How to revive a struggling business

In recent months and years the retail sector in the UK has faced significant challenges. Amid economic uncertainties, shifting consumer behaviours, and the growing dominance of e-commerce, many brick-and-mortar stores are struggling to stay afloat. Here are a number of steps you can take to help keep your business afloat if you stumble upon hard times.

Embrace omnichannel retailing

Omnichannel retailing integrates physical stores with digital platforms, providing a seamless shopping experience for customers. Retailers should ensure that their online and offline channels complement each other. By doing this, you will be able to expand your customer reach which can only drive more revenue.

When expanding your omnichannel reach the first most important step is to implement an integrated inventory management system that reflects real-time stock levels across all channels. By doing this you will streamline your processes and waste less stock and staff time.

Alongside this, it is important to implement a robust click and collect service. By allowing customers to order online and pick up in-store you are expanding the number of ways they are able to interact with your business which can only benefit you.

To go with this you must ensure that your website is optimised for mobile phones. Mobile phones are arguably the most used device for online shopping therefore it is so important that a slow or laborious experience on your website does not push customers away from it.

Enhance in-store experience

As online shopping has become ever more popular it is now more important than ever for physical stores to offer more than just products as a way of separating it from online and other retailers as well as driving brand loyalty, if people shop in store and have a good experience they are more likely to return in the future.

Experiential retail is the most obvious way to improve your in store experience. By creating immersive experiences such as product demonstrations, workshops, or events you can engage with customers in a way that was not previously possible. Many flagship stores in London such as Sports Direct or EE offer good examples of how to do experiential retail well.

When considering more bread and butter ways to improve your store, layout is a major difference maker. Modernising store layouts to make them more attractive and easier to navigate will make a huge difference to a struggling business at a low cost. Alongside this, you should use tactics like strategically placing certain products to lure customers into buying them as they make their way around the store.

Investing in staff training to ensure high levels of customer service can also make a huge difference. Staff are the only point of contact for customers and therefore have a big bearing on how customers experience your store. By investing in your staff you are increasing the chances customers will have a positive experience and that they will return, a huge boost for a struggling business.

Financial management

Sound financial management is essential for the sustainability of your business and with a few tweaks to your current practices you should be able to turn your fortunes around. Identifying areas to reduce costs without compromising on quality or customer experience can really aid a business. You should know where every penny is coming in and out and therefore which parts of your business can be trimmed or cut completely or made more efficient to save money.

Cutting is not the only way to improve the balance sheet. Investing in growth can also help a struggling retailer and is often not the most obvious fix. Exploring additional revenue streams such as exclusive online products or private label brands can help separate you from the competition. Furthermore, investing in new technologies, in store renovations or in a new marketing campaign can help improve your product and the perception of it by potential customers.

Strengthen online presence

As previously mentioned online shopping is a huge part of today’s retail world, but online does not stop at just selling things to people. Brand awareness is a huge part of the online pace and can be a very cost effective way of getting your brand out there.

Getting your name out there online can be very easy. Paid advertising on social media platforms can get your brand seen by thousands of people. But just getting your brand seen is not enough. You must employ a good marketing strategy across a number of different platforms.

You should also tailor your campaign to the type of customer you are looking to attract. If your customer base is slightly older you should target platforms like Facebook whereas if your customers are slightly younger then TikTok can be a useful resource. It should be noted that each platform has its own algorithm and specific type of content that will gain recognition so it is important to tailor your marketing strategy to that specific platform, what works on Facebook will not necessarily work on TikTok.

Alongside marketing, it is important to actively engage with customers on social media platforms. By responding to customer queries in a timely and public manner you can show any potential customers that you care as well as engrain loyalty with the person you help. This can help you hugely improve your balance sheet and save your business.