Virtual Merchandising Online

Online consumers in Australia and New Zealand are consistently relying on the net for shopping alternatives, even during tougher economic times. eCommerce is a vital sales channel for so many businesses nowadays.

Remember the internet is not just a sales channel Down Under.

Like their American counterparts, more and more internet users in Australia are going online to research their purchases before buying in-store. The Australian Centre for Retail Studies (ACRS) has reported that up to one-half of consumers in Australia, did some online research before shopping in-store. That’s huge!

So I ask the following questions:

• How well are your products or services merchandised online? Do you have lots of product information available?
• How easy is it to navigate through the site while viewing products?
• How well are your products grouped and displayed online?
• Without the ability to touch and feel, do your photography and the use of online tools enable a multi dimensional display?
• Overall, do they look attractive and inspirational?

In essence, the online product display needs to mirror all the tried and tested offline merchandising techniques. This is what we call Virtual Merchandising.

These presentation standards will certainly strengthen brand equity and maximize sales.