As the number of female shoppers and competition increases they will have to follow the lead of traditional channel merchants that, when faced with an increasingly discerning and mobile customer, had to craft sensational selling environments with imaginative interiors and innovative store windows. The idea that the environment in which the product is being sold is as important as the product itself allowed traditional retailers to rise above the clutter of competitors and create an enduring bond with their customers. To the potential buyer, a product is a complex cluster of values that, when satisfied, create a compelling reason to buy. Service, convenience and selection form part of that cluster but are entry-level expectations and do little to differentiate the retailer.
Price typically ranks near the bottom as a reason to buy.
Beyond these entry level expectations, the customer looks for solutions, lifestyles and relationships. They want to be delighted, seduced and persuaded. Sales staff is trained to create a dialogue that connects with the customer. The cluster is enhanced by advertising and marketing campaigns centred around solutions, lifestyles or relationships and by logo, label and even shopping bag graphics. The cluster is further enhanced when delivered through a 'community' of retailers.