A New Era in Vintage & Antique Shopping
This is the sixth in a series of blog posts that I will be sharing with my readers. A small group of us, all with different backgrounds and geographical locations, have come together in an effort to share our combined vintage knowledge with all who love the vintage/antique world as we do. Visit all of us at the Vintage & Antiques Community on G+ .
This post has been on my mind for awhile now. Young or old, we are dealing with the new age of retail. Young vintage dealers and shoppers are grappling with the distance with the time period between them and when these items existed, a mindset that they never knew and a plethora of bad, parroted, research info.
The older generation is grappling with technology and terminology, as well as how to connect with the younger generation.
Customer service has different meanings to both sides and both
time periods. I see vintage dealers of the older generation, desperately holding onto the old ways and I see a younger generation that just doesn't want to hear it anymore. The bottom line folks...neither of those scenarios is helping either group.
The old department stores that created the original shopping experience, are disappearing and a day will come when photos of 5th Avenue will have people wondering, "What were all of those buildings?". That change is bringing more retailers online. The popularity of Vintage/Antique TV, has everyone and their cousin believing that selling online is easy...and maybe with the onset of things like selling on Instagram, it is...but the quick sale is not the end game for many of us. We take pride in our online businesses the same way we would if they were brick & mortar. That attitude requires a different approach.
In my opinion, it breaks down to the following.
- Customer Service should never change. I should point out that this problem seems to be present in both age groups. If you're unfamiliar with proper customer communication, there are many tools available to help you learn. Reply to correspondence in a timely fashion, ship your items quickly (they've already paid you and shouldn't have to wait), do everything you can to make your customers happy and always remain professional (no fighting matches just to make a point or have the upper hand).
- Be "Authentic" and when I say authentic, I mean authentic for you and not someone else's version of authentic. In other words, if you're not comfortable using the hashtags of a 20 year old, don't! Create a style that fits your personality and yet connects with all ages. If you're not comfortable sharing every detail of your personal life, don't. Share what you are comfortable with and what shows the true you. Many social media sites will tell you the importance of connecting...but you're not connecting if it's not your comfort zone. Find a happy medium and create your own story (notice that I'm not using the word "narrative":)).
- To everyone in my "older" generation, start using your phones! I know you're not comfortable with it but it is how almost all of our customers shop. In addition to wanting to know how everything appears from the shoppers perspective, the photos are better and you're not tied to the computer. I never thought that I could make the change, but I did and lived to tell about it.
- You do not need to be on every social media outlet. I don't like FB, I'm a G+ gal, so I put my focus there. I'm not a fan of twitter but I love my Pinterest and I'm just getting the swing of Instagram. It's about what's right for you but also about reaching a wide variety of customers. If you're doing too much without enjoying it or offering good content, you're defeating the purpose.
- Write clear and thorough descriptions of your items. Include measurements, company/artist info, any info on provenance that you might have and most importantly any flaws. Include a variety of photos from all angles, including photos that show any flaws, labels or marks.
- Write clear and thorough policy information to include, returns, shipping times, multi item discounts, etc.
- Stay up to date on verbiage and semantics (more on this in another post). I see way too many older sellers using descriptive terms that will never reach the younger generations. They're not typing "demi parure" into Google search, they're typing "set". Yes you appeal to collectors by using the one term but you lose other potential customers. The best way is to use one in the Title and the other in the first line of the Description. They're also not using words like compote, ephemera or even brooch...footed bowl, postcard (paper, etc.) and pin for the broader reach, unless of course you only want to cater to other vintage dealers and collectors.
- To the younger generation, come to us, we want to help (well, some of us do:)). Read up on histories, you'll be surprised at the interesting and sometimes non related things that you'll learn. Find a community/group that is a comfortable fit. To my contemporaries, building lasting relationships in this business is difficult at best. If you find a group that you're comfortable with and is a good fit, don't jump to the next good thing...stick around. Ultimately, the payoff will be far better and definitely time saving.
