The pandemic has been brutal on retail and our client was no exception. But when a customer cannot come to a mall can a mall go to the customer?

With this central thought in mind, we devised an action plan. What emerged was creaticityonline.com

Working remotely, Xebec developed and deployed a fully functional e-commerce portal for the mall. More than 4000 products, different functionalities like assisted shopping, 360-degree views of larger stores, live video shopping and live chat features were incorporated. We had to create a difference from the regular e-commerce sites as we were also a physical mall.

A ‘phygital’ shopping experience is what we delivered.

Key challenges
The Ecommerce platform had to be different. Buying behaviour had changed in 5 months. Customers wanted to browse first and then buy. Due to the pandemic, customers were not willing to visit the mall. The fear of infection was keeping customers away.

From day one we were clear that this had to be truly phygital i.e. a combination of physical and digital

The solution
Xebec developed and successfully deployed an e-commerce website comprising of 20+ brands, 4000+ products during the lockdown, by ensuring seamless connectivity among the mall sales team, content developers and designers. Xebec also deployed a CRM system for the client that helped specifically link the leads to brands and furniture requirements. The site was tested thoroughly, payment gateways developed, and trial offers promoted to the customers. By inviting influencers and eminent thinkers to the launch, and by ensuring active customer participation, Xebec ensured high visibility.

The transformation
The launch created a buzz around the mall. Since there was no competing launch of a mall, it helped by giving the brand an edge of innovation. It also helped create the perception of a return of normalcy. In a pandemic, it offered a platform to customers to browse products and compare prices, and easy access to purchasing furniture online. The customers could now browse physically at the store (if they ventured outside) and then buy online – or vice versa.

The benefit
The exercise helped transform customer experience
Sales got a boost in a lacklustre market
Automated workflow for leads and follow-ups created a database for future referencing Helped the client get an in-depth understanding of current furniture needs of customers The client got valuable inputs from the live Chat Bot.

Result — it is still early days as portal is still getting traction.