Puuh, I cannot decide, help me to choose! [5 Reading Tips]

Retailers are increasingly striving to offer a wide assortment of products and services online. They organise their long and varied product lists by categories and enable filters to guide shoppers on their trip towards their desired product or service. However, in this spiralling dynamic focused on prices and big assortments, e-retailers have left something essential behind: the shopper’s feeling against such amount of information.
 
Shoppers have passed from the initial enthusiasm of having a completely new world of possibilities to feeling overwhelmed with such amount of similar products to choose from. They get lost, feel paralysed and don’t complete the purchase.
 
In order to respond to this new challenge, a new wave of personalisation features as well as new perspectives around this cutting-edge topic are hitting the net, offering the connected and technological shopper a more individualised experience that meets their needs much better. To do so, it is fundamental to gain a deeper understanding of their needs and, of course, to put them at the centre of every subsequent strategy, what means in the end, to do need-based business. But how?
 

Guided selling to increase conversion

Personalisation has a lot to do with data analyses. However the relevant data obtained from every visitor/shopper should be used smartly. The most “it” way to achieve this is by implementing guided selling strategies to help buyers choose the best product or service.

The cloud based SMARTASSISTANT Platform also creates interactive product advisors to help shoppers to choose making the customer’s journey easier and more personalised. For example, otto.de offers a swimwear-advice service that help shoppers to choose the perfect bikini taking into account the different types of body form.

Fact-Finder has also developed a solution to help online shops increase conversion by defining easy-to-answer questions that simulate a conversation with a salesperson in the store. This kind of conversation can also display info texts and photos aiming to educate shoppers in the process by explaining the benefits of different features, especially when products are complex or their price is high, such as a watch or a fountain pen.

Apart from this new trend, there are other strategies in place right now. For example, the prudsys personalisation tool is more focused on product recommendations. They believe this is the best formula to maximise revenues and foster relations between online shops and their customers.

As in everything to do with business, the key is not to know there are plenty of options available, but to figure out which one it is most suitable for one’s needs.

In a nutshell, personalisation strategies and data used smartly for automation processes are becoming essential for marketers. It is not enough to deliver a standard user experience, a maverick soul is wanted. Connected shoppers always want better products and more accurate information. They expect us to guide them. The more seamless and natural a feature looks like, the more effective and useful will be. Listen to your customers and offer them what they want even before they know they wish for it.

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