{"id":9925,"date":"2023-07-22T00:07:36","date_gmt":"2023-07-22T00:07:36","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/dmsretail.com\/RetailNews\/lets-get-phygital-how-to-build-a-connection-between-in-store-and-online\/"},"modified":"2023-07-22T00:07:36","modified_gmt":"2023-07-22T00:07:36","slug":"lets-get-phygital-how-to-build-a-connection-between-in-store-and-online","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/dmsretail.com\/RetailNews\/lets-get-phygital-how-to-build-a-connection-between-in-store-and-online\/","title":{"rendered":"Let\u2019s Get Phygital! How to Build a Connection Between In-Store and Online"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"Retail<\/a><\/p>
\n<\/p>\n

<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span><\/div>\n<\/p>\n

Jayna
\nGedney wants you to be able to smell her store\u2019s website.<\/span> <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

Jayna
\nis the store manager of Ben Franklin Crafts & Frame Shop in Monroe,
\nWashington. The store is owned by the Taylor family, established in 1975 by
\nAdrian and Deanna Taylor. A second store, located in Bonney Lake, Washington, is
\nowned and managed by son Adrian C. Taylor, their son. The two stores are
\ncreative industry stalwarts. Industry legend is that Adrian, Senior was the
\nfirst retailer to embrace scrapbooking, creating the trend we know and love
\ntoday.<\/span> <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

Now,
\nwe are talking with Jayna about all things \u201cphygital,\u201d a blend of the physical in-store
\nexperience with what\u2019s happening digitally online. And what happens to a
\ncustomer who shops via both bricks and clicks.<\/span> <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

A
\nvisit to either Ben Franklin Crafts & Frame Shop is definitely an
\nexperience: shoppers are immediately surrounded by all things crafts. Physically,
\neach sense is engaged. Online, it\u2019s Jayna\u2019s wish that visitors be able to visually<\/i>
\nfeel the ambiance of her store. And it works because the website isn\u2019t full of
\nrandom paragraphs and tiny photos showing item description and price. Instead,
\nvisitors find vibrant photos of actual store displays that are large enough to
\nshow product detail.<\/span><\/p>\n

\n

<\/div>\n<\/p>\n

The website copy reads, \u201cAssorted Christmas Gnomes. Any of
\nthese adorable Christmas Gnomes will fit perfectly with your existing Christmas
\ndecorations. The hard part will be to choose which one you\u2019ll take home with
\nyou. We have multiple gnome sizes and styles to choose from. (While supplies
\nlast).\u201d<\/i><\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/div>\n<\/p>\n

A video offers a sneak peek of the store\u2019s unique Christmas
\ndecorations. The copy invites viewers to \u201cStop by the store to grab these
\nbeautiful holiday decorations before they are all gone.\u201d The goal, and it\u2019s a
\ngood one, is to set the store up as \u201cYour Holiday Gifts Headquarters,\u201d and not
\njust a craft store.<\/span><\/span><\/i> <\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

The
\ninteresting thing is that neither one of the Ben Franklin Crafts & Frame
\nShop stores sells from their website. And that\u2019s okay. Instead, the sites encourage
\nyou to visit the store, or call for more information about products shown.<\/span> <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

A
\ngood website brings the complete physical experience to shoppers digitally. Not
\nevery retailer sells online, that\u2019s a choice you need to make for yourself.
\nThere is plenty of information online about SEO and the backend of a reliable
\nwebsite, but this article is all about the visual and what it takes to blend
\nin-store and online to deliver a truly phygital experience. Let\u2019s dig in:<\/span> <\/span><\/span><\/b><\/p>\n

1. <\/span><\/span><\/b><\/span>Your website is today\u2019s business card and every
\nbusiness should have one. It is not enough to have a Facebook page because not
\nevery consumer is on Facebook. There are dozens of website builders like Wix,
\nGoDaddy Website Builder, and Squarespace that provide templates to help you create
\na professional website fast.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span><\/div>\n<\/p>\n

Hen & Chicks Studio has a
\nmoving banner with four different panels that tells visitors more about the
\nstore. One of those panels is of the store exterior. It\u2019s important to remind customers
\nwhat your store looks like because it makes it easier to find when they decide
\nto visit. It also strengthens the physical connection.<\/i><\/span><\/p>\n

