Today, technology makes it easier for consumers to save money. The
internet makes it easy to access product descriptions, rating, reviews
and pricing. Smartphones enables shoppers to have this data at their
fingertips while shopping. Not surprisingly, a new behavior coined
'showrooming' has mushroomed in popularity. Showrooming occurs when
shoppers visit stores to learn more about a product, see, touch and feel
it to ensure it is indeed what they want, and then purchase the product
online to save money.
Showrooming is popular and it's likely a behavior that will continue to grow. The primary reason is obvious-- people save money. However, showrooming has some shadow aspects too. First, there is no immediate gratification. If I buy online, I may have to wait 48 hours to weeks to get my hands on the product. Nonetheless, given the huge increase in showrooming, it is a trade-off many shoppers are willing to make. In addition, there can be headaches with some online retailers should they buyer wish to exchange or return their purchase. Once again, it seems to be a concession that many shoppers make.
Many physical retailers have suffered due to showrooming. Research suggests that more than half of shoppers at certain retailers showroom. This can have a significant negative impact on physical retailers and puts them in an awkward situation. Retailers continue to invest in stores, staff and advertising to allow people to learn about products, but the investment is in vain as many of these showroomers will purchase via the web from a different online merchant. Some large national retailers have adopted 'price matching' policies to enable consumers to get the same low online price at the store. Notable retailers include Walmart, Best Buy and Toys R Us. Yet, it remains to be seen if this is sustainable in the long-term. After all, these physical retailers have a higher cost structure to support. Stores, real estate, inventory, staff, utilities drive higher costs than which online retailers require to support-- it's likely that this cost advantage will always exist and be exploited. Is price matching enough for physical retailers to survive in today's connected world? Or is it just stringing out an inevitable decline and ultimate death? As consumers, what will our options be in ten years? Perhaps we will only be able buy items from Wal-mart (perhaps one of the few retailers that has the scale and channel clout to remain competitive) or Amazon. That's an alarming thought. What will pricing look like in a market oligopoly? Time will tell...
In any event, we as consumers, probably owe it to ourselves to shop locally and support our local retailers (even those that are part of national chains). These business keep jobs and money in our communities. That being said, as consumers, we also yearn to save money and get most for our dollar. So, when given the opportunity to save money online, try to see if local retailers will match the price. It may not be a sustainable business model in the long-term, but it at least lengthens the fuse for retailers to discover ways to compete in the future.
The NowDiscount app is geared for this purpose. Users can easily find the lowest online price for an item and then search to see if local retailers will match that price. It is the best of all worlds-- consumers get the lowest price, immediate gratification and support their local retailers. The NowDiscount app is free and easy to use. No one can be certain what the future of retail will be in the next decade, however, it is safe to assume that having more options for the consumer will always be better for the consumer. Let's ensure we continue to have those options.
visit http://www.nowdiscount.com
Showrooming is popular and it's likely a behavior that will continue to grow. The primary reason is obvious-- people save money. However, showrooming has some shadow aspects too. First, there is no immediate gratification. If I buy online, I may have to wait 48 hours to weeks to get my hands on the product. Nonetheless, given the huge increase in showrooming, it is a trade-off many shoppers are willing to make. In addition, there can be headaches with some online retailers should they buyer wish to exchange or return their purchase. Once again, it seems to be a concession that many shoppers make.
Many physical retailers have suffered due to showrooming. Research suggests that more than half of shoppers at certain retailers showroom. This can have a significant negative impact on physical retailers and puts them in an awkward situation. Retailers continue to invest in stores, staff and advertising to allow people to learn about products, but the investment is in vain as many of these showroomers will purchase via the web from a different online merchant. Some large national retailers have adopted 'price matching' policies to enable consumers to get the same low online price at the store. Notable retailers include Walmart, Best Buy and Toys R Us. Yet, it remains to be seen if this is sustainable in the long-term. After all, these physical retailers have a higher cost structure to support. Stores, real estate, inventory, staff, utilities drive higher costs than which online retailers require to support-- it's likely that this cost advantage will always exist and be exploited. Is price matching enough for physical retailers to survive in today's connected world? Or is it just stringing out an inevitable decline and ultimate death? As consumers, what will our options be in ten years? Perhaps we will only be able buy items from Wal-mart (perhaps one of the few retailers that has the scale and channel clout to remain competitive) or Amazon. That's an alarming thought. What will pricing look like in a market oligopoly? Time will tell...
In any event, we as consumers, probably owe it to ourselves to shop locally and support our local retailers (even those that are part of national chains). These business keep jobs and money in our communities. That being said, as consumers, we also yearn to save money and get most for our dollar. So, when given the opportunity to save money online, try to see if local retailers will match the price. It may not be a sustainable business model in the long-term, but it at least lengthens the fuse for retailers to discover ways to compete in the future.
The NowDiscount app is geared for this purpose. Users can easily find the lowest online price for an item and then search to see if local retailers will match that price. It is the best of all worlds-- consumers get the lowest price, immediate gratification and support their local retailers. The NowDiscount app is free and easy to use. No one can be certain what the future of retail will be in the next decade, however, it is safe to assume that having more options for the consumer will always be better for the consumer. Let's ensure we continue to have those options.
visit http://www.nowdiscount.com
