Nothing says holiday shopping like "immediate gratification." That's why Macy's is ready to roll out a proximity-marketing platform in partnership with Google that will lead shoppers to the specific item they're seeking—and also will offer suggestions about merchandise in their local Macy's that consumers may not be thinking about, Ad Age reports.
"We have seen encouraging results" from the program that Google and Macy's began testing about a year ago in San Francisco, Jennifer Kasper, group vice president of digital media and multicultural marketing at Macy's, told Ad Age. Shoppers "can go into a physical store and have immediate gratification."
Google's expanding roll-out of its proximity-marketing platform, Nearby, echoes Apple's iBeacon rollout and the Continuity platform for Android devices. The basic idea is to tap into the marketing and sales possibilities of using GPS, in-store "beacons" and other devices to give consumers promotional stimuli at times that it can be most effective: While they're in or near retail stores.
With this new feature, shoppers can search for an item on their phones and see what's stocked at their nearest Macy's, or find the closest Macy's that has it in stock. Alongside product images are details such as price, size and color, directions to the store and a link to the item on the retailer's web site.
Additionally, the program will suggest other items in Macy's stores on a customized basis. "This is a great opportunity for us to shine a light on what's in our stores," Kasper said. "It's getting more credit for the inventory that's in our stores through digital."
There are other omnichannel benefits: Every dollar Macy's invests in search drives $6 in store purchases, Ad Age said. A recent study showed that 71 percent of in-store shoppers who use smartphones for online research say their mobile device has become more important to their store experience.
Macy's shoppers can also access location-based deals this holiday season, as the retailerexpands the use of its Shopkick ShopBeacon technology to all stores across the U.S., which is based on Apple's iBeacon technology. It's also one of the launch partners rolling out Apple Pay to all its stores.
No wonder other retailers such as Sephora, REI, Office Depot and Sears Outlet also are working with Google on the technology, as competitors such as Bloomingdale's also see customers see iBeacon grow mobile engagement.
Shoppers may have plenty of excuses for not coming up with that perfect Christmas gift, but for Macy's customers at least, they won't be able to say, "I couldn't find what I was looking for."
Source: brandchannel.com
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