Customers' shopping experiences refer to all their interactions with a particular company during their purchase journey. This begins long before the actual purchase and even continues afterward.

While many believe this is “a nice to have”, in fact, the shopping experience is extremely important. Actually, 64% of consumers say that customer experience is more important than the price.

In this blog post, we will try to answer the question: What makes the shopping experience perfect and how can you give that to your customers?

In-store shopping experience

The client’s expectations from shopping are different across the channels. Considering today's era, where customers can effortlessly make purchases from their mobile phones or computers without leaving their homes, choosing to visit a store indicates a desire for something more than just buying something. They want to hand out, they want to have a good time, they want to feel like shopping.

When it comes to customer satisfaction, here are a few things you need to keep in mind:

On-shelf stock availability

One of the biggest letdowns for customers occurs when they visit a store and see that everything is sold out or only one size remains. Even if they had their eye on the "perfect item," not having it in stock when they're present could lead to losing them. To prevent this, ensuring store stock availability should be a top priority.

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Innovative integrated shopping experience

Shoppers today are surrounded by countless distractions trying to capture their attention, simply having a store out there might not be enough to catch their eyes or even better, to make them talk about your store.

Retailers today are implementing additional innovative features in stores, such as smart screens, digital signage, smart fitting rooms, and more. Those things can give your store that “wow effect” that will make your customers excited about shopping and get them talking about their experience in your store.

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Fast and effortless checkout

As mentioned, the shopping experience doesn’t end when a client decides to buy, until the very last moment, the customer can still abandon the cart and cancel the purchase. Why would he do such a thing? Because he has to wait 20 minutes in queue…

Customers today simply don’t want to wait to buy an item. And unless we are talking about a very rare and wanted item or at a very generous discount, they are likely to leave the queue and abandon the purchase.

To avoid that you can integrate self-checkout stands connected to RFID security gates allowing multiple clients to finalize their purchase on their own and reducing the time waiting in lines.

What about online shopping?

When it comes to online shopping, it’s usually not the same kind of experience as in physical stores but still, customers enjoy shopping online, and want to have a good time when shopping online. Therefore you shouldn’t neglect user experience on site. Consider these factors when thinking about online shopping:

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Convenience and findability

The most important thing in e-commerce sites should be convenience and clarity. The customer should be able to navigate on their own and find what they’re looking for easily and quickly.

Focus on loading speed, clear menus, and an accessible search bar. Understand that compared to a brick-and-mortar store, it takes the client a few seconds to leave if they don’t find your site convenient to use.

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Online stock offering

Compared to brick-and-mortar stores where the client can easily see what’s in stock and what isn’t, online shoppers face a sense of helplessness, relying solely on the information provided on your website. If customers believe in you and the items you say you have, it's important to keep that trust by making sure you deliver promptly. Maintaining high stock accuracy is essential to prevent instances where customers place online orders for items that are not genuinely in stock.

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Personalization

As personalized shopping experiences and marketing have become widespread, today's customers anticipate personalized interactions. This involves presenting items relevant to their past searches and preferences, offering personalized deals and discounts, and saving their interests in a wishlist or digital cart.

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Flawless tracking feature

After a customer finishes placing an order, impatience naturally sets in since they've paid for their purchase but haven't received it yet. Providing customers with convenient and real-time order tracking, along with instant updates, instills confidence and enhances their overall shopping experience.

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Omnichannel

So far we discussed the different nuances that make a perfect shopping experience in stores and online, but nowadays, people usually use a bit of both. Customers today switch between in-person and online shopping for different reasons.

An example of such a mixture can be checking the seasonal stock online before taking the trip to the store, or trying the clothing on in-store but purchasing it online.

To align your business with various phygital (physical and digital combined) shopping behaviors, it's essential to prioritize omnichannel strategies—effectively integrating all selling channels to work together seamlessly.

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How can you offer that perfect shopping experience

When it comes to crafting the perfect shopping journey, technologies such as RFID can help. Prevent letdowns from empty shelves or frustrating stockouts by using RFID technology, which enables real-time tracking of every item. This ensures that your customers can always find exactly what they're looking for, whether in-store or online.

Additionally, with RFID, your store can become a playground of innovation, featuring smart screens and digital wonders that'll make your customers say, "Wow!" And let's not forget the online realm, where RFID brings a flawless tracking feature to the table, keeping your customers in the loop and confident about their purchases.

Together with efficient self-checkouts and robust omnichannel capabilities, you have everything required to provide customers with a convenient and enjoyable shopping experience.

In conclusion, in a retail world focused on customer experience, RFID technology is a big help. It helps make sure products are always available and brings innovation, connecting both in-store and online. Use RFID to enhance your brand, creating enjoyable, personalized, and stress-free shopping experiences that people will remember.