What are the benefits a store channel offers over other retail Channels?

Store offers a number of benefits to customers that they cannot get when shopping through catalogs or on the Internet.

1. Browsing: Shoppers often have only a general sense of what they want (e.g., a sweater, something for dinner, a gift) but don’t know the specific item they want. They go to a store to see what is available before they decide what to buy.

Store has Seven Advantages

2. Touching and Feeling Products: Perhaps the greatest benefit offered by stores is the opportunity for customers to use all five of their senses touching, smelling, tasting, seeing, and hearing when examining products.

3. Personal Service: Although shoppers might be critical of the personal service they get in stores, sales associates still have the capability of providing meaningful, personalized information. They can tell you if a suit looks good on you.

Customers for durable goods such as appliances reports that salespeople are the most useful information source, more useful than consumer Reports, advertising, or friends.

4. Cash Payment: Stores are the only channels that accept cash payments. Many customers prefer to pay with cash because it is easy, resolves the transaction immediately, and does not result in potential interest payments.

5. Entertainment and social Experience: In store shopping can be a stimulating experience for some people, providing a break in their daily routine and enabling them to interact with friends.

All non store retail formats are limited in the degree to which they can satisfy these entertainment and social needs.

6. Immediate Gratification: Stores have the advantage of allowing customers to get the merchandise immediately after they buy it. If your child has a fever, you are not going to wait a day or two for the delivery of a prescription from Drugstore.com.

7. Risk Reduction: When customers purchase merchandise in stores, the physical presence of the store assures them that any problems with the merchandise will be corrected. The store will be there to receive defective or unsuitable merchandise and issue you a credit for it. Consumers do not have this same level of confidence when buying merchandise from catalogs or through the Internet.

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