The front door dings as two shoppers walk through your door. You’re in position, ready to help. 

“Hi, how are you? May I help you find something?” you ask.

The woman stiffens in her high waist jeans, platform sneakers, and cropped sweatshirt. “No. We’re just looking.” She scans the store and makes a beeline for the new-in-store, art deco living room set. 

The man sniffs or grunts or makes some sort of noncommittal noise. The only thing he’s committed to in his flat-front plaid shorts, a t-shirt made to look old even when brand new, and flip-flops is following the woman around until she says he can go home and watch the game, any game. 

That’s when your Spidey sense goes off and you know exactly what they are:  showroomers.

Showrooming, the practice of customers testing products in-store then buying them cheaper online, is a common practice, one that’s cutting into profits for brick-and-mortars in nearly every industry. 

Nearly 89% of visitors to brick and mortar stores buy online at a cheaper price after in-store testing. Ouch.

Furniture stores are hit especially hard by this practice. Other retail industries may be able to capture a few impulse sales from showrooming. However, as you know, furniture retail is a beast made of special purchases, purchases that will define a home and live in the home for years. Once a customer is in the store, you have to convince them to buy then and from you. 

Yes, it is possible to turn a showroomer into your buying customer, no matter how annoying the practice is and how deep the urge is to ignore them completely. Here’s how.

1. When the sale comes down to money, find a way to meet online competitors’ pricing. This first requires being aware of competitors’ prices on specific items and quick action. Whatever sleek sofa that woman’s stretched out on has an online price out there for everyone to see. Find it. If it’s lower than your showroom price, check for any available discounts or incentives. If she buys that day, can you waive delivery costs? If she buys that day, can your store eat the cost of sales tax? If both of those are a no, do you offer price matching? Make her feel like she’s won the shopping battle and you’ll win the sale.
2. When the sale comes down to time, be transparent regarding when she will be binging Netflix on her new sofa. Know your inventory. Know your delivery schedule and availability. One way you can beat an online competitor regardless of price is if you can get that sofa in her home faster than anyone else. An end-to-end RMS via cloud computing will help sales associates know what is in stock and warehouse managers and buyers avoid stock outs.

1. When the sale comes down to personal style, deliver the details of custom orders. “Delivering the details” means that your sales team must know custom options, manufacturing times, cost fluctuations, and delivery estimates. Also, a sales team familiar with color and design trends guide customers to custom options with one-on-one attention the way no website ever could. 

Yes, showroomers can transform into customers with a well-trained, informed staff and an RMS that answers today’s furniture industry challenges so that customers receive a seamless and efficient shopping experience. For more on cloud-based RMS, click here. For more on showrooming, walk into any store anywhere and look for the customer with no basket and nothing in her hands.