Have you adopted mobile and tablet retail technologies?

If you haven’t, you might be falling behind and missing out on valuable opportunities.

Advancements in technology bring changes in retail and the way that people shop. Customers are no longer satisfied with customer service only at the till, promotional offers they don’t relate to and primarily using cash to pay. At the same time, retailers want to save money and gain valuable insight into their customers and how they shop. Retailers and customers can satisfy both of their wants with modern payment technologies.

Retailers face many challenges when considering new payment methods including cost, customer security and the speed of transactions. Growing technologies such as mobile payments improve customer convenience, reduce fraud and help retailers learn more about their customers. As for security, mobile payments offer security levels comparable to EMV, but without the expensive hardware. With the right technology, payments can be made on devices such as tablets. This allows employees to take payments from anywhere in the store without having to move heavy or awkward equipment. Tablet payment technology also offers access to information formerly limited to the till such as available inventory. 

When customers know that providing information leads to an improved shopping experience, they are more likely to provide retailers with their personal data. Retailers can then use this information to learn about their customer’s shopping habits and even customize offers to fit their exact interests. Various technologies are now available to assist in collecting and using this data efficiently. By implementing the right software, you can gain valuable access to your customers shopping preferences and habits, while benefiting customers with customized offers. 

While the future of retail technology is unclear, it is likely that mobile payments and tablet technologies will become more common and the benefits of collecting customer data will become more important. Retailers who adopt modern technologies today will better prepare themselves for the future and coming changes in retail. If you’re interested in learning more, Ideaca has knowledgeable consultants that are happy to discuss what technologies are right for you and your business.

 

The Art of Retail

The Art of Retail event was held on April 17, 2013 at Archeo in Toronto’s Distillery District. This event brought together executives from large Canadian retailers, including Canadian Tire and Shoppers Drug Mart, to educate on how to optimize mobile, social and web technology while growing their businesses. 

Two experienced and prominent speakers offered their insights into the ever-changing world of retail. The first of these speakers was Doug Stephens, a retail expert, founder and President of Retail Prophet, and author of The Retail Revival. Stephens educated attendees on how demographic and technological changes are affecting customer bases, how companies can stay current and how new technologies are transforming how we shop. He also shared his belief in a coming retail revival that is only possible if retailers embrace technology.

The second speaker, Scott Stratten, focused his presentation on the social aspect of retail. Stratten is the President of Un-Marketing and author of the book UnMarketing: Stop Marketing. Start Engaging.. Stratten is also an expert in Viral, Social, and his own style of Authentic Marketing: Un-Marketing. His presentation covered topics such as why people spread some business content and not others, what fractional reaction means, what tools are useful and what are fads, how to improve corporate social media, and how to transform a negative situation into a positive situation. Stratten told attendees that passionate and knowledgeable frontline employees play a larger role in selling than the logos found on the product itself. He also stressed the importance of social media and creating a product that people want to talk about online. 

In addition to the presentations by Stephens and Stratten, Michael Griffiths, Global Managing Director of Retail at Microsoft led a customer panel featuring Longo’s, Microsoft Store, and Ideaca’s longtime client, LS travel retail North America. The three retailers discussed their ongoing journey to become connected through the implementation of fully-integrated Microsoft retail solutions. They shared their experiences with the audience including, what brought the need for them to adopt a connected and agile solution, lessons learned during the implementation and the improvements in their retail operations since go-live.

Positive feedback from the almost 100 attendees confirmed the success of this event. Thanks to Microsoft Dynamics for their partnership in The Art of Retail! For other upcoming Ideaca events visit http://www.ideaca.com/news.