Retail Merchandiser

Rather than panicking about how to handle holiday shoppers, Sears Holdings became focused and boosted its online presence. Imran Jooma gives us the scoop.

To say consumers are more
sensitive to saving time and money this year is an understatement. But to say retailers are in a panic about finding ways to offer both is quite accurate.

In the midst of this maelstrom, Sears Holdings has stayed focused by positioning itself as a leader in the world of online retail by transforming the way shoppers can approach this holiday season. To start, the company launched a campaign called Shop Your Way, which gives customers the flexibility to quite literally shop the way they feel most comfortable.

Whether it’s coming into any Sears or Kmart location; going online to Sears.com, Kmart.com, LandsEnd.com, or TheGreatIndoors.com, all of which fall under the Sears Holding umbrella; or going on the company’s new Sears2Go mobile application site, the strength of this campaign lies in the fact that the company offers consumers the ability to select any item, anywhere, and any way.

“Sears.com is so committed to providing an exceptional shopping experience that we will personally help you find the exact product you are looking for, even if it is not from our Web site,” said Imran Jooma, senior vice president, online for Sears Holdings Corporation. “Simply send in your request to our Personal Shopper via e-mail or chat, and we will do the rest of the work for you,”

Online complement

Sears Holdings initially built its online presence as a complement to its brick and mortar locations. All of the items found in its stores can be found online, but to boost interest in the online portion, it expanded its product mix by offering millions of additional items and new categories not found in the stores.

“From furniture and art to appliances and electronics, our customers can now get everything they need backed by our commitment to providing them with an unparalleled online shopping experience each day,” said Jooma.

The company’s approach to variety doesn’t stop with its products, however. With the Shop Your Way campaign, customers have more choices when it comes to shopping. The Web, mobile, and in-store terminal options make it easier to get in-depth details on a specific product. There are also decisionmaking and search tools to pin down which product would best fit a customer’s need and to let the customer know exactly where to find it.

Sears Holdings also developed a community site, MySears.com, to give consumers unbiased reviews on products, as well as a place to participate in getting ideas, giving ideas, and sharing knowledge. “We have placed a lot of emphasis on product reviews because we want our customers to feel absolutely confident when they shop or buy with us,” said Jooma.

“We aim to satisfy our customers’ varied shopping needs, whether it is researching, browsing, or picking a simple part replacement,” he continued. “We have implemented several online tools, such as Quickview, Save for Later, and Wish Lists, to make these shopping experiences easy for our customer.”

Seamless access

Sears Holdings offers a variety of options for customers when it comes time to pay and pick up as well. They can buy online and pick up at a store—a process that is backed by a guarantee. “We take our commitment to providing convenience to our customers seriously; so, if we can’t meet our pick-up in five minute guarantee, we’ll provide a coupon good for your next in-store purchase,” said Jooma.

Customers can also take advantage of curbside pickup at select locations, and Sears Holdings has found a way to enable customers to send someone else to pick up the item with a secure identification and checkout process. Customers now have the ease of ordering online and the ability to save on shipping costs by doing direct pickup at the store.

For payments, customers can use regular credit cards, Pay Pal, or eBillme, a process that enables Web site checkouts with online banking. In addition, when customers go to Sears.com, they can see Kmart products, and vice versa for Kmart.com. Following this product integration, Sears Holdings integrated the checkout and payment process.

“You can buy a Kmart product and a Sears product in a single transaction during checkout,” said Jooma. “We also have in-store terminals that can be used for customers to access the online products, decisionmaking tools, and reviews without having to log in at home.”

Orders placed through in-store terminals offer free shipping, so whether shopping online, on a mobile site, or in a brick and mortar location, customers can access what they need when they need it. “We want to make sure customers have seamless access to all we have to offer,” Jooma said.

Maintaining relevance

Sears Holdings is the first US retailer to offer the kind of on-the-go technology and mobile commerce Web site platforms it’s developed and rolled out since March 2009, which is when Tom Aiello, division vice president of public relations, said Sears Holdings took things to the next level.

“That’s when the Shop Your Way campaign launched and when many of our innovations hit the market, from the new site design to Personal Shopper to the Sears2Go mobile application,” he said. “They’ve subsequently fused together in a unique way.”

As the holidays approach, Sears Holdings has continued to innovate, first by revitalizing its layaway program. Although it’s been available at Kmart stores for more than 30 years, it will now be available at all Sears Holdings stores, both online and in-store.

In August, the company launched the Christmas Club Card, which can be used to save up value until mid-November by enabling customers to save for future holiday purchases. Sears Holdings will also provide a 3% reward on the balance on the card as of November 14.

Building on its theme of allowing customers to shop their way, Sears Holdings developed Give Together, an option for families to contribute to big-ticket items that would otherwise be impossible to buy. As with many other ideas Sears Holdings launched this past year, the idea of Give Together came from customer feedback.

“We always listen to our customers, but it’s not just about listening and gathering ideas; it’s also about how we act upon them,” said Jooma. “Many of the ideas around the multiple payment types and fulfillment options we heard from our customers and built the functionality around it.”

The wide variety of options that make up the Shop Your Way campaign are all targeted to do one thing for customers of Sears Holdings: give them the choices they want so they can buy what they want when they want to. “Customers’ time is much more valuable and focused on life well spent rather than outdoing the Jones,” said Aiello. “The time you have with your family is more important.”

“This holiday season will be new, exciting, and unlike anything our customers have seen before,” said Jooma. “It will also be relevant for our customers because these ideas came from them.”