Research shows that window shopping offers psychological and therapeutic value – a kind of brain-fueled happiness that boosts a customer’s mood and allows them to escape reality, if even for a short while. We have no doubt all indulged in a little retail therapy now and then! This golden nugget of insight into consumer behavior is crucial for retailers to understand if they are to effectively design window displays that attract, engage and convert customers.
Dwell time analytics is an innovative approach to optimizing window displays to enhance the customer experience and increase sales. The longer a customer is mesmerized by a window display, the more likely they are to purchase something. Measuring dwell time and consequent customer behavior provide insight into the effectiveness of a display and how to improve it. It has become an essential metric for analyzing shopping behavior and increasing sales.
What is Dwell Time Analytics?
Dwell time analytics is the process of measuring the time that customers spend navigating particular areas of a store with the aim of identifying dwell zones. It also measures customer engagement with product displays that compel customers to purchase by combining dwell time with conversion ratios.
Measuring dwell time in specific zones can help retailers calculate ROI for new product launches and identify departments or products that attract the most customers. This enables retailers to optimize store layout and product placement. Workforce productivity and customer service can also be improved by strategically deploying staff in the busiest zones.
Dwell time is one of the metrics measured as part of a comprehensive retail analytics solution that uses sophisticated in-store cameras to anonymously count people and track customer behavior, in conjunction with an analytics dashboard to visualize the data in dynamic ways.
Using Dwell Time Analytics to Increase Sales
It is widely accepted that the longer you browse, the more you will spend. The positive relationship between dwell time and sales is proven by correlating dwell time data with sales conversion rates. Integrating a retail analytics solution with a Point of Sale (POS) system enables retailers to link dwell time metrics with sales data to determine the performance of window displays, new products, and other marketing initiatives. With insight into what works, retailers can replicate strategies to increase sales conversions and test new strategies.
Heatmap analysis shows retailers a bird’s eye view of their store and where the most popular zones are, as well as the routes customers take to get there. Optimizing store layout according to popular dwell zones, products, and travel routes improves the customer journey and sales conversion rate dramatically.
Using Dwell Time Analytics for Customer Service
Dwell time can also indicate a negative experience, such as a customer waiting in line or looking around for an employee to help them. Adverse incidents like these can be avoided by setting up alerts that are triggered when a sensor detects certain anomalies. For example, if a longer than usual queue or wait time is detected and measured by the sensor, an alert will be sent to management to deploy additional staff to expedite service. Or if a customer is detected standing still for a length of time in an area not identified as a dwell zone or a queue, and no staff is present, an alert can be triggered to deploy a staff member to help that customer.
In a nutshell, dwell time analytics provides the following insights to retailers:
How customers move through the store and engage with displays
How long customers engage with displays, and how that correlates to sales
Where the most popular dwell zones, products, and travel routes are located
Which display layouts and marketing initiatives work best to entice customers to buy more items
When and where to deploy staff for improved customer service
How to optimize store layout for greater accessibility and increased sales
Dwell Time is not Just for Retail Stores
Any industry that provides products or services to customers can benefit from dwell time analytics. Identifying optimum zones, routes, products, and marketing strategies in a physical location empower business owners to optimize their processes and enhance customer service, no matter the industry.
Revolutionary Retail Analytics Solutions For You
Meet Vemcount! A retail analytics solution designed to provide actionable insights on people’s behavior and how to optimize your operations for increased revenues and happier customers.
Contact us for a chat about how we can help you make data-driven decisions to improve your business.
