Luxe and boutique brands are weathering the pandemic better than other retailers.

While the British high street has sadly been decimated recently, the lure of exclusivity is not only strong but growing.

Inboxes will soon be flooded with deals, as sales season will hit with a vengeance this year – and of course don’t discount-the-discount for a great way to motivate both loyal and new audiences!

However, it’s a truth universally acknowledged that the luxe shopper loses interest with the bargain basement very quickly.

Focusing in on experience over discount - and moreover, ensuring that the digital experience is as enjoyable as instore, has meant many luxury brands have not only weathered the storm of Covid but seen YOY increases as their loyal shoppers move exclusively online.

Personalising for your digital audience is key to making them feel valued, and keen to continue or prolong their purchasing experience. We all know ‘Private’ is a more interesting word than ‘cheap’ for these shoppers. Luxe brands work hard to position themselves as elite members’ clubs and maintain the ‘desire to get inside’. Private shopping, events, invites - essentially, VIP packages - are all second nature for high end bricks and mortar stores, and smart brands are delivering that same feeling through highly personalised digital marketing.

Clearly (and carefully!) segmenting your audience into VIP/ tiers will help you serve the right content against both style and taste preferences and also spend levels. For example, Net-a-Porter’s list of ‘Extremely Important People’ makes up three percent of its customer base but accounts for 40 percent of its fashion and beauty sales. Those on the list can benefit from personal shoppers, exclusive previews and premium delivery – and importantly they also shop 12 times more often than the standard customer. Like many other loyalty programmes, Net-a-Porter’s is invitation-only.

Delivering Exceptional Digital Service

Offering the option to ask a question via an online chat, gives your sales team the opportunity to follow-up with that customer immediately - when their interest levels are piqued. From there, they are able to send pictures and videos of products in the showroom that the shopper isn’t able to see.

Text messaging also helps build the relationship with the customer if they aren’t being greeted with a smile instore. Shoppers have shown to be more inclined to respond and engage once they are ready to buy following personalised message sequences.

Email sequencing is also vital here and is so much more than bumps and abandoned carts. Content led articles served over e-mail should feel like a personalised magazine being made just for the reader.

Automating the actions above ensures quality and brand standards remain, whilst staff don't suffer burn out.

Build a community to deliver the buzz of an instore experience. When shoppers were more likely to decide in-store, then the digital community experience was a ‘nice to have’. Now it’s where your shoppers will find their tribe – and better to find that within your brand’s narrative.

Your Private Facebook Group/s can offer perks that become key to your shopper’s customer journey. Once your groups are engaged in your content you can use them as a source to build lookalike audiences ensuring your ads are more targeted and effective – lowering your CPA whilst building a bigger, more loyal fanbase. <ask us how this works>

Overall, instore VIPs need to feel just that when shopping at home – as be in no doubt retail figures are showing that luxe buyers are not forgoing the purchase – just adding a few clicks.