How is technology changing the retail industry?
Technologies are engaging customers both in stores and online. Earlier retail means only physical store but at present due to the revolution in technology now customers can shop multi-channel round the clock and customers are empowered comparing products & prices online, updating reviews in social/digital media and even personal connect happens through digital medium. Customers are now emotionally attached to technology.
Operational Excellence: Interaction between customers and retailers are made easy by technology. Retailers can now quickly act on customers feedback and address the customer queries to give seamless experience by this way retailers can retain the loyal customers who is the backbone for our business.
Customer Experience & Engagement: Technology has closed the gap between online and offline Stores. At SPAR India, we have deployed technologies in stores to give seamless customer experience and engagement.
Multi-Channel: We have implemented multi-channel solutions where offline products are sold through cross channels. Customers can’t walk-in to store everyday hence adopting technology by retailers made them to sell same products offline and multi channels. It’s a win-win situation for retailers as well as customers.
Tell us in detail about the retail technologies that you introduced in 2018.
Project (A): In-store Technologies
We at SPAR Hypermarket have established the future of shopping in-store with the innovations like
– ‘Design Your Home’ 3D Studio: Allows customers to mix and match home décor products virtually.
– Fun Station: Entertains kids with interesting games and art works.
– Product and Location Finder: Installed at key locations in-store to help customers find products with ease.
– Self-Checkout and Assisted Checkout: Where customers can pay their own bills without hassle.
– Energy Conservation: SPAR monitors and tracks electricity consumption of equipment with a tracking system.
– In Store Mobile App: Provides easy & quick information on stock availability, promotions, sales, price changes etc.
Project (B): Omnichannel Solution
SPAR Omnichannel solution aims at providing superior shopping convenience to customers through various channels:
– Website (www.sparindia.com): This eCommerce website is an omnichannel model offering a virtual store.
– The Mobile Application: This App provides SPAR shopping experience on the go.
– Food Truck: This concept is a truck with fresh products offering the best prices in the customer’s locality.
– Digital Kiosk: “Closer to you” This is an innovative idea with easy and convenient interface for shopping to connect neighborhood store and communities.
According to you what are the retail tech trends that ruled the roost in 2018?
2018 was action teeming year in retail technology transformation. AI, IOT and VR on the rise. Now many retailers are tech companies. Several companies made advancement in Robotics, IOT, VR, AR, Analytics and Automation.
Retail tech trends that ruled in 2018:
– Personalization: The power of personalization helped retailers to give unique customer experience and a boost to sales and make customers feel special during shopping. AI and Analytics platforms were used for better customer engagement with personalized shopping experience both online and in stores. More retailers have started adapting to use AI-based capabilities and technologies to better match shopper’s expectation and convenience. Retailers can access personal shopping history, demographics, page views and clicks then use AI to offer better recommendations and individually tailor their marketing.
– Self-Checkouts: Checkout experience is a key for customer experience and retention. Retailers have done deep dive on improving the checkout experience by implementing mobile based checkouts, assisted checkouts, Q-busters, and express counters. Now checkouts are made faster and easier by online payments through wallets and payment gateways. Checkout based technology will continue to evolve that leads to better communication, connect and engage with customers in exciting new ways.
– Cloud Solution: Big brand retailers have invested in cloud technologies and it is proven to be beneficial for business by reducing the hosting cost, equipment and increasing the productivity and capacity. Any technology deployed based on cloud solution will help in keeping the company flexible and agile.
– Mobile based technology: Emerging technologies built are mobile friendly.
(a) Websites are mobile responsive
(b) Mobile Self-checkouts: Faster checkout by customers
(c) Mobile Wallets: Make the payment easier
Mobile will become an increasingly important tool in retail, both online and in stores. Customers shopping experience and engagement are made better by implementing mobile based technologies. More customers are comparing prices and products in mobile before buying the product in a brick and mortar store. Many retailers will invest in and optimize their mobile experience in 2019 as well.
IoT: Internet of Things (IoT) is a network of connected physical objects embedded with sensors. IoT allows these devices to communicate, analyse and share data about the physical world around us via networks and cloud-based software platforms. Smart-store applications, connected consumer and supply chain applications are the key applications of IoT. Retailers used beacons, sensors, and the Internet of Things devices to drive the in-store experience. Retailers will continue to explore ways to use IoT in the coming year for everything from keeping better tabs on their inventory to managing losses from theft and connecting with shoppers.
IoT is the tool that have bridged the gap between the digital and physical worlds as it finally offers the ability to obtain and use data in stores. Advanced machine learning and AI are used to provide the personalized service based on the information gathered from the customers in stores. They will pilot more IoT programs to enhance store entry, customer interaction, improve merchandising and offer more rapid checkout.
What new can we expect from your kitty in 2019?
Next generation technologies will be implemented in stores and online to provide omni channel experience to customers.
Conversational Commerce:
Interaction through WhatsApp for improved customer connect.
