5 ways for small lifestyle retailers to compete with global brands

An abundance of opportunities is just waiting to be seized by smaller lifestyle retailers. Increasing sales in a global market has never been easier, says Futura Retail Solutions' director, Tina Royall.

Today’s e-marketplace is more crowded, more competitive and more complex than ‘bricks and mortar’ ever were. Today's consumers are expert in surfing out opportunities, comparing prices and buying from an ever-growing range of markets and channels. They are impatient, expecting world-class customer service and next-day delivery.

The proliferation of online marketplaces such as eBay, Amazon, ASOS and price comparison websites brings new opportunities for you to extend your reach without the cost (or risks) associated with opening new stores. Global expansion has never been easier for smaller brands.

So how can small lifestyle retailers harness the latest technologies and opportunities to compete with major players? If you have a decent website and are attracting customers, you need reliable back-end systems to ensure you don't lose repeat business though poor customer service or delivery delays. At Futura, we have 30 years' experience of retail technology. We believe there are just five things that you should consider if you want to level the playing field by differentiating yourself through exceptional customer service and increasing your sales in the most cost-effective way possible.

1. Link your various ecommerce platforms with your core retail management system – and make sure you chose a proven and reliable retail software solution that will enable customer orders to be processed more quickly, with less risk of error.

2. Use multiple online markets to maximise your online exposure. Whilst this sounds (and often is) horribly complex, at Futura we have developed a simple, one-channel system that links to Channel Advisor, enabling smaller brands to benefit directly from the millions of pounds that established marketplaces such as Amazon and eBay spend on advertising and logistics. This offers an exciting abundance of opportunities. To keep up to date with the latest developments, subscribe to Futura’s blog at http://blog.futura4retail.co.uk/

3. Use stock control software to deliver a single, accurate view of stock, whether in stores, online or in the warehouse. A ‘live’ view of stock across all channels enables you to improve fulfillment and replenish in a timely way, without the need for manual reconciliation.

4. Choose a flexible, user-friendly retail management interface that provides fast access to ‘live’ data to drive better informed decisions. It's certainly worked for Cath Kidston, who extract data from Futura to analyse cross-channel customer buying trends. Using such information in conjunction with online and in-store customer databases can give you a powerful resource for marketing promotions. Localization strategies pay dividends if you can identify the right product range for the right stores according to local customer demand.

5. Validate, validate and validate to ensure robust, reliable and accurate importation of data. Streamline and simplify your back-end processes by integrating data such as customer contact details, sales and product information and stock levels across all your channels, from EPOS to delivery.

There's no doubt that things are moving fast in the online retail industry: mobile sales may overtake PC or tablet; social media may enable sales transactions as well as promotions; China's biggest online retailer may one day overtake Amazon. Lifestyle retailers should take steps now, to prepare for the changes that lie ahead.

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For further information and more high/low res images and diagrams please contact: Gaye Spencer, GSPR EnvironmentalTel: 01635 569992Email: gaye.spencer@gspr.co.ukTwitter: @gayespencer

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