Interactive Customer Experience (ICX) Summit
ICX Summit: Inclusivity is all about making the store welcoming to customers, employees
An inclusive customer experience must also reflect an inclusive workforce experience, according to panelists at the recent ICX Summit held in September.
October 11, 2024 by Judy Mottl — Editor, RetailCustomerExperience.com & DigitalSignageToday.com
Defining the term 'inclusivity' is easy. The Merriam Dictionary puts it succinctly: the quality or state of being inclusive.
The term, first used in common English in 1929, is a bit more defined by The Cambridge Dictionary: the fact of including all types of people, things or ideas and treating them all fairly and equally.
That latter definition is what retailers and brands should be embracing when developing an inclusivity strategy, according to a panel talk at the recent ICX Summit, hosted by Networld Media Group, and held in Charlotte, North Carolina.
Networld Media Group is leading business-to-business media communications company specializing in digital media, associations and events in the mobile, self-service, digital signage, retail, food service and financial services industries. The next industry event hosted by Networld Media Group will be the Self-Service Innovation Summit. Now in its fifth year, SSIS will examine advances in technology that are empowering businesses to provide products and services when, where and how consumers expect them. The event will cover self-service, kiosk, vending and mobile solutions that can be applied in a wide range of settings.
Inclusivity has more than one goal
The ICX panel, "How to Make Your Store Welcoming for All Customers," featured: Andrew Glantz , founder and CEO of GiftAMeal; Amy Hom, COO of the Barcelona Restaurant Group; Felix Nater, security management consultant and CEO at Nater Associates; Billy Thompson, president of RSAI and Kate's Skating Rinks LLC and Aspen Earley, events manager at Rise Brands.
The panel, one of dozens during the three-day summit, was moderated by Cherryh Cansler, VP of events at Networld Media Group.
Ensuring that the retail/hospitality/restaurant environment is inclusive is not just about making the customer feel welcome, valued and treated fairly. It's just as critical to ensure the employee workforce feel welcomed, valued, listened to and cared for, according to the panelists.
The inclusivity strategy must encompass both goals as both are critical to business success.
"It comes down to how do I make everyone feel welcome and across all touch points in an organization. How do I create a community atmosphere. The sense of emotional connection is very important," said Glantz. His cause-marketing platform, GiftAMeal, has provided 2 million meals to those in need through its novel "food for photos" concept. For each photo shared through GiftAMeal, a meal is donated to a local food bank.
Nater, who has over 30 years of federal law enforcement experience, noted that customers and employees are the most important resource a business has.
A crucial aspect of inclusivity is ensuring that the brand embraces everyone who comes through the door, said Horn. Before her role as COO at Barcelona Wine Bar, Horn served as the COO and chief people officer for Bluestone Lane.
"When someone walks into store they want to see people in their demographic, they want to feel welcome and at home. You're missing out if you're not being inclusive," she said.
Why the employee base is a big factor
Several panelists shared that a brand's workforce needs to reflect the customer base and stressed that employees play an important role in the inclusivity effort.
For example, as Thompson shared, a roller-skating rink is all about selling fun. He is now the third-generation owner of Kate's Skating Rinks and has been deeply involved in the Rollerskating Association International since 2003.
"What we don't need are 16–17-year-old staff that is not engaged, meaning they are on the phone," he said. "Make sure your demographic is representative of your customer base. It's all about how they [employees] are treated. We're always going to be as worse as our worse employee."
One way to ensure the brand is engaging with customers as well as its employee base is to poll and survey both groups, said Horn.
"We do round tables with customers to improve and to follow up," she said.
Know the Gen Z consumer and employee
Horn's brand also ensures it's instilling a connection with both the Gen Z consumer as well as the Gen Z team members.
"They [Gen Z generation] want everything now and have a much bigger voice and they speak more," she said, describing the demographic as a "very inclusive generation."
Thompson agreed with Horn's assessment, describing them as the "instant gratification generation."
"With Gen Z, if they know you care for them that will translate to customers and make sure they are heart as they want to be connected."
That's the reason brands need to make sure the 16-25-year-old employee feels part of the brand team, said Glantz, suggesting employee monthly competitions and other contests to drive connection to employees.
"Gen Z despise monotony and they have to have something to aspire to — more than a paycheck. They want to have a positive impact on someone's life," he said.
Rise Brands has embraced promotions to make the needed connection, said Early.
"We are able to work together to achieve mutual goals as Gen Z cares about work life," she said.
And, as Glantz said, inclusivity isn't a one-shot strategy or time limited.
"Inclusivity must be part of the lifecycle of an employee," he said. "You want a diverse employee population and you have to make sure employee feel heard and listened to and you have to empower the employee."
All that translates to a rewarding customer and employee experience.
"If an employee isn't happy at work that becomes part of the customer experience as well and reflect poorly on your brand," said Glantz.
About Judy Mottl
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