– Online shoppers can contact a brand’s customer service team directly
– Helps in addressing all queries throughout customers buying journey
– Shoppers simply add the number to their contact list and start interacting with service representatives
– A discussion panel helps the service representatives to handle multiple queries at a time
Virtual Reality (VR) and Augmented Reality (AR):
The future of shopping is virtual reality (VR) and augmented reality (AR). VR and AR are set to transform the customer shopping experience and replacing the pain points with captivating, interactive experiences that both inform and entertain.
– Customer engagement: Engage customers through an immersive interface that allows them to “feel” products at highly engaging levels.
– Customer Entertainment: Provide multiple layers of entertainment to customers of all ages; and attempt to create a “Digital Theme Parks” kind of environment inside the store.
– Customer Education: Provide multiple education modes and help customers make more informed buying choices. All education will happen through immersive experiences.
– Management: The system can also be used for managing operations which can include multiple objectives like training, efficiency management, and floor management, among others.
In Store Experiences:
– AR and VR games to engage children
– Augmented experience of recipes available on the shelves/Kiosk
– Virtual experiences of bedroom décor and apparels
– Produce experiences to show the utility of various products on the shelf
– Cross sell with contextual content
Chatbot:
Chatbots are influencing customer shopping experience globally. There are immense benefits by chatbots.
– Customer engagement 24/7
– Automated shopping assistant
– Suggestive selling as chatbots are enabled with AI/ML
– Personalization
Visual Analytics Solution:
– A video analytics solution which takes the existing video/Visually capturing the feeds from the store cameras to extract information on customer movement (footfall trends, heat mapping, trajectory view, demographics details etc.) in the premises.
– Analyze and actionize on the insights to provide insights to improve the business.
To understand the customer shopping pattern, aligning the marketing campaign and stock of inventory accordingly
1) Shopper Behavior
– Customer Walk-in trends
– In-store paths analysis
– Day-wise customer behavior
2) Store Attraction
– Footfall and engagement
– Promotional effectiveness
3) Store Performance
– Customer footfall conversion
– Revenue projection
– Monitoring checkout queue length and alerts to store team
Voice Assistant:
Customers can buy or enquire the products through voice. This technology is powered by AI which understands customer shopping pattern and supports suggestive selling.
Business benefits:
– Power to change customer behavior
– Creating new habits
– Voice of brand
– CX enhancement
Proximity Marketing:
Personalized ads for targeted in store customers through our Omni Mobile App. Communicating to customers on relevant offers during their walkthrough in store on their smartphones.
– Welcome messages during entry point
– Promotions on store aisles based on purchase history
– Feedback on new products
This will enhance shopping experience, customer loyalty and improve the basket value.
Highlight the retail tech trends that will take the retail industry by storm in 2019.
Omnichannel Commerce:
Omnichannel retailing is a fully integrated approach provides shoppers a unified experience across online and offline channels. True omni channel shopping extends from brick and mortar store to mobile browsing, ecommerce, onsite storefronts, social/digital media, and any cross channels.
It is not about having a presence on multiple channels or giving customers an option to shop in multiple places. Mobile, marketing, merchandising, fulfillment, marketplaces, supply chain, operations…all of it, needs to be taken into consideration to be a robust omni-channel retailer.
Artificial Intelligence:
– Voice Assistant: Popular voice assistants are going to play a huge role in customer shopping pattern and experience.
– Robotic Assistant: Some of prominent restaurants and retailers are testing robotic assistant. This will be a trend setter technology for customer convenience.
– Last Mile Delivery by Drone: Drone will do Customer delivery.
(a) World’s first drone Chai (Tea) Delivery in India
(b) Alphahet’s Wing is launching a free drone delivery service
(c) Amazon is delivering items via drone
Bots:
– Customer experience: Bots are transforming shopping experience for millions of consumers globally.
– Customer engagement: It engages customers more and it is proven engaged customers spend more. 24/7 engagement is possible through bots.
– Customer service: Real time customer service across multiple channels.
– Digital Marketing: Personalized offers based on purchase history and search patterns. Real time actionable offers to customers.
Types of bots: Social network bots, monitoring bots, partner bots, searching engine crawler bots, security bots etc.
Cyber Security:
Cybersecurity for retail companies needs to be a priority. As per the statistics, one in three retailers globally lose revenue over cyber-attacks. As per couple of articles published online, only 52 percent feel their security infrastructure is up-to-date with the latest threats. Even more worrying is that only 61 percent feel they’re fully compliant with retail security standards. As a result, more companies are turning their attention toward cybersecurity and compliance in the retail industry.
IoT:
Retailers see some alluring possibilities for using IoT technology in their businesses. 2019 seems likely to be a year for pilot programs and small-scale testing. IoT bridges the gap between online and in store shopping, automation, and new ways to engage with customers are all concepts with major upside for retailers, but the technology has only recently started to take hold.
IoT adoption by retailers has been growing rapidly and is being used to improve customer experience, track in-store assets, reduce theft, improve inventory management, and deliver personalized promotions. Also, due to the penetration and increasing usage of smartphones experiences enabled by IoT in retail are finding more adopters.
“Technology will play a major role in customer experience, engagement and convenience which will influence shopping pattern”