Following on from our Twitter series #RATechXmas where we have been looking in to statistics around retail shopping habits and the growing dependency on technology for both consumers and retailers – we wanted to further explore the impact of technology in-store and how this looks set to grow in 2015.
Changing customer shopping habits will certainly be the driver in direction for in-store innovation in 2015. Customers want user experience, convenience and personalisation and retailers are striving to achieve this.
Technology will play a huge part in in the direction of the omnichannel journey, even highlighting the importance of side-line tech such as iBeacons. iBeacons are promoted as a way to push out messages to people and track shoppers movements in-store providing an interesting angle from which to monitor shopping habits.
The changing nature of technology will be reflected in in-store design, and this is also driven by how comfortable and familiar shoppers have become with using technology in-store and the overall omnichannel journey. Peter Cross, Communications Director at John Lewis comments;
“They move effortlessly between channels, yet 85% of shopping experience still involves the shop in the same way. And so it’s really retailers looking forensically at what this means for each channel in the future.”
Retailers need to really analyse the purpose of the bricks-and-mortar shop and what role it will play in the shopping journey.
In 2015 customer facing technology will become the norm. for many retailers and if it isn’t in your 2015 plans it really should be as it will grow to be an expected requirement for many shoppers.
In 2014 there was much questioning of the physical store and its future. However instead of dying out, the physical store seems to have become very much a part of the omnichannel journey. The advances in technology and indeed delivery options such as click-and-collect have actually had an extremely positive effect and have helped to revive the store experience.
As long as retailers remember that the store is part of the overall shopping journey and embrace in-store technology they will definitely not be facing extinction in 2015 – but continue to move from strength to strength.
The way in which stores evolve is very much becoming part of the social fabric of consumer lives. No longer content with a simple shopping trip, consumers want a social experience and again this is a factor for retailers to bear in mind in 2015.
By providing engaging spaces that really stand out from the crowd retailers will still attract consumers, providing connections with their audience at every stage of their shopping journey. Live demos, interactive displays and the creation of social hubs will give shoppers more reason to not only visit your store but also remain in their for longer periods of time.
Aesthetics will be vital – having engaging shop windows, the correct lighting/music and creative store layouts will further develop you customer offering, creating the experience you customers expect and demand; making the whole shopping process a…
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