House of Fraser has launched a ‘virtual queuing’ system at its City of London store that encourages its Buy & Collect shoppers to browse the store while waiting for their orders.
Multi-channel director Andy Harding said the service was being tested at the store to allow time-poor shopper to maximise their time in the shop while waiting for orders to be prepared for collection rather than waiting in a queue.
Upon arrival customers go to a self-service kiosk located on the ground floor of the department store. they are then sent a text message with an estimated waiting time and a link to a count-down. Customers can then browse the store before heading for the third floor collection desk when the order is ready.
Harding said: 'This is a new technology to the retail market, and it demonstrates our strategy to continually evolve and differentiate our customer service offering.'
'We have selected our London City store as the trial location because we know queues at the Buy & Collect service desk can be lengthier at peak times due to the high volume of online shoppers who work in the city’s business district.'
He said: 'We believe this trial will help to improve customer experience among our Buy & Collect shoppers and in turn have a long term effect on increasing customer retention.
'Early signs are that customers enjoy the experience and prefer to be given the option to browse the store or enjoy a coffee rather than wait in a queue. Following the trial, we will use the feedback gained from both customers and staff to develop the experience before implementing the service across the portfolio.'
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