Why integrate marketing games into your web-to-store strategy?

First things first, what is a web-to-store strategy?

A web-to-store strategy is a strategy to draw customers into your store. The expression web-to-store, on the other hand, describes a customer’s behaviour of looking for information online before deciding to make a purchase, then ultimately deciding to go to a physical store to buy the product in question. The term also encompasses all actions such as marketing games which can be put in place online to encourage web users to go directly to the physical store to make their purchases. Consequently, the web-to-store concept naturally needs to create a link between the digital and physical worlds.

What are the web-to-store strategy challenges?

In recent years, researching information online has become an automatic behaviour for many of us, whether it is on our computer or mobile phone. Furthermore, the acceleration of e-commerce and the arrival of major online players with endlessly stocked catalogues and competitive prices have gradually converted consumers to making their purchases almost exclusively online.

Given the significant use of the internet in the customer journey, shop and business networks should be digitised. This ranges from a good online visibility with detailed information on the website (retail outlet opening hours, contact details, photos of the establishment etc.) to a presence on the various localisation services (especially Google Maps) through regular communication on social media and potentially paid advertising campaigns on Google Ads, Facebook Ads and Instagram Ads, for example. Remember that you can generate in-store traffic thanks to gamification.

By adapting to these new trends for an effective and appropriate web-to-store strategy, physical shops will be able to:

• Increase their visibility online
• Attract new clients to their sales outlet
• Retain loyal clients
• Generate more sales revenue

Why and how should you integrate marketing games into your web-to-store strategy?

Creating marketing games and competitions is a simple but effective way to simplify the buyer’s journey. There are a certain number of gamification strategies and methods to introduce games to the product purchasing process.

Product recommendations

Create product recommendation questionnaires based on personality, spirit animals, etc. Once the user has responded t0 a few simple questions, the goal is to link their preferences to a product that you offer.
This way, they see the products in your catalogue most suited to their needs.

A similar idea is to create a personality test based on a popular film or TV series. For example, “Are you more Spiderman or Batman?”. Launch the test in the holiday season or when you have offers available, and promote it on social media by encouraging participants to promote the tests to increase its reach.

Loyalty programmes with rewards

Set up a loyalty programme with a rewards system where consecutive online purchases allow you to accumulate points which can then be redeemed as gifts. It is an effective way to boost regular purchases and strengthen loyalty. With this system, you also encourage customers to go into your physical stores in order to collect their prizes.

That is the exact strategy Starbucks, an American multinational coffee chain, has used with its Starbucks Rewards programme in 3 steps, encouraging new customers to walk through the doors of their stores worldwide!

To get started, you have to sign up using your personal information on the Starbucks mobile app to gain access to all the programme perks. Collecting personal information on customers and users allows Starbucks to target their promotions and offer products and deals they will love. Then, head to a store to collect stars, or in other words points, every time you buy. As you gradually collect stars, you can exchange them for rewards and products sold in the café: sandwiches, desserts, drinks, etc.

This simple and effective programme also encourages customers to come back to Starbucks shops, again and again, to redeem their rewards and collect more stars continuously!

Product quizzes

Create interactive quizzes based on products on your website. These quizzes can be linked to product sales pages or a points system, which can also be used in-store.

You can also create quizzes to boost knowledge, change opinions or highlight certain products to boost sales. So, the customer associates your product and your business with fun, pleasure and positive emotions.

Spin the wheel for your customers

Install wheels of fortune at the entrance to your physical stores for a campaign, and advertise it on your e-commerce site and social media. This is a wonderful example of gamification through an instant-winner marketing game which is very appealing and satisfying.

In fact, this gamification technique helps to gather personal data about your visitors in real-time. The draw of a free gift or a special discount to enjoy straight away, for example, attracts new clients to walk through the doors to your shop. It is also an effective way to instigate the first purchase!

Participatory competitions

A shop can also benefit greatly from the organisation of a participatory competition such as a slogan or photo competition on social media by asking users to let their creativity flow.

This is a commonly used tactic because a community competition generates a lot of interactions, word of mouth, and helps build a strong and more memorable brand image. Competitions also increase your online visibility and help to retain customers.

Referral system and customer loyalty

Discounts based on recommendations are among the most commonly used gamification methods in various sectors and shops. If a pre-existing customer directs new customers to the store, usually close friends and family members, they receive a reward for having referred the person.

This way, you grow your audience, generate more sales revenue and retain more customers for your brand through a circle of connections. Customer loyalty, on the other hand, can be gamified with the help of a points system as mentioned previously.

Putting gamification techniques in place can significantly improve the customer experience in your sales outlets. The customer’s journey to a shop isn’t always a rational process, but they are more likely to make a purchase if there is a clearly defined action plan with interactions and rewards. That is exactly what gamification helps to achieve by accompanying the client through a range of predefined options which almost always results in a purchase.

Transport clients from your e-commerce site to your physical sales outlets with Drimify, the gamification platform that makes creating your marketing games simple. Thanks to our team of experts, we support you through your projects and give advice on your web-to-store campaigns.

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