A guide to in-store personal shopping experiences

Define your target audience and goals

Begin by identifying the target audience for your personal shopping programme. Set clear objectives for the programme, whether it’s to increase sales, build brand loyalty, or introduce customers to new products.

Train your personal shoppers

Invest in training for your personal shopping team, teaching them about your brand, products, and customer service expectations. Ensure they understand the art of building rapport, offering expert advice, and making customers feel valued.

Offer appointment scheduling

Implement an easy-to-use appointment booking system, either through your website or over the phone. Allow customers to schedule appointments at their convenience.

Personal consultation and style assessment

Begin the personal shopping experience with a thorough consultation. Learn about the customer’s style preferences, size, and any specific needs. Use this information to curate a personalised shopping experience.

Curate a customised shopping experience

Handpick a selection of products tailored to the customer’s preferences and needs, and offer a variety of options while introducing them to new items they might not have considered.

Create a relaxing and welcoming environment

Set up a dedicated space within your store for personal shopping appointments. This space should be comfortable and private, with good lighting and mirrors. Also, consider offering refreshments and making the experience enjoyable.

Provide expert advice and styling tips

Share your in-depth product knowledge and provide styling tips and suggestions, while also offering guidance on how to mix and match items to create versatile outfits.

Allow for honest feedback

Encourage customers to provide honest feedback on the items they try on and use their input to adjust the selection, improving future personal shopping experiences.

Seamlessly facilitate purchases

Make the purchasing process convenient by having a dedicated checkout area in the personal shopping space, which offers secure payment options and ensures a hassle-free transaction.

Follow up and build relationships

Send a thank-you email or note after the personal shopping experience and keep in touch with personalised recommendations, special offers, and invitations to future events or shopping sessions.

Collect and analyse data

Use data from personal shopping sessions to gain insights into customer preferences, popular products, and overall performance. This will help you adjust your inventory and marketing strategies accordingly.

Promote your personal shopping experience

Market your personal shopping programme through your website, social media, and in-store signage. In addition, you should use your social media and/or website to share success stories and testimonials from satisfied customers.

Evaluate and improve

Regularly assess the performance and impact of your personal shopping programme, so be open to feedback and continuously refine the process to enhance the customer experience.

Adapt to changing needs

Stay attuned to evolving customer preferences and needs and be prepared to adapt your personal shopping programme to align with changing trends and expectations.

The key to success building an in-store personal shopping experience lies in providing expert advice, listening to customer feedback, and continuously evolving to meet the ever-changing needs of your clientele.