Facing up to the new way of trade

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Business reporter Amy Wilson-Chapman gets an insider look into Perth’s new General Pants and Co and their expansion plans in WA.

NEW SHOP: General Pants Co. creative retail director Rodney Misso gave PerthNow a sneak peak of the new store. Picture: PerthNow
Source: PerthNow

NOT JUST THE BIG GUYS: WA retailer Pekho has been using Facebook to build support. Picture: Facebook
Source: Supplied

RETAIL giants General Pants Co and David Jones are turning to social media to reach new customers, along with the little guys.

The importance of the new media was highlighted by General Pants Co’s decision to use Facebook to announce its new Perth store and invite customers to yesterday’s opening. 

General Pants Co’s creative retail director Rodney Misso said social media was a big part of the company’s marketing.

And given a recent Nielsen survey found social media was the most common activity for 73 per cent of online Australians it’s no wonder David Jones also signed up.

The national department store quietly started on social media last month, using Facebook and Twitter to offer new advertising in addition to traditional promotions. “Media consumption by our customers has changed and social media is becoming a very highly utilised channel for our customers,” David Jones’ digital marketing and e-tail manager Georgia Chewing said. 

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“We see that it provides an opportunity to engage with our customers and develop far richer experiences and relationships with those customers in order to engage and build loyalty.” 

Ms Chewing said David Jones believed the “more engaged” customers were with the company and the “deeper” the relationship, the more likely they were to shop there.

Socialite Media managing director Tenille Bentley said of social media: “It’s listening first and selling second.”

Socialite is helping about 30 WA companies use social media to reach customers.

Deloitte online consulting director Michael Scott said social media was an important tool for businesses because of its reach.

And it’s not just the big names who are dabbling in the market. Plenty of small local companies are embracing the technology.

“I think Facebook is a good way of reaching people who aren’t necessarily walking past the shop,” said Buffy Murray, owner of Fremantle shop Pekho.

She launched a Facebook page as soon as her lease was signed and work on the store started.

 ”I thought documenting the transformation would be a bit of fun and create a bit of excitement,” she said.

 The ability for customers to “like” pages and quickly share information was invaluable for any business, he said.

 The medium’s wide reach was highlighted by Deloitte’s recent success with a client who received a 35 per cent increase in job applications after switching from paper brochures to social media.

 Subiaco-based Em Clothing’s director Claire Cherry said she used Facebook to give customers a sneak peak at what they could expect in store.

“The way people spend and the way they look for stuff is changing,” she said.

Ms Bentley said the biggest problem facing companies was a lack of education.

She likened the medium to a “barbecue conversation” where it was important to build a rapport and have a casual interaction with customers before doing the hard sell.

“All you’re doing is talking to real people. You’re humanising your brand with people and that’s where, if you can master, that you’re doing it well,” she said.

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