The early days of online shopping typically included small, lightweight items that would be easy for businesses to pack and ship quickly. Today, online commerce has become so big that companies will ship even large items like furniture sets right to your door. If you are a retail furniture supplier, there are several ways you might adapt your online marketplace for a better customer experience.
Match Your Catalog and Brand
If you’ve been doing retail furniture sales for some time, you probably already have a brand name that customers trust. When the time comes to expand the kinds of items you sell online, it is a good idea to make sure that the new inventory still matches the basic feel of your brand. Make sure that each piece you sell has all the information that a customer might need in order to make a purchase. You might be selling from multiple manufacturers, but all the pieces should include a style that matches your retail brand.
Use ERP Software
Many of today’s furniture consumers are buyers who live in small spaces where space is at a premium. They also want tech-savvy solutions and custom builds using items that some retailers might not stock regularly. If you look into retail furniture ERP software solutions, you as a business owner can have greater control over managing your inventory and providing what the clients want. Enterprise resource planning software typically includes a suite of programs designed to collect, store, and analyze data from a variety of different activities that you do daily. These solutions can track your cash flow, raw materials, or how much of particular items you need to produce and stock.
Manage Increased Shipping
Once you expand your product range, you may see an influx of new customers looking for items. Shipping big, heavy items is part of the logistics of your company, and you should be as prepared as possible to handle this increase. Consider putting as many shipping options in place as possible. Freight shipping is a good starting point, and customers willing to pay more might avail themselves of other methods.
Automate Processes
Automating some of the online retail processes you might use will be a big time-saver that can improve the whole experience for the customer and allow you to focus on other things. In some cases, the ERP software solutions can help you automate invoice and data processing.
Furniture retail usually includes a wide array of home goods that regular customers might want to use. Your catalog might feature items that people can order to outfit entire rooms in the styles of their choice. Improving the range of retail goods customers can order online while streamlining the whole experience could increase your sales and customer retention.
Brooke Chaplan is a freelance writer and blogger. She lives and works out of her home in Los Lunas, New Mexico. She loves the outdoors and spends most of her time hiking, biking, and gardening. For more information, contact Brooke via Facebook at facebook.com/brooke.chaplan or Twitter @BrookeChaplan
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