Lowe’s Steps Up Smart Home CX with New Customer Engagement Fulcrum

Like it or not, the Internet of Things is coming sooner than we think, and with it comes a veritable plethora of smart home connected devices. Some customers can’t wait to deck their house with this new wave of connectivity, from Wi-Fi-enabled door locks to thermostats that can be adjusted through an app. Others, however, are feeling understandably overwhelmed and confused by the capabilities offered by these new devices.
 
Home Improvement giant Lowe’s is looking to clear up this confusion with a store-within-a-store concept aiming to demystify smart home devices through a responsive and informative customer experience. This SmartSpot section, presented by retailer b8ta, engages customers with in-store experts trained to walk them through the installation and use of these products.
 
“Customers depend on Lowe’s to guide and enable them when making important decisions about their home,” said Ruth Crowley, vice president of customer experience design at Lowe’s. “We know through research that customers feel overwhelmed when choosing the right smart home devices, and often evaluate products for more than two months before making a purchase. Our partnership with b8ta allows us to give customers confidence in making well-informed decisions by narrowing the product assortment and providing education to help them take that first step.”
 
Shopping intimidation can be a rare obstacle, but, nonetheless, detrimental to overall CX. By engaging potential smart home shoppers, Lowe’s removes this hurdle through a customer experience that will ideally serve to create a sense of brand loyalty strong enough to prompt a return to the store when the time to purchase arrives.
 
The initiative also expands the consumer base for connected smart home products, increasing the potential for prolific loyalty and giving consumers essentially a free sample of the brand’s product offering.
 
“b8ta is excited to provide manufacturers the ability to easily onboard their products into Lowe’s stores with our software platform, offering unprecedented access to product performance and customer insights,” said Phillip Raub, co-founder, and CMO of b8ta. “By making retail more accessible to manufacturers, customers at Lowe’s will be able to engage with a wider and more relevant assortment of smart home products than ever before.”

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