Author Archives: Jennifer Bosavage

by Jennifer Bosavage

Three Reasons Why Customers Will Use Your App

It’s happened to many retailers: Their bright and shiny apps are up and ready to roll, yet no one uses them. Worse, very few customers even bother to download the apps. The challenge is mighty: Design an app that is unique, offers a differentiated experience and provides the customer something he or she finds useful. Succeed, and the consumer will return to the app. Fail and you risk losing that customer to the competition.

Mobile apps and shopping sites offer a great deal of convenience to consumers, but retailers should keep the customer experience in mind when implementing their mobile options.

Mobile apps and shopping sites offer a great deal of convenience to consumers, but retailers should keep the customer experience in mind when implementing their mobile options.

We know why apps fail — customer dissatisfaction — so the question is: What makes an app a winner? Forester Research recently released a survey that found three main reasons for success: Convenience, speed and personalized experience.

Convenience. Too often, consumers are turned off by apps that are cumbersome. They are difficult to use or just not intuitive enough. Ease of use is a top consumer requirement. Forty percent of the Forester respondents said app features such as stored settings make their lives easier. In addition, using an app should be a different and unique experience than using a Website, or else shoppers won’t be bothered. Making the app a tool for improving in-store shopping is an imperative.

Speed. Along with being differentiated from the Website, the app must be fast. Apps that take too long to download information are worthless. The retailer should also offer free Wi-fi to facilitate the process in-store. Outside of the store, a shopper should be able to quickly check store locations, opening and closing times, product reviews and inventory.

Personalization. The ultimate retailer app provides shoppers a one-of-a-kind experience that focuses on value for users, which results in loyalty for retailers. Personalized content, such as purchase suggestions, can be curated by analyzing purchase and app interaction history, data based on a user’s location, or factors including time of day or weather. For some retailers, personalization is based on an existing loyalty program.

Finally, to know a good app is to love it: The Forester survey reported that consumers who are weekly users of retailer apps are more likely to say that stored settings, benefits for using the apps and personalized content were reasons they use apps rather than websites, compared to less frequent app users. Once a retailer unlocks the key to an efficient smartphone app, customers will be loyal to it — which means happy, repeat customers.

by Jennifer Bosavage

3 tips to increase customer app use

It’s a challenge faced by every retailer in the age of interconnected things: How can customer interaction increase?

If retailers knew more about their customers, they could create and deploy offers that would be in tune with their buying habits. But consumers are hesitant to share key information with retailers.

Many fear being deluged with unwanted offers or marketing information. Others view it as an invasion of privacy.

Retailers might have truly innovative and relevant offerings, but getting a foot in the digital door is increasingly difficult.

Recent findings from a Forester survey found only about a third of survey respondents are willing to share location data and enable push notifications in retailer apps.

The value of doing either was a concern for consumers. So retailers designing new apps must make sure the features offer clear consumer value, or they will not be enabled.

Here are three tips geared toward increasing customer engagement to remember when creating or updating an app.

Provide extra incentives for using the app. Regular users of an app can easily be rewarded with “secret sales,” better coupons or “insider perks.” And apps are not only a tool for large retailers — small ones can also benefit from marketing via smartphone.

For example, a pet store might note a particular app-enabled customer buys a certain amount of aquarium equipment each month.

If customers place, say, three orders for pickup through the app, why not offer a free in-home tank cleaning, with that third order delivered?

Not only is the customer delighted with the opportunity to leave the aquarium scrubbing to someone else that month, but it also introduces him or her to a new service offering.

Promote brand loyalty. Surveys have traditionally found that consumers will most often share personal information if they feel loyal to a brand.

But just meeting basic customer needs — in-stock inventory, convenient store hours, polite salespeople, etc. — isn’t enough.

Retailers should consider defining and then promoting their company cultures.

A company culture that connects with customers’ personal beliefs is one that engenders loyalty.

When marketers make that connection, customers are more than willing to share their data.

A brand becomes emblematic of the company’s culture and what it stands for.

When that meshes with what customers hold dear, loyalty is born.

Push location-specific offers. Just as savvy real estate agents preach that it’s all about location, the same holds true for marketing.

With more location information retailers can position campaigns to appeal to certain customer segments.

