In my line of work as a brand and retail consultant, I find that I’m constantly having thoughts that I want to share with the world. Or at least with my little online world! The thing is, within the ever-developing sphere of retail and working with clients on a daily basis, it’s rare to find me short of inspiration.

In fact, I feel like I’m constantly learning and getting more passionate about this area year on year! 

Thanks to this, I often share insights I’ve had over on Instagram almost daily. Sharing is caring, after all, and I use the platform as a soundboard for any “eureka moments”, as well as a way to encourage brands to keep pushing towards their goals with actionable steps.

With that in mind, I decided to pull together some of my favourite posts from the last few months: Those posts that were born from either moments of inspiration and realisation, or are the product of years of experience in the industry! In them, I cover some of my biggest pieces of advice related to building your customer base as a brand, mastering the world of retail and how to speak effectively to “your people”.

Let’s recap, shall we?

Post one: The importance of customer-centric strategy 

In this post, I highlighted what I think is the most sure-fire path to success: Always having your customers in mind.

Too often, business owners get wrapped up in the everyday tasks and grand plans, without stopping to think too much about the real people that are going to be buying their product! If your customers aren’t happy and engaged with what you’re putting out into the world, this will have an inevitable domino effect on your whole business. Not only will it impact sales, but it will have a huge effect on your chances of working with retailers, too.

As such, everything you create - from touchpoints, to social media posts and from store design to the team - should have your customers at the heart whilst planning!

Post 2: Online vs. Physical Retail

Recently, I’ve been thinking a lot about online vs physical retail. 

As I say in this post, it’s easy to believe that everything needs to be online in 2020. After all, digital content has boomed, so why would retail be any different?

Well, truth is, physical stores are just as important, if not more important, than ever. Google has noted that online sales are 106% higher inside the catchment of a physical store. To optimise your retail strategy in this respect, combining online and physical is the key!

This is definitely something that brands should keep in mind as tech takes over more and more.

Post 3: Why your brand needs a vision

I love a good motivational business quote! This one has to be one of my favourites I’ve found recently. 

It sums up something I’ve been talking about a lot: That there is a huge amount of power in selling more than just your product. Not only do you need something brilliant to sell, but you need to have a vision. You need to be providing people with something that makes you stand out.

Whether it’s the lifestyle you can help people create or the values that you mutually stand by, these should all be founded in your vision for what you want your company to mean to you and your customers.

Now that’s the key to growth and success!

Post 4: Learning from the competition

Finally, I wanted to share all of the lessons you can get from simply looking at your competitors and applying their successful principles to your business when relevant. This is not the same as copying, of course!

A few months ago I saw this Instagram Stories advert from Unilever which I found refreshing for several reasons. I think there’s a lot that can be taken away from it for fellow brands.

For one thing, it’s rare to see a company own up to their mistakes as Unilever do here. It’s a refreshing marketing tactic that immediately generates trust! This is furthered by the company putting explicit timelines and statistics to their eco-friendly pledges. 

Plus, perhaps most importantly, the brands are responding to what their customers want. They are framing their business through the lense of sustainability, since greener living has been such a hot topic throughout 2019.

It’s been a busy year and my Instagram feed shows it! I don’t plan on slowing down with the industry insights any time soon, so be sure to follow me over there. Plus, for even more insider tips, you can also sign up to my mailing list here.