Earlier this year, in partnership with the Magdus European Event, Coniq surveyed marketing, leasing, and retail professionals at shopping malls and outlets across the globe. The aim was to uncover executives’ views and, specifically, what challenges and opportunities they faced then and in the future.
Since running the survey, the world has changed for millions of people and businesses. Coronavirus forced shopping centers to close, causing an unprecedented crisis for everyone in the retail industry, which no one was prepared to handle.
This article covers two main points highlighted by the survey:
- The interdependent relationship between landlords and retail brands must improve for both parties to traverse the problematic post-coronavirus times and into future success
- How centers currently, and how they would like to be able to communicate with customers. This includes the short term for re-opening and the longer term to build engagement and encourage spending.
We will also give Coniq’s recommendations for a successful future for brands and centers.
BRANDS AND CENTERS
Why Shopping Center and Brand Relationships are Essential for Success
The strength of brands lies in their relationship with the customer and their knowledge of in-store and online purchases where available. In turn, centers have access to information such as footfall, wi-fi access, and, where sharing is in place, details from many different brands in their portfolio. Where centers and brands combine these silos of information, they can create genuinely impactful marketing campaigns to build real engagement and loyalty in their customer base.
Pre-COVID survey results |
Post-COVID |
| 100% of those surveyed said they have a good or very good relationship with the brands in their center.
However, when probing further, we found that a shocking 40% have no data exchange at all between brands and center management. When data is shared, it is mainly in the form of results, e.g., sales numbers. Only 30% have strategic conversations where they can share and discuss mutual targets, strategies, and challenges. |
Never has this relationship been more important, and also more tested, than during the Coronavirus lockdown. Landlords that had established an in-depth relationship with their brands have been in a much stronger position when it comes to rent negotiations, mid-crisis activity, and the challenges of re-opening.
Once centers are permitted to re-open, the most successful centers and brands will be those that work together to attract customers. |
DATA COLLECTION
Customer Knowledge and Communication Rules the Day
Those landlords who collect data and use their CRM and CMS effectively can send targeted and tailored messages to different segments of their customers depending on their habits and build authentic engagement and loyalty over time. Discounts and special offers can be used to entice the most desirable customers to return more often and spend more while providing an excellent and personalized shopping experience.
| Pre-COVID survey results |
Post-COVID |
| While 80% of centers surveyed track footfall and the rate of return of their customers, only 40% collect any information on shopping preferences or why customers visit the mall. This is despite over 50% stating they could better plan and prepare for future success if they had more knowledge about their customers.
The survey found that only 65% of respondents use a CRM system, and a surprisingly low 30% use any form of CMS. A CMS is vital to manage content and sending the right messages to the right people. It is clear why over 40% say that attracting customers is one of their top challenges, as it is difficult, if not impossible, to engage with customers without these two staple technologies truly. |
Those who have already built up a relationship with their customers have not only been able to easily and quickly change their communication tactics but are more likely to be trusted to have their customer’s best interests at heart. Those who have not been sending regular and relevant communications in good times are less likely to receive the readership and level of trust as those with an established relationship already in place. |
Act Now
While no one can be expected to have been prepared for an event such as COVID-19, shopping centers and brands can learn from this time to be prepared for any future large-scale change. The lockdown has exacerbated the landlord-brand issues that were experienced pre-Coronavirus. As we go forward, those centers that build their relationships with their brands and customers will be the most successful.
Coniq Recommendations
Considering the findings of the survey and conversations with our clients, the main takeaways are:
- Centers should reach out to brands and work together with them on a day-to-day and strategic basis if they wish to succeed in the post-COVID world. Regular contact and information sharing is the only way to move forward.
- The safety of customers and staff should be a number one priority – and this message should be communicated to customers by both brands and center management. Now is not the time to be putting profits first!
- In the future, collect information from as many sources as possible and apply it to centers and brands to tailor compelling messages to particular profiles of consumers.