Location-based marketing uses global-positioning technology to send geographic-specific business marketing to consumers via their mobile devices.

Those customers will be more responsive because the offer is clearly relevant to them.

The key is in crafting important and meaningful messages so potential customers will sign up to receive them.

It’s worth the effort: Ads and offers that integrate time and the consumer’s location reportedly can generate two to 10 times the amount of business than a generic ad.

It’s all about making customers happy and feel appreciated.

The bottom line is that should be the focus of any retail app.

If you succeed, the digital door to customers’ information will be held wide open for you.

by Jennifer Bosavage

Luxury Brands Review Web Strategy

It looks like Burberry’s has been on-trend in more than just high-end fashion; the iconic brand was among the relative few that opted to keep online operations close to its vest, and, as a result, e-commerce accounts for roughly 10% of the retailer’s revenue. Now, competitors are taking notice.

Luxury brands LV MH and Hugo boss are looking to replicate Burberry’s success. According to Bloomberg Business:

In September, LVMH Chairman Bernard Arnault hired a senior executive from Apple Inc. to spearhead his company’s digital push, and earlier this year acquired a minority stake in Lyst, an aggregator of luxury e-commerce sites. Hugo Boss, meanwhile, is investing in technology to let clients order online and pick up their suits, ties and shoes from its outlets.

It’s a huge opportunity, populated with shoppers who are well appointed with smartphone, tablets and other mobile devices. Particular growth is expected, unsurprisingly, in the United States and China. And sales are increasingly being influenced by what customers are hearing and seeing online.

“Luxury shoppers are very digital, they are much more mobile digital than the rest of the population,” Nathalie Remy, partner at McKinsey & Company, Paris, told Luxury Dailey.

Highlighting that point, McKinsey said earlier this year that by 2018, global digital sales for women’s luxury fashion are expected to grow from a current 3 percent of the total market to 17 percent, for a total market size of $12 billion. With that amount of money in play, it makes sense for retailers to sell directly to customers rather than use the tradition route of selling through third-party sites. That’s partly why Fendi, a LVMH nameplate, built its own e-commerce site this year.

Still, many high end brands will still sell through third-party websites, just as they sell through department stores. It is easier to reach the (more wealthy) masses that way. Many will continue to offer their wares on multi brand sites, to satisfy shoppers who aren’t near urban boutiques. But the trend toward “build your own” is picking up speed and gaining traction.

That’s because there is a risk of over exposure for luxury brands when they are readily

High-end luxury items are seeing strong sales.

High-end luxury items are seeing strong sales.

available via multi-brand e-tailers. Brand cachet is extremely important to the identity of the luxury item and part of that is fed by a reputation for exclusivity. Understand what high-end customers want in their digital experiences, and recognizing how that’s different from mainstream consumers, it paramount. And they are different. According to McKinsey:

In contrast to other categories of online shopping, the price of online luxury apparel and accessories is not a big reason for consumers to go digital. Only 39 percent of luxury shoppers say they find less expensive products online and about half say they find better deals and sales online than in stores – both figures that deviate significantly from behavior in other categories like consumer electronics.

What these VIP customers are primarily looking for in their online experiences are excellent return policies and free shipping. And, McKinsey found, 60 percent of U.S. luxury consumers reported they would be more likely to buy at an online shop if it offered luxury brands that no one else sold online.

Which points back to the importance of the aforementioned in-house site: owned, operated and populated by the luxury brand solely. That is something that competitors know Burberry has in the bag.

by Jennifer Bosavage

Digital Tech Lays Foundation for Traditional Retailers

Digital technology clearly has, and continues to, transform retail. Digital devices are changing how customers find, evaluate, buy, receive, use and return products. But, while an increasing number of customer interactions take place entirely online — during the past 20 years, e-commerce sales have grown to roughly 6% of total retail sales (excluding gasoline and food services) — the retail store is still very relevant to omnichannel strategies.

According to a recent A.T. Kearney survey, 90% of shoppers still prefer to purchase

Online retailers and brick-and-mortar shops alike depend on technology to run an efficient business.

Online retailers and brick-and-mortar shops alike depend on technology to run an efficient business.

in a brick-and-mortar store. That has provided retailers with incentive to invest in technologies — such as iBeacons — that will help to enhance customer service and streamline in-store processes.  Making sure those technologies enhance existing business, and not detract from it due to performance issues, is critical.

