Yext and Sofology have announced the results of their collaboration, which saw it integrate Yext Listings and Reviews to increase organic search traffic and optimise listings to increase customer footfall and keep online visitors informed.
As a result of this integration, Sofology has seen a 7x ROI from foot traffic in the back half of 2020 alone. The furniture company was also able to drive 33 per cent year over year click growth in year one and a further 95 per cent click growth in year two.
Like many businesses across the UK, Sofology was managing listings on a channel-by-channel basis, with employees sporadically updating the likes of Google and Facebook on an ad-hoc basis while unable to manage many other search platforms. This combined with the brand’s growth and the opening of new stores was making it harder to keep customers informed throughout the pandemic.
With 80 per cent of customers wishing to visit stores to complete the “sit test” before purchase, online listings also took on an even greater importance when the COVID-19 pandemic completely disrupted the customer purchase journey due to national and regional lockdowns. Without a central platform to manage UK wide store listings, Sofology was unable to effectively inform customers of store hour changes and closures, which was crucial in enabling them to conduct the all-important “sit test” and complete their purchase.
“The COVID-19 pandemic saw the upheaval of the customer journey which left businesses like Sofology, who rely on customers entering their stores, to look for new ways to stay connected and keep customers informed” said Jon Buss, managing director of Yext EMEA. “No matter the sector, the customer journey has adapted for everyone over the past 18 months and retailers need a robust, data-driven approach to their operations that will allow them to keep customer satisfaction at the heart of their business” Jon continues.
Since implementation, Sofology’s Knowledge Graph, built on the Yext platform, now serves as a central source of truth for all of Sofology’s information, meaning information for every store, across over 200 search endpoints, are now accurate and up to date.
“Before working with Yext, it became apparent that a huge opportunity to increase sales was to use listings to drive more people to the store, where they can build a basket and then complete the transaction at home” said James Robinson, head of conversion rate optimisation at Sofology. “The ideal customer journey is to research online and then go to the store and do a sit test, so making store listings accurate was key in boosting conversion.”
Sofology has also taken its listings to the next level to make information as compelling as possible by including additional details such as wheelchair accessibility, free parking and other amenities, allowing customers to make informed decisions and choose the store that’s best for them.
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