These are the basics. Look for more posts on our changing business as it pertains to social media, descriptives, terminology and customer service.
Stop by our Vintage & Antiques Community on G+ for research info, business topics, a little history and much more.
As always, thanks so much for reading!
~Pam
Visit me at
whimsicalvintage.rubylane.com
Follow WhimsicalVintage
Pinterest, Instagram and Twitter
Visit our circle of bloggers at their shops below.
mullardantiques.co.uk
romaarellano.com
stolenattic.rubylane.com
MullardMagic
Visit me at
whimsicalvintage.rubylane.com
Follow WhimsicalVintage
Pinterest, Instagram and Twitter
Visit our circle of bloggers at their shops below.
mullardantiques.co.uk
romaarellano.com
stolenattic.rubylane.com
MullardMagic
I've enjoyed reading your thoughtful and well-written post. Although I'm not a seller, I can truly appreciate the points you make. The older I get, the more value I find in online shopping and purchasing, particularly for convenience for not only the things I purchase on a repeating basis, but for unique and interesting items that I won't find in a traditional retail environment. (The exception is when I travel and want something specific to an area.) One issue that I'm grappling with is the follow-up communication that many businesses desire. I often get multiple emails asking me to review purchases, or emails of sellers "just checking in". Additionally, setting up an account often means a constant flood of emails, no matter what when dealing with big businesses. I'm not certain that I like that step as long as I can communicate with a seller if there is a problem. I will always support local, independent shop owners who are trying to maintain a family business and livelihood. Those businesses still have a place in our communities, but I fear they are only selling to older customers who perhaps don't use computers/phones for shopping, and that doesn't sustain a business very well. I am always amazed to drive by any major highway intersection anywhere in the country and see parking lots jammed with cars at those retail areas that have the identical 10 stores no matter where you are. We are certainly a culture of recreational shopping, if nothing else! I always say that those shoppers are buying next year's tag sale items. I despise those places, avoid them at all costs and resent being asked for a phone number or email with every purchase, or having to listen to a clerk describe their rewards program and how I could have saved a zillion dollars on my purchase if I'd sign up. So, hats off to all of you who are selling online with grace and dignity!
ReplyDeleteThank you so much Ann and I truly appreciate your input. I do hear/read that others feel a little overwhelmed by too much communication and personally, I don't feel that one should have to register with a site to make a purchase. I never ask for a customer to leave feedback but I do check in that they have received and are happy with purchase, some respond, some don't and I leave it at that. Overall, I would say it's 60% appreciate the check in and 40% would probably be happier just being left alone:). As in life, some people are more chatty, other's aren't and as sellers we need to try to "read" that in our customers. I agree, I am mystified (and always have been) by the outlet mall extravaganza! I think that's "event" shopping in that they make a whole trip/day out of it and it will probably continue to do well. So funny, so true and don't forget how signing up for the store credit card will give all kinds of perks!...They want everything but my first born male son:)
ReplyDeleteI also try to buy from the local mom and pop stores when possible and I would hate to see them disappear.
Thanks again!!
A steller blog post Pam WhimsicalVintage. I think you have zeroed in on many of the points that plague online sellers and buyers both.
ReplyDeleteThere definitely is an understanding gap between the generations because this relatively new beast of commerce has changed the shopping experience significantly.
I agree with you and the first commenter above wholeheartedly. With the informational attacks so many large businesses have dealt with just this past year I am even more leary about sharing any information not needed for my transaction. (and actually started to balk about it years ago when everyone (Brick & mortar) wanted your Social Security number for identification!))
Thank you for this timely and needed post, and I will be looking forward to your future blogs on the subject.
Thank you so much Margaret!
ReplyDeleteCommerce wise, it's actually getting interesting as far as where things will go. I didn't think we would see this in our lifetime, so it certainly changes the game plans!