A nasty snow storm has immobilized much of the country. Mass transportation is hardly functioning, and retail trade groups are predicting that the cost of a few inches of the white stuff will run into billions in lost business as thousands take a "snow day."
This is the scene in Britain today, a country perpetually unprepared for seasonal weather changes. As Eurostar passengers experienced last month, even the most meager accumulations can shut down vital transportation links, forcing officials into stammering explanations about how the "wrong kind of snow" paralyzed a nation. Today is no different. The Daily Telegraph, citing nobody in particular, reports that "millions of Britons are expected to miss work, with absenteeism caused by the snow set to cost the economy an estimated £2 billion." The Sun says it won't be nearly that bad; the snow may cost the country £1 billion before the storm blows out to sea.
For a retailer that just disappointed investors with details of weak Christmas sales, this is hardly the way to start off the year. This is precisely what Marks & Spencer, the iconic British High Street store, faces today: another anemic trading day following a flat holiday season. But the picture looks remarkably vibrant when viewed online. The Marks & Spencer Twitter feed has not taken a snow day. Instead, it's pumping out updates on home delivery and on which local stores remain open. It's pointing homebound customers to shopping tips. "Hi there, you could always browse the furniture event online if you're snowed in?" it tweets. And, picking up on a traffic-driving gambit that is working very well for the Guardian and the BBC, M & S is asking the public to share its snow pics via Twitter.
These cheery tweets are hardly going to reverse a sad Christmas performance. But what M & S is doing with Twitter does point to the future of retail—which is to say, it's a return to the past.
Before the age of nation-spanning retail chains, Main Street (and the High Street) in most towns was a retailing mecca, anchored by a proud department store named after some prominent local family. Hardware stores existed before Home Depot wiped them out. And a variety of specialty stores prospered side-by-side along the main drag long before Wal-Mart built an airplane hangar on the outskirts of town that houses hectares of retail possibility. We miss these mom-and-pop shops most on days when we cannot get in the car. The local shops, it seemed, never took a snow day, and so commerce endured through the worst Mother Nature could throw at it.
But while we gained something in selection and cheaper prices with big box retail chains, we lost something just as vital—a bond with the man or woman behind the counter who knew every item in his or her store.
Twitter, when used well, can restore some of these broken ties. Retailers from Whole Foods to Dunkin Donuts are using Twitter to great effect to clarify misconceptions about their product range, solicit customer feedback, point out specials, and to try to build a little public participation in the brand, as Dunkin' Donuts is doing with its yeDDi Facebook promotion (plugged often on its Twitter feed) for those who love iced coffee in the winter. Marks & Spencer is using its Twitter and Facebook presence these days to raise awareness for local charities, something its 103,000 Facebook fans genuinely seem to appreciate.
But on a snowy day, it's the straightforward, informative updates that seem to resonate most. First thing in the morning, M & S blasted this update: "The weather has closed some stores and is affecting deliveries in some areas. Click here http://bit.ly/5WPM2l for info - updated regularly." The response? Twenty-four people on Facebook say they like this bulletin, giving it the virtual thumbs-up sign.
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