they came for, confirmed that it’s what they want, and now they’re ready for checkout. A streamlined checkout process will get your customers in and out with as little pain as possible. Here’s how you can achieve that.
One Step Checkout in Nav-to-Net™
One Step Checkout – Instead of walking these customers through several steps, there’s just the one page to key in details and a quick confirmation. With less clicks, user experience is much more pleasant.
Guest Checkout Availability – Maybe these shoppers are visiting the webshop for the first time. Ideally, you’d like them to create an account. Some of these mission-focused shoppers might not mind the extra hoops to jump through to make their purchase. But if the goal is speed, having a guest checkout will make a huge difference. They can get in and out without sharing too much information.
See how streamlined your e-Commerce website can be. Seamlessly integrated with NAV, Nav-to-Net™ adapts to your unique business needs as well as your customers. Request a personalized demo today!
Have you seen our new Configurator? A guided selling process could add immense value to your your NAV webshop. Read more about it here, here, and here.
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