2. <\/span><\/b>Your
\nwebsite will never be perfect. It\u2019s a live entity whose job is to tell a story,
\nprojecting a continuously changing and evolving image of your store. You change
\nyour sales floor frequently so the shopper experience is new each time they
\nvisit, the same goes for your website. On the sales floor this frequent change
\nhappens on your speed bump displays and within your lakefront property. Online,
\nkey changes include fresh photos of store displays, calendars, project sheets,
\nand product offerings.<\/span> <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

3.<\/span><\/span><\/b> <\/span>Navigation
\nbuttons should be easy to find and easy for visitors to hover over. No one
\nlikes a touchy website: you put the cursor on a tab and it goes away, so you
\ntry again and again. Sites like that just send visitors to your competitors.<\/span><\/span> <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

Make your contact info easy-to-find at the top of
\nthe page and include your telephone number. The number one complaint our focus
\ngroups have about websites is having to hunt for the phone number, or worse
\nhaving to google it because it\u2019s not on the website at all. Add a search bar, standard
\ncontact form, social media icons, and even a link to your location in Google Maps.<\/span><\/span> <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

We\u2019re starting to see more websites adapting to WCAG
\n(Web Content Accessibility Guidelines) and ADA (Americans with Disabilities
\nAct) compliance. Companies like UserWay.org make websites accessible for
\neveryone by adding a widget that enables visitors to click to make text larger,
\nadd contrast, change fonts and text spacing, highlight links and more.<\/span><\/span> <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span><\/div>\n<\/p>\n

This mock-up is an example of the front page of a
\nphygital website. You almost feel like you are in the store. Note the search
\nbox, and phone number at the top. The navigation bar is clean and the fonts are
\neasy on the eyes. When you click on the photo you are taken to a landing page
\nthat provides more information about the product. This is a visual example that
\nworks whether you sell online or not.<\/span><\/i><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

4. <\/span><\/b>Work your
\nlanding pages. A landing page is any page that visitors \u201cland\u201d on after clicking
\nanything on a website. Customers online can also be sent to landing pages through
\na link on email, social media, or ads. Their purpose is to encourage visitors
\nto take action, like shop online, sign-up for classes or email blasts, download
\nlists or project sheets, even watch a video.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

\n

<\/div>\n<\/p>\n

This is the landing page a visitor
\nwould \u201cland\u201d on after clicking \u201cBrowse Our Christmas Shop\u201d on the website\u2019s
\nhome page (previous photo). Here, the visitor makes another choice, clicking to
\nlearn more about Creative Crafting, Beautiful D\u00e9cor, or Thoughtful Gifting. On
\neach of these pages the visitor is either encouraged to shop online, review project sheets, or learn more about the products that are available in-store.<\/i><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/span><\/p>\n

<\/div>\n

This is a lead capture landing
\npage; the object is to get visitors to fill out the form. Here, the call to
\naction is to encourage visitors to share their email address and telephone
\nnumber. This builds a database that will later allow the retailer to engage
\ncustomers on a more personal basis.<\/span><\/i><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/span><\/span>5. <\/span><\/b>Place essential
\ninformation \u201cabove the fold.\u201d Back in the heyday of newspapers, the term \u201cabove
\nthe fold\u201d was used to describe content that appeared on the top half of the
\nfront page of a newspaper, making those stories the most visible.<\/span> <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

Above the fold is also important on web pages. You
\nwant visitors to see what\u2019s most important, and not have to scroll down to find
\nit. Not every visitor will scroll so big news can be easily missed.<\/span><\/span> <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

6. <\/span><\/span><\/b>Choose a
\nfriendly design, style, and typeface. Just like the 10 second first impression
\nshoppers make when they enter your store, this happens online too. In fact,
\nrecent studies found people take only five seconds to form an opinion of a
\nwebsite, and 94% of that judgement is design related.<\/span><\/span> <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

According to Adobe, different typefaces communicate
\ndifferent values and meanings. When deciding what\u2019s best for your website, you
\nwant to choose fonts that are easy-to-read, legible, and web safe. A web safe
\nfont works across all browsers and devices \u2013 this is critical in communicating
\nyour brand message. The good news is that your website builder will recommend
\nwhich fonts are best for your type of business.<\/span><\/span> <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n


<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/div>\n

The fonts used on the Ben Franklin Crafts &
\nFrame Shop website are clean and legible. Ideally, two different fonts are
\nplenty, but some web builders say it\u2019s okay to use up to three but you should stop
\nthere.<\/i><\/span><\/p>\n

