Omnichannel retail strategies are key to success as consumer behavior continues to evolve post-pandemic. There are many innovative ways retailers can use appointment scheduling to meet and exceed customer expectations, leading to increased customer satisfaction and loyalty. The convenience and personalization of one-to-one appointments is something many shoppers are looking for when it comes to engaging with their favorite brands.
Learn how three retailers have implemented intelligent appointment scheduling solutions to improve both the customer and store associate experience and drive ROI!
Harry Rosen
Harry Rosen is an international men’s boutique that delivers a curated selection of the world’s top menswear from luxury designers for the modern man. Providing tailored, one-of-a-kind experiences is fundamental to Harry Rosen’s business, which is why they’ve had appointments integrated into their customer experience strategy for a long time. During the pandemic, Harry Rosen leveled up their appointment strategy with virtual options to continue providing seamless, human-to-human experiences for their customers when they couldn’t meet in person.
With video appointments, Harry Rosen was able to give their customers the one-to-one, white-glove service they have come to expect from the safety and convenience of their homes. This also was a way for their clothing advisors to drive additional online sales as they were able to assemble products shown during the remote appointment to send over as a post-appointment follow up.
Additionally, an online appointment scheduling solution gave their customers more options and more control over the appointment process. In the case customers needed to cancel or reschedule, they could easily manage this process on their own, leading to a reduced no-show and cancellation rate of less than 10%. With an appointment scheduling solution in place that improves both the store associate and customer experience and helps build deeper relationships, they were also able to improve their conversion rate to approximately 70%. With 250+ clothing advisors now conducting three to five appointments per week, they are averaging 100+ appointments per day.
Takeaway: Using an appointment scheduling solution as a way to put your customers and store associates in control can have a major impact on your success. Look to appointment scheduling software as a way to empower both your customers and store associates, and as a way to provide the level of personalization and VIP service customers want and have come to expect.
Download the Harry Rosen case study
Room & Board
Room & Board has been creating practical, timeless, and comfortable modern furnishings for more than 40 years. To put together a cohesive look at home, many consumers seek advice from Room & Board’s design experts. Room & Board turned to an automated appointment scheduling platform to do just that: Connect customers with expert Design Associates who provide personalized, one-to-one consultations on modern furnishings.
This removed any manual processes the store associates were previously using, and led to an increase in design service bookings across all 19 stores. During the pandemic, Room & Board focused their efforts on ensuring appointments were a part of their reopening strategy so customers could feel safe booking a pre-scheduled time to meet with a consultant.
As their showrooms began to reopen last year, they saw an elevated desire for customers to schedule design appointment times, as well as work remotely/from home with their Design Associates. The virtual consultations eventually outpaced their in-store bookings, ensuring they were meeting customers where they felt most comfortable - regardless of where they were. By offering appointments, Room & Board sees a typical increase in spending with scheduled customers, and is able to build a more intimate customer relationship that keeps customers coming back.
Takeaway: Even if you have an appointment process in place, the benefits of using an automated, scalable approach to make your store associates more efficient can produce amazing results. Consider how an appointment scheduling solution can reduce employee time spent scheduling, rescheduling, and cancelling appointments and give your customers the peace of mind that they have a secured time to meet with an expert. Plus, providing these appointment options with trusted experts - both in-person and remote - translates into increased conversions and loyalty.
Download the Room & Board case study
Monkhouse Schoolwear
Monkhouse Schoolwear is a provider of school uniform and physical education kits to over 850 schools across the UK from its 31 stores. During COVID-19, Monkhouse Schoolwear needed a way to safely reopen and help manage customer flow in their stores. With school uniform and physical education kits, their “back to school” peak during the summer was always difficult to manage - but even more so during an uncertain time with capacity limits.
With appointment scheduling software, Monkhouse Schoolwear enabled customers to book times to help flatten the “back to school” peak and provide exceptional customer service. They were able to ask pre-booking questions to better prepare for their interactions, and with a successful appointments strategy, had 90% of their customers pre-book an appointment during their busiest time. With this, they saw better outcomes during COVID than they had during the same peak period the year before. Additionally, the experience was so great for their customers that they achieved an average net promoter score of 90+ through the peak trading period.
Takeaway: Appointment scheduling solutions are not only great for maintaining a steady stream of customers into your stores, they also help customers feel heard and cared for - leading to increased satisfaction and loyalty. Even though originally used as a way to manage crowds during the pandemic as stores reopened, they saw better results than the year before and increased their NPS score. By asking the right upfront booking questions, your store associates can be prepared to exceed customer expectations by personalizing the appointment!
Download the Monkhouse Schoolwear case study
These are just a few of the ways retailers can use appointment scheduling software to maximize ROI and success. If you are interested in learning more about how top retailers use appointments to improve the customer and store associate experience, increase revenue, and drive customer loyalty, then check out the following video:
