How to Create an Online Curated Experience for Your Customers
Curation, curation, curation. You heard all about it for years regarding news and content sites, but it’s becoming the new big thing in online shopping. But what does a curated experience actually mean in the shopping context? Curation in shopping is about using the personal information your collect on your customers to make their shopping easier, simpler, and less time-consuming.
One example is the various subscription purchasing sites, where you sign up once (for razor blades, for instance), state your preferences, and every few weeks they automatically send you blades. Voila! One less thing you ever have to think about again. Another example is Amazon. You pay a yearly or monthly fee for a Prime account and can then order monthly supplies, like paper towels, delivered without you having to do anything.
How to Curate for Your Customers
Another way of curating is to use the personal information you collect on your customers to make suggestions, and present products to them in a way that streamlines their shopping experience. This type of curated experience essentially consists of a consumer defining her interests, and you delivering suggestions directly as she moves through your site. Oftentimes, this takes place in the form of a subscription model, like StitchFix, RocksBox or FiveFour. Using this model, eCommerce sites can determine which products customers like and build packages based on these favorite items.
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The Curated Experience Should Save Time & Effort
The curation process shouldn’t demand much interaction from the customer. You should tailor your website to have popular items showing, and consistently learn from consumer reactions to better tailor products and overall experience.
Shipping is Part of the Curated Experience
A third of consumers state that they want a personal shopper for everything from groceries to clothing, and they want these things delivered to their house quickly and without hassle. As such, the delivery process is critical to keeping these shoppers happy. It must be simple. Collect and save all the info you need to make delivery specifications a one-click task. Ensure delivery is both free and prompt and returns are simple. If you can’t offer free shipping, be sure to make the options clear.
Successful online selling is all about personalization, and curation is just a deeper form of personalization. The more you can personalize, the better. In a very real sense, modern consumers are locked in a 24/7 battle with things that demand their time and attention. Free attention is scarce and valuable, and if you can lessen the amount of time and attention they must spend in order to get what they want, they will reward you with their business. So, collect the information you need, and maximize your use of it for your customers’ benefit. They’ll be glad you did, and your sales will reflect their gratitude.
I hope you found this post informative and I suggest you bookmark our blog and return daily as we discuss other ways to boost your eCommerce business.
Originally published at cueconnect.com/blog/ on February 7, 2017.
