How to Capture Retail Leads & Drive Sales via Retail Marketing

Struggling to get retail leads to make a purchase or come in to your store? If your product or service requires considerable investment, prospects aren’t likely to make an impulsive decision. Building a relationship with them over a series of conversations helps prompt them into action.

We approach this retail lead nurturing process with the conversation-led growth framework, which consists of three stages, Capture, Convert, Retain. All stages involve interacting with leads and customers through conversations using a range of tactics and channels.

The capture stage, which we’ll focus on in this blog post, involves getting leads into a chat through ads, chat links and QR codes, your website or social media as they browse your products.

Selling higher-value retail products requires engaging with customers across several touchpoints. Learn how other businesses like yours capture retail leads and kick off a series of conversations that close the deal.

Capture Retail Leads Through Click to Chat Ads

Ads are often the first place prospects encounter a brand. They’re essential for expanding your reach and boosting demand among new audiences. A creative ad helps a product stand out among all the others so viewers remember it.

We recommend using click to chat ads to draw leads into conversations. This will allow you to capture their contact details so you can continue targeting them with promotions if they’re not ready to buy, or you can direct them to a physical location to check out the product in person.

Our customers in retail frequently run ads on Facebook and Instagram that click to WhatsApp. For example, one company selling electronics attracts thousands of retail leads with click to chat ads featuring incredible offers.

Leads are given the option to choose the location nearest to them and are directed to a sales representative in that branch to discuss products. The sales agent answers any questions the prospect has and directs them to visit the branch.

The business does this using respond.io’s Workflows automation. The platform has helped them connect all their sales agents to reply to leads faster and get them to stores to make a purchase.

A single conversation with the right incentive can be enough to influence a prospect to buy online or visit your store. But if it’s not, be ready to continue engaging through other channels.

3 Ways to Engage Retail Leads Through Social Media or Your Website

Some retail leads prefer to browse products on social media or your website before getting into a chat. An active social media presence and easy-to-navigate website give you more opportunities to capture leads.

Here are three ways to attract new leads to your retail business and encourage them to start a conversation.

1 | Chat Buttons on Your Website and Social Media

Prospects who find your products by coming across your website or scrolling on social media often have questions before they make a purchase. Whether they have a customization request or an inquiry about discounts or promotions, it should be simple to contact you.

illustration of omnichannel chat widget for retail lead generation — An omnichannel strategy makes it easy for leads to contact you

Consider an omnichannel chat widget on your website so visitors can contact you on their preferred channel. Encourage followers to chat with you on your social pages as well.

Remember there’s value to be gained from every interaction. Making chat options more prominent on your website is a simple step, and implementing this can increase your leads.

2 | Get Retail Leads from Live Shopping Events

For retail products, Facebook Live Shopping is a great way to build excitement about limited-time promotions and get leads to send you a message. This works well for businesses who have already established a large following.

One of our customers, a jewelry business, regularly hosts live shopping events to showcase the latest deals. The events last about an hour and attract over 2000 viewers and dozens of comments and messages from leads.

image of a necklace sold by a jewelry retail business — Luxury products like jewelry may need to be viewed a few times. Building excitement and offering promotions helps prompt a decision.

For lower cost items for this business, customers can order online via bank transfer, while for larger purchases, they’re encouraged to visit a physical location. The company has seen success drawing customers in with promotional offers, gaining continuous engagement.

Use Live Shopping to give your customers an introduction to what you have to offer and increase interaction. Respond.io Customer Success Manager Joshua Loo recommends including a unique promo code in live events both as an incentive and to use to track where leads are coming from.

3 | Leverage Influencers in Instagram Stories to Start Conversations

Seeing celebrities or figures they admire using a product builds positive associations among retail leads. In fact, a study shows that 40% of consumers made a purchase after seeing an influencer post about using the product.

It’s clearly worth investing in influencers, especially for high-value, aspirational products. And using them in Instagram stories can also help you get leads into conversations quickly. You can do this with story replies. Whenever someone comments on a story or reacts with anything other than a ❤️, you’ll get their contact information into a chat.

One of our customers who sells beauty products leverages influencers in Instagram stories and encourages viewers to reply. Seeing influencers using the product not only boosts demand as prospects imagine themselves using it but also brings in leads that can be further targeted.

Stay Top of Mind with Targeted Broadcasts

Once you’ve gotten retail leads in, target them with promotions tailored to their interests to push them to make a purchase or visit a store. Depending on the nature of your business, you may want to direct them to speak to a salesperson first.

Sending promotions to those who have shown interest in your products or purchased in the past creates a sense of urgency and keeps customers engaged.

For example, one of our customers who sells perfume sends broadcasts to past customers and those who have contacted them on WhatsApp through their website. They inform them of the chance to get a special discount that won’t last long. The business has seen success through this method.

Another business who sells beauty products segments contacts into those who have purchased before and those who have yet to make a purchase. While they send similar promotions to both groups, they take a slightly different angle for each so the message is more personalized.

Boost Your Retail Marketing With Online Conversations

Whether you’re selling your products primarily online or offline in a physical store, online conversations will help you convert customers faster. Interacting with your brand puts it top of mind once a prospect is ready to purchase.

Deciding whether to make that splurge on a luxury item or invest in high-quality electronic or home goods often requires a few interactions. Consistent engagement and being available via chat may be what it takes to drive a purchase decision.

When you’re capturing leads across channels, it’s best to use a conversation management platform to reply to them in a timely manner and get them through the funnel faster. Consider respond.io for your growing business to manage leads and sales across channels with advanced automation and AI features.