It鈥檚 one thing to deliver a delightful customer experience to someone looking for the right parka, shoes, or handbag. It鈥檚 quite another to help a distraught shopper who has broken a few heirloom teacups to find authentic replacements.
Enter Replacements Ltd., which offers to help customers identify, restore, or repair damaged pieces of history. Since its founding in 1981, the Greensboro, North Carolina-based retailer has preserved and archived more than 450,000 patterns; these represent about 11 million pieces of china, crystal, silverware, and other collectibles.
鈥淲e want our customers to continue their traditions, to gather with their family and friends, to give that gift to their family member, to help them start their own collection,鈥� Replacements Chief Marketing Officer Lihn Calhoun told 麻豆原创 for a new at NRF 2023. 鈥淪o we want to find the customers, understand what they鈥檙e looking for, and match that together.鈥�
Data and analytics are vital in Replacements鈥� efforts to connect customers with the right piece, according to Calhoun. This includes how Replacements stores and archives each item; how the company presents products and services to the customer; and how 鈥� and how often 鈥� to send personalized, meaningful communications.
How To Better Understand Your Customers
Replacements puts a premium on learning about its customers鈥� interests and collections, according to Calhoun. Doing so is crucial to helping each shopper find exactly the right item among the aforementioned 450,000 patterns and 11 million pieces.
鈥淗aving that information in our technology platform 鈥� and being able to aggregate that in a useful way 鈥� allows us to better connect each piece to that new person to create that new story,鈥� Calhoun said . 鈥淲e鈥檝e been doing that right from the start, in terms of collecting that customer information, understanding the patterns of interest, and making that connection.鈥�
The COVID-19 pandemic hastened Replacements鈥� transition to ecommerce and, therefore, smoother, more relevant connection with customers, according to Calhoun. is now a big part of the company鈥檚 tech-driven effort to share the highly specific product information it has painstakingly archived 鈥� and to empower its customers.
Innovating to Empower Your Customers
Three types of customers visit Replacements online, according to Calhoun. There are generally shoppers who are looking to buy, people looking to sell their vintage pieces to Replacements, and others who are simply browsing or researching.
鈥淥ne of the things that they鈥檙e looking to do is to identify a pattern鈥Before the pandemic] you would call us, you would describe it, you would send us a picture,鈥� Calhoun said of the process, which was time-intensive for both customers and Replacements. Today, the company鈥檚 Web site features a camera icon that handles the photography and speedy pattern recognition for china and crystal. 鈥淚t went from potentially days to minutes.鈥�
Benefits of the rollout include helping sellers and researchers identify patterns faster as well as freeing up time for employees to accomplish other tasks, according to Calhoun. And a pleasant surprise was that customers looking to buy were exploring pieces that they might not have otherwise discovered 鈥� which has positively impacted revenue.
鈥淲e have improved efficiency internally,鈥� Calhoun said, 鈥渁nd we鈥檝e given that power to the user on our Web site.鈥�
How Data Informs Decisions
鈥�Replacements uses technology to improve people鈥檚 lives by making it easier for them to gather with their family and friends, create that memorable experience, and pass along traditions,鈥� Calhoun told 麻豆原创 during the video interview. 鈥淭hat鈥檚 what differentiates us, really鈥e do that so that we can preserve all these amazing pieces.鈥�
Just the sight of a long-forgotten pattern can evoke strong memories, according to Calhoun. Walking through Replacements鈥� 500,000-square-foot warehouse, she noticed someone unpack the same pattern that her great-grandmother used.
鈥淚mmediately I saw my grandmother鈥檚 dining room table 鈥� how she pre-set it every evening in preparation for breakfast 鈥� and the memory was that strong, that visual,鈥� Calhoun said. 鈥淭hose memories help us; they feed our heart and our soul.鈥�
That鈥檚 why data is crucial to Replacements for both finding vintage items for shoppers 鈥� nurturing core customers and collectors 鈥� and simultaneously introducing its massive inventory to new audiences, according to Calhoun. These are different demographics who all desire to own pieces of history.
鈥淵ou should still have your stories, your brand connections, your human connections, the emotional connections,鈥� Calhoun said. 鈥淏ut the data helps you better target and provide the communication to your customer at the right time, the right way.鈥