Pop-Ups Earn Place In Retailer’s Strategy - 10/3/19

From the Simplr studios in San Francisco, this is your daily briefing.  

Introduction

With your E-Commerce Retail Briefing for today, Thursday, October 3rd, 2019, I'm Vincent Phamvan.

Pop-ups have shifted into a useful retail strategy. Previously, most pop-ups were used as experiential marketing exploits, fashion-week stunts, or e-brands making their first leap to brick-and-mortar. Now major brands and retailers are using the short-term commitment of pop-ups to test locations or collections.

First, here are some retail headlines.

Gap Inc. Improving Logistics  

Gap Inc. is working to improve their logistics as they prepare for Old Navy’s spin-off. In a company blog post, Gap. Inc. announced that its Banana Republic and Athleta brands are launching buy online, pick up in-store services. Customers will be able to pick up their orders within five days of purchase and will receive order updates by email or text. It’s a smart business tactic with more and more consumers utilizing buy online, pick up in-store services at other businesses. Target and Walmart lead the way and other retailers increasingly report it as an important element in their strategy.

Several Brands Testing New Instagram Feature

Adidas, Levi’s, Michael Kors, and Warby Parker are among some of the brands testing out a new Instagram feature. The new feature lets consumers set reminders for products when they’re available for purchase. Brands are able to show previews of products and let customers tap a digital sticker in an Instagram Story or launch tag in their feed to set a reminder. Users will then get a reminder 15 minutes before the product drops. The new feature could help brands drive direct sales after promoting products to dedicated followers.

Ads Delivered to Gen Zers Swaying Sales

Research from Snap and NCSolutions has revealed that while a majority of Gen Zers aren’t the primary purchasers in their households, delivering ads to them still sways sales. According to the research, 63 percent of sales were linked to Snapchat ads seen only by Gen Z users, but not seen by primary shoppers. The number then jumped by 12 percent when seen by the Gen Z user and the main buyer. According to Snap’s Marketing Science Group Lead, this is, quote, ”the first marketing research to show that Gen Z has a powerful, tangible influence on CPG purchasing as a direct result of being exposed to ads on Snapchat,” end quote.

Pop-Ups Earn Place In Retailer’s Strategy

Pop-up stores are becoming a popular retail strategy for small and big brands alike. Previously, most pop-ups were used as experiential marketing exploits, fashion-week stunts, or e-brands making their first leap to brick-and-mortar. Now brands like Amazon and Nordstrom are using pop-ups to test the viability of stores in certain markets.

Part of the appeal of a pop-up is that it poses little risk for retailers. Executives can commit to a shorter length of time and see how things perform. Retailers can test collections or locations on a smaller scale before jumping in all the way.  

Even Lululemon has made pop-ups a part of their strategy. Their Executive Vice President said they had opened 60 seasonal stores in the past year. More than 35 percent of those shoppers were new and that the locations would inform the company’s choices on where to expand.  

Closing

Thanks for listening to the latest episode of the E-Commerce Retail Briefing. Don't forget, Simplr can help you scale up your customer service with 24/7 support. Find out more at Simplr.ai. Until next time.