7. <\/span><\/b>Consider the
\nvoice of the consumer. When writing copy for your website think about what\u2019s
\nimportant to them. Is it an item\u2019s seasonality or its features or benefits?
\nEase of use? Who it\u2019s geared for? Think of what a consumer needs to know about
\na product or service and write your copy accordingly.<\/span> <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

Long paragraphs are fine when necessary but remember that large blocks of copy can be kryptonite to
\nyounger generations. Include bullet points and highlight important words and
\nphrases where you can.<\/span><\/span> <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

8. <\/span><\/span><\/b>Make it
\ninteractive. Remember, your website should be an extension of your store. Make
\nit a place to go for ideas and visual inspiration. Add a store tour video that
\nshows customers what they can expect when they visit, plus how-to videos. Include
\nproduct checklists, project sheets, and share customer creations. Remember that
\nyounger generations were raised playing on websites like Webkinz and
\nBuild-A-Bear, where they would spend hours if mom and dad let them. If your
\nwebsite is a static online brochure even Baby Boomers won\u2019t click around it
\nvery long.<\/span><\/span> <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

9. <\/span><\/span><\/b>Add a Frequently
\nAsked Questions (FAQ) page. We will never forget the man in a focus group who
\nsaid he hated calling businesses because he knows he will be put on hold,
\ntransferred, or given incorrect information. Detailed FAQ pages can answer
\ncustomer questions correctly and save you time.<\/span><\/span> <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

10.<\/span><\/span><\/b> <\/span>The \u201cAbout
\nUs\u201d page is where you get to shine. This is where you tell the story of who you
\nare, why you opened your business, and everything else that you want customers
\nto know. Write it in your own voice, answering the questions your customers
\nmost what to know: Who, what, where, when, why, plus the how of what got you to
\nwhere you are today. And include photos!<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n


<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

<\/div>\n

We love On the Pot\u2019s About Us page
\nbecause it tells the story of the Cates sisters and how a love of creating took
\nthem from their intended careers to owning a successful paint your own pottery
\nstudio. Their brand is very phygital: What you see online is what you get in-studio.<\/i><\/span> <\/span><\/p>\n

11. <\/span><\/span><\/b>Use
\nFresh, quality content and update it as necessary. This means having a planning
\ncalendar listing content changes and the dates they need to happen. The May
\ncalendar doesn\u2019t do anybody any good on June 5th<\/sup>.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

<\/span><\/div>\n<\/p>\n

Ben Franklin Crafts & Frame Shop\u2019s class
\ncalendars are available as shown, also as an actual calendar, and by list, month,
\nor day.<\/i><\/span><\/p>\n

 12. <\/span><\/span>Check your
\nwebsite on a smartphone, tablet, laptop, and a desktop computer to ensure it
\nlooks as intended on each one. Having a mobile-friendly site is critical as Google
\nfavors mobile sites in search results that come from mobile searches. In other
\nwords, if your website is not mobile-friendly \u2013 described as a website that is designed
\nto work the exact same way across all types of devices \u2013 it will drop lower in
\nGoogle ranking. Give Google’s Mobile-Friendly Test a try <\/span>to see if your site passes.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

Once
\nyour website is ready to go there is one more thing to do: Print out the front
\npage, landing pages, and other key pages. Now, take a black marker and cross
\nout your store\u2019s name everywhere it appears. Based on the photos and copy is it
\nobvious the website belongs to your store? Is there a phygital tie-in that
\nconnects your brick and mortar location to your clicks and mortar store?<\/span> <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

Jayna
\nGedney wants you to be able to smell her store\u2019s website. How are you doing
\nwith yours?<\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/span>Craftique Graphic Design by Karen Lang<\/span><\/p>\n

Copyright KIZER & BENDER All Rights Reserved | Retail Adventures Blog<\/span><\/p>\n

\"Retail<\/a><\/p>
<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Jayna Gedney wants you to be able to smell her store\u2019s website.  Jayna is the store manager of Ben Franklin Crafts & Frame Shop in […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":9926,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-9925","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-blog"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/dmsretail.com\/RetailNews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9925","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/dmsretail.com\/RetailNews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/dmsretail.com\/RetailNews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dmsretail.com\/RetailNews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dmsretail.com\/RetailNews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=9925"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/dmsretail.com\/RetailNews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9925\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dmsretail.com\/RetailNews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/9926"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/dmsretail.com\/RetailNews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=9925"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dmsretail.com\/RetailNews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=9925"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dmsretail.com\/RetailNews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=9925"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}