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Home / Business / Ask an Expert
Shopping - It’s Play Time For Men
By:John Stanley
All the research says that shopping is an important hobby for women and that men are less involved in the retailing experience, but is this the case and should it be the case?
Some retailers understand the male shopper better than others and realize what an opportunity awaits them. I saw some research a few years ago which was carried out by the supermarket industry .They gave a men and women the same shopping list and sent them both shopping. When they reviewed the results, the average man spent 20% more than the average woman with the same shopping list. I don’t know about you, but, if that’s the case I would want more men in my store.
Men tend to be less price sensitive than women especially when you provide them with the right customer experience and it is interesting to see that more and more businesses are working at getting more men in their store.
Would your man go to a Knitting Shop?
What could be more of a female shopping experience than a wool shop? Well take a trip to New York and visit KNIT on East 14th Street and you will find a knit shop that has a strategy to attract men.
This wool shop is no ordinary wool shop or is it? It has an organic café and encourages men to knit, one of its most successful events is its Men Only Knit Night when the men can knit and chat over a cappuccino.
My wife and I recently spent a few weeks working with a group of retailers South Africa, one of our clients was a car show room, you would think in that country that you would not need to try to get men to purchase a car, but as in many countries the shift has been to women buying this product. Nissan have therefore placed a four wheel drive circuit next to there showroom. The customer decides on the car and is then taken for a drive, if you can call it that, on the circuit to show the capabilities of the vehicle. Once the vehicle has been purchased then the new owner can learn to drive on the one day workshop on the circuit.
I would not actually call this a drive, since it takes the vehicle to the limit and is aimed at the man .The skill was using the brake rather than the accelerator , but it was aimed purely at the male gender and was being used as an excuse to go to this showroom rather than the competition.
I have taken these two extremes on purpose. One is looked on as a traditional female shopping experience and the other as atypical male shopping, but both have gone out of their way to enhance the shopping experience for male shoppers .The challenge is what can you do to enhance your male shopping experience and the chances are having done that you may find both sexes find it a retail winner.
Men Are Hunters
Remember men, by nature are hunters they shop using different skills to their gathering partners .Your signage strategy is far more important to increase the average sale for male shoppers than it is with female shoppers. Hunters want clear and simple signs to guide them around the store. It was Alan Pease, the Aussie author on body language, who showed that signs with three messages on them were understood by men, if you put more messages on them men would not even read past the first three bullet points. Take a look at your own signs and ask if they are male friendly.
Men also have a narrower body space than women, I’m not suggesting you do it, but a male orientated shop can get more products on the shop floor than a female shop simply because men stand closer together than women. We had a client who was in the Auto car parts business and when he widened the aisles women spend more.
Experience
It is all down to the experience and making men feel comfortable about the experience. A coffee shop could be an important part of the experience.
Over 15 years ago in Bath in Somerset, I used to meet the men from my village at a lingerie shop in bath when our women folk went shopping. Why? Because they served good coffee and we could read today’s newspaper there in our own sanctuary. Even today, my local doctor does not have today’s paper in his waiting room and forces me to read five year old women’s magazines. You could even provide an experience in the doctor’s waiting room
The male shopper wishes to be complimented on their choice, this is especially true in the fashion industry, but they also need to feel they belong in the retail environment they have selected.
Your role is to ensure they have an experience where they will feel comfortable spending that extra cash.
Article Source: http://www.dailynewarticles.com
John Stanley is a conference speaker and retail consultant with over 20 years experience in 15 countries. John works with retailers around the world assisting them with their merchandising, staff and management training, customer flow, customer service and image. http://www.johnstanley.cc
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