The Amazonian Age: A New Era For Retailing

Although I am a seasoned online shopper and regularly buy books on Amazon, I have mixed feelings about the impending arrival of Amazon in Australia. There have been lots of differing opinions offered about how Amazon will impact our local retail scene, and it will be interesting to see how the Amazon offer is embraced by Australian customers. Most retailers that I have spoken to are feeling somewhat apprehensive about this significant new entrant to our market - unsure of how to not only survive, but how to thrive in an Amazonian age.

What is going to generate success for bricks and mortar retailers? Despite disruptions, the store is still at the centre of retail. The key is to integrate the benefits of digital retailing into the physical environment. Retailers who offer consumers the best of both worlds can create a reimagined, highly responsive and exceptionally engaging shopping experience. 

I, for one, am excited to see how Aussie retailers can turn the inevitable changes ahead into a positive. It's an opportunity to step up the physical retail experience into something truly special.

Onward and upward.

Katie Miles, Managing Director

Welcome to our latest edition of Realise Quarterly News.

A new financial year is often an opportunity for a fresh perspective on all things business.

In this issue, we look at business-to-business relationships and why an emphasis on branding, customer service and product development is just as important in this sector at it is in business-to-consumer markets.  

Corporate cultures that support a short-term profit led approach are more likely to fall short in the long run. Companies that differentiate from their competitors are making customer experience central to all decisions and are continually innovating in all aspects of their business offering.

With CX and innovation at front of mind, we recently participated in the judging of the Inside Retail Annual Awards where the Customer Experience Initiative covered four categories. Finally we were honoured to recently take out a service award ourselves! Read on to find out more.

We hope you enjoy the read.

Katie Miles, Managing Director

Welcome to our latest edition of Realise Quarterly News.

With today's shopper exposed to so many different offers and messages, it is so important to get all aspects of your customer journey right to ensure customer engagement.

In this issue, we cover some crucial aspects to creating an experience-focused company culture that will result in successfully delivering personalised customer experiences.

Organisations that have a customer-oriented, agile and collaborative culture are better equipped to handle disruptive forces and even begin to instigate their own forms of disruption, shaking up conventional and irrelevant practices to be more in tune with today’s retail realities. 

With customer-experience at front of mind, we  celebrate four clients of The Realise Group  who have moved with the times and are offering a premium customer experience at every touchpoint. In addition, we share with you some informative  insights into Back To School shopping.

We hope you enjoy the read.

Katie Miles, Managing Director

Welcome to our latest edition of Realise Quarterly News.

For many of you, the Christmas trade is well and truly underway with increased customer traffic through stores and online with high expectations for revenue over the coming months.

We're all aware that good old fashioned customer service is an all-important ingredient in keeping your customers happy. But did you know that the friendliness of a business (or lack thereof) has an enormous impact on overall customer service experience?  Friendliness is an increasingly important part of customer service, especially in a digital world where some  businesses are only able to connect with customers on an interpersonal level either over the phone, via e-mail, or on live chat. 

Now more than ever is your opportunity to impress and win your customers, so in this issue we are all about remaining friendly across all your customer touchpoints.

From all of us at The Realise Group we wish you a happy (and friendly!) holiday season. 

Katie Miles, Managing Director

Companies far and wide are already feverishly preparing for Christmas shoppers.

Field Agent is proud to present an essential, one-of-a-kind resource to help brands and retailers prepare for the 2016 Christmas shopping season.

Based on surveys with almost 3,000 shoppers across seven countries, Field Agent’s Big Honkin’, Tree Toppin’, Globe Trottin’ GUIDE TO CHRISTMAS SHOPPERS 2016 is packed with pivotal insights into the attitudes and behaviors of holiday shoppers around the world.

This free report, Field Agent’s largest to date, explores a variety of topics, including:

• Top retail destinations for Christmas gifts, groceries, and online purchases

• Most common gift wishes among men and women, boys and girls

• Product categories poised for a strong Christmas season

• Roles of online shopping and digital, omnichannel services in Christmas shopping

French fashion designer Yves Saint-Laurent once said, “The most beautiful makeup of a woman is passion. But cosmetics are easier to buy.” Year-by-year, women around the world testify to Saint-Laurent’s words…with their spending more.

Case-in-point: InStylemagazine reported that the average woman will spend $15,000 on beauty products over the course of her lifetime, including:

• Mascara - $3,770

• Eye shadow - $2,750

• Lipstick - $1,780

Clearly, beauty products in general, and cosmetics in particular, account for a sizable chunk of consumer spending. Beauty, it appears, costs (and makes) money.

What are the Makeup Preferences & Behaviours of Women? Field Agent recently conducted a survey of 500 women across the country. Our purpose was to understand how women shop for and use beauty products, especially cosmetics.

Below we answer 8 pressing questions to help beauty brands better serve female shoppers.