Westfield Australia may have just established a new standard for retail convenience, now offering to connect customers with not only their favourite retailers but with the entire shopping centre.
This newly released feature is called Westfield Direct, and it is giving customers access to their chosen brands and products, all from the convenience of their digital screen.
How does it work?
- Shop online: Customers can simply shop directly via the Westfield Direct e-commerce site to pick and choose products from a variety of participating Westfield retailers and brands.
- Checkout: Customers can search by brand or product to locate their desired merchandise, at which point they may finalise their order via checkout.
- Collect or deliver: Customers have the option to click and collect (3-5 days) from their preferred Westfield shopping centre. Customers can make their way to a designated Westfield Direct service desk to collect their items. They may also opt to have it delivered directly to their home (approx. 10 days).
The best part: reduced travel
One of the great benefits of this new feature is that it allows members to access multiple retailers without having to travel across several different Westfields.
Currently, there are many brands that are limited to specific Westfield locations. For example, customers who wish to shop at W Cosmetics must travel to Westfield Hurstville. If they also wished to visit a Myer, they would need to visit Westfield Eastgardens. However, if they also wanted to access a Harvey Norman or Kookai, they would need to travel to Westfield Bondi.
Westfield Direct provides a solution to this immensely inconvenient issue with Home Delivery. The Click and Collect feature is also just as exciting, for customers can now pre-order all of their inconveniently located items for collection at their closest Westfield. All without the hassle of travel requirements disrupting their shopping plan or experience.
This feature also provides customers with the opportunity to avoid peak shopping periods and seasons including weekends or Christmas. Customers can now pre-organise their shopping itinerary with multiple retailers on the one platform.
Westfield Plus members get more
Remember the Westfield Plus program? It turns out it might not just be ‘another app taking up smartphone real estate’ after all. Members of the Westfield Plus program can now unlock additional benefits for utilising Westfield Direct.
As a Westfield Plus member, participants earn 10% credit back on all orders made via Click & Collect (capped at $100 per month). Upon earning a minimum of $20 credit, members can redeem their account credit for a Westfield Digital Gift Card, which can be spent with any Westfield shopping centre.
Credits as a reward are highly attractive due to their tangible, immediate and transparent value. A 10% return is also a very generous figure when compared to alternative cash back programs in the retail industry. The flexibility of the Westfield gift card also means that the reward is fairly unrestricted, increasing the value and desirability of this particular rewards model.
Westfield also increases its convenience offering by providing Westfield Plus members with access to free shipping for all transactions above $50, as well as free returns by post.
A step towards transforming the future of Australian retail
The Westfield Direct feature is an exciting new step in the future of Australian retail. The COVID-19 pandemic has heightened the demand for customer convenience and Westfield has delivered.
The site as it is now, still requires improvement, with many brands and products not yet available to purchase online. However, the program has set the future of Australian retail in motion.
As the program continues to evolve with time, whether through greater retailer participation or an expansion in products and services, it is sure to change the landscape of consumer convenience for many years to come.
Amy Gavagnin is a Strategy Consultant at Loyalty & Reward Co, the worlds leading loyalty consultancy. She has worked in various areas of marketing, previously supporting departments at Westfield Scentre Group, Cass Brothers and Harvey Norman Commercial Division. As Strategy Consultant, Amy applies her skills across all aspects of the business, including promotional campaign management as well as loyalty program design, loyalty strategy development, and market research.
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