We are told that omni-channel
retailing includes a seamless buying experience for your customer whether they
buy online or in-stall. So does that mean that prices need to be the same?
We know that major retailers
have different prices in different locations to allow for “market differences”.
We suspect that translates to “If I can get a higher price in that location, I
will go for it.” or “If competition is higher in that location I will adjust my
price accordingly”.
A QVM Trader who sells, say
socks, gears up his market operation for a certain level of mass demand. Volume
is the key and in a popular market like The Queen Vic Market he can achieve
quick turnover and keep the costs associated with an average sale at a
reasonable level. But if a customer buys one pair of socks online that
cost/volume ratio is destroyed. By the time the pair of $7 socks has been
packed, invoiced, and delivered to the post office he is losing on the deal. It
is not clear just where the break even occurs for an online transaction but it
is more likely to occur with a $50 or $60 sale than a $7 sale.
Traders who sell higher
priced items may not have such a problem and may be able to set uniform prices
across their online and in-stall transactions.
The answer to the question “Should
your online prices be the same as at your stall?” probably needs to follow standard
retail thinking. In the same way that a pure online retailer can claim to offer
cheaper prices because of low overheads, then a brick’s and mortar market
trader should be able to sell cheaper at his stall which is his “volume”
location and charge more for “inefficient” online transactions. If the reverse applies then that is fine.
There is a lot of hype in retail commentary about keeping prices the same across all your business activities. But the price you charge needs to reflect retail reality and a realistic margin. Rather than set hard and fast rules, traders should be encouraged to do what works for them - no apologies needed.
