CH 3

Live chats

Customers can click a button at any time and have an instant messaging email or voice conversation with a customer service representative

Mobile retailing

The use of mobile technology to promote, enhance, and add to value to the in-store shopping experience.

Channel migration

When consumers' collect information about products on one company's channel and then buys the product from another competitor.

omnichannel retailing

a coordinated multichannel retail offering that provides a seamless and synchronized customer experience, using all of the retailer's shopping channels

catalog channel

a nonstore retail channel in which the retail offering is communicated to customers through a catalog mailed to customers

Automated retailing

a retail channel in which merchandise or services are stored in a machine and dispensed to customers when they deposit cash or use a credit card.

Direct selling

a retail channel in which salespeople interact with customers face-to-face in a convenient location, either at the customer's home or at work.

Social retailing

also known as s-retailing, involves conducting purchase transactions through a social media site. This expanded channel is steadily evolving and picking up steam.

cross-channel retailing

customers use multiple channels to make purchases, such as when they receive an e-mailed coupon, download it onto their smartphone, and then go to a brick-and-mortar store to redeem the coupon and buy the product.

retail channel

defines the way a retailer sells and delivers merchandise and services to its customers.

Internet retailing

involves retailers interacting with consumers via the Internet, whether they use a traditional computer or a laptop, a variety of sizes of tablets, or a smartphone.

Showrooming

occurs when a consumer goes into a store to learn about different brands and products and then searches the Internet for the same product sold at a lower price.

Multichannel retailing

when retailers offer more than one channel to sell and deliver merchandise and services to consumers

Single-channel retailing

when retailers sell and deliver merchandise and services to their customers through only one channel.