Flexibilization and the return of marketing to the physical POS

In order for the curve of contaminated by Covid-19 to be flattened, governments of several Brazilian states decreed the closure of physical stores in non-essential sectors. Three months after this decision, the easing of the quarantine, established by the government at the beginning of June, brings some challenges to the points of sale, such as the adoption of measures to distance one customer and another, extension of exchange periods and hygiene of products. In addition, pos marketing strategies also needed to be rethought at this time for consumer safety.
"The decision to close doors was difficult, but the decision to reopen doors is just as difficult because everything involves hygiene protocols, signal kits of what the brand's concerns are about caring for its staff and the next," says Camila Salek, founding partner of Vimer Experience Merchandising. It also reinforces that companies are developing a structured planning for the resumption, which includes the focus on communication to the final consumer, in relation to the team of stores and good practices that are being created. According to Thomas Tagliaferro, CEO of TracyLocke, in general, companies are establishing and improving health safety protocols in order to reassure and attract the public. "We can see malls investing heavily in flow controls, people filters, testing and sanitization," he adds.
Another point raised by Camila is that, at this moment, brands are dealing both with a consumer who is afraid and with a seller who is also afraid. "It's very important that brands take care of the people who work with them, so that they can represent them on the front line," he adds. In this sense, Priscila Pellegrini, Samba's general director, says that this is the time for companies to make life easier for consumers and show how their products serve them. "Actions need to have a well-defined purpose for connections to be real and deep," he says.
Although the gradual return of activities in physical stores brings some obstacles to be faced by companies, for Tagliaferro, it also represents a resumption of opportunities. "The trend is to see brands investing a lot in sales-focused stocks, because you need to minimize impacts and try to recover some of the lost sales," he explains. For him, marketing actions at the point of sale will never cease to exist, only need and are being reinvented. "The great truth is that everything needs to be re-designed from the perspective of the shopper and/or the consumer, who has been changing many behaviors in this period of pandemic," says TracyLocke's CEO.
According to Camila, vimer, one of these actions that should not happen at this time is experimentation. "In most cases, the experience that involves experimentation is an experience that the brand should only make available if it has full control over the process of sanitizing a product that will be used by one customer and another," he explains. For her, this is a moment where it is necessary to work more creatively, with alternative formats, mainly aimed at maintaining contact with the client. "What we have is what we're calling Low Touch Retail, which is relearning a retail operation with low contact," he adds.
One of these creative forms cited by Camila is allied to technology. "There are augmented reality software, which is being used by several companies in this period free of charge, so that brands can insert their products and test augmented reality, the virtual application of products within stores", exemplifies the partner of Vimer. Another measure being used by companies is the extension of the delivery time. "Several brands are offering 90 days to trade, because if the consumer enters a store where the taster is closed, he can buy, take home and test indoors," he adds.
"I believe that many habits will change in relation to care and prevention. The pandemic of the new coronavirus has hit the world, and this shows us that it is important to rethink some models that were being adopted until then," says Priscila, samba, stressing that brands have a fundamental role for social change. "The main lesson that remains is that no communication action will be effective without a robust risk mapping in conjunction with all areas of the company, from legal, health, marketing and technology," adds TracyLocke's CEO.
For Camila, from Vimer, we will now go through a transition process, in which we will bring learning, but a second post-pandemic moment will be the resignification of these physical spaces. "We are looking at the now, which is a relearning of a sale with distancing, but already with a big aim at the end of the year and in 2021, so that we can bring experiences increasingly relevant to the physical environment, precisely to differentiate it from digital", points out Camila.
Although e-commerce has shown an exponential increase in this quarantine period, for vimer's partner, this growth will normalize with the passage of the pandemic. "We will not lose what we have achieved online, but we will empower, understanding that the brand is one. We will move in both environments", he reinforces. Tagliaferro, of TracyLocke, agrees with Camila: "The physical store will remain strong, but with the mission of delivering a great brand experience to the shopper. But to stay close to their customers, brands will need to integrate their communication strategies and offerings, taking into account a physical and digital journey."
Priscila, from Samba, also believes that online commerce will be a trend in the post-pandemic. "E-commerce existed long before the pandemic, but isolation spread this model significantly. Many consumers have broken their barriers with distance services, and I believe that this is a trend that should remain after the end of the pandemic", he concludes.