“The adoption of omnichannel strategy in retail stores necessitates the implementation of new technologies such as the Internet of Things and Cloud, which has created a tipping point for the demands on retailer networks and, in particular, their connectivity,” Sacha Kakad, Managing Director of Westbase Technology recently said. “This demand means that a flexible connectivity solution is now paramount to networking success – as the reliance on connectivity increases, the cost of downtime escalates also.”

So the popularity of technology such as iBeacons, sensors, cameras and in-store GPS has resulted in a demand for back-end, supporting networking technology that is reliable. PoS downtime is estimated to cost retailers an average of $4,700 per minute. Figures from Avaya maintain that downtime can cost businesses between $140,000 to $540,000 per hour. Yet, many retailers still do not have an easy-to-use failover solution for their stores, so downtime — which can be caused by something as serious as natural disasters or as mundane as human error — continues to plague retailers.

Secondary fixed line options such as MPLS, while offering some benefits, cannot always meet the requirements of today’s shifting retail networks. LTE mobile networking solutions seem to offer a more flexible, scalable and rapid deployment option for failover. 4G failover can now support the connectivity demands of even the most advanced applications, allowing the store to remain online when the primary connection fails.

Connectivity is just one IT area that is paramount to success of both online and traditional retailers. But it is one that the success of many others — storage, security, among others — hinge upon. Omnichannel retailers, those that seamlessly integrate the best of both digital and physical worlds at each step of the customer experience, are likely to enjoy significant advantages over retailers that try to pursue either one alone or both independently. But retailers must also be prepared on both fronts to keep their doors open regardless of thats via an app, or on foot.

by Jennifer Bosavage

Get Prepped: Consumers To Spend More This Holiday

It’s 80 days until Christmas — and those holiday displays are starting to edge out Halloween merchandise on the shelves.

Wait, Halloween hasn’t even happened yet, right?

Be that as it may — yes, we are still more than three weeks away from Halloween —

Many customers will wait until the last minute to complete their holiday shopping.

Many customers will wait until the last minute to complete their holiday shopping.

the smart money is on the 2015 Christmas shopping season being brighter than last year’s. According to the 2015 Holiday Purchase Intentions Survey from The NPD Group, consumers have a more positive outlook, and are looking to open up their wallets to family, friends and the needy. The mean spend for holiday shopping this year, according to NPD, is $619 — a 5 percent increase compared with what consumers said in 2014.

“Consumers are ready to spend for the holidays, more so than in recent years,” said Marshal Cohen, chief industry analyst, The NPD Group, in a statement. “However, manufacturers and retailers need to pay close attention to what is driving the consumer mindset, and deliver product that anticipates inevitable shifts in their thinking over the course of the season. Positive consumer perceptions combined with holiday promotions, could drive early impulse purchases, but the market has to deliver enticing product that consumers want and need in order to build on that momentum and keep them spending.”

Cohen makes a salient point: Retailers must be careful to offer promotions at the start of the season while not cannibalizing sales that might have come later. Many people browse early in the season and then wait until the last hours before the holiday to complete their shopping. Marketers face pulling off a tough balancing act of luring customers into the store in early November with bargains, and maintaining that enthusiasm profitably through the end of the year. Coupled that with the popular notion that there will be even better buys closer to Dec. 25 and the marketing department is in a quagmire: Damned if you discount too early, but double damned if they don’t and miss out on the increase in shopper traffic.

And don’t kid yourself, multi-channel competition is up. Brick and mortars are not only facing challenges from other traditional storefronts, but also from e-commerce retailers. And vice versa. That was true in the past but the pace is quickening. Don’t have a mobile app? You’re missing a sizable shopper segment. Have an app that offers little value and that’s possibly worse than not having one at all.

The mobile connection is important more than ever because a majority of consumers — almost two-thirds — said they will do pre-purchase research. Online research and consumer reviews are critical links for customers looking to stretch that $619 as far as possible. Don’t neglect cultivating honest reviews and including them on your site and make it easy to review a product or purchase through a mobile app. Consumers want quick, easy-to-access information, as well as real-life feedback on products from honest-to-goodness users rather than the stores selling them.

In the end, all the preparation will result in a solid brand presence log after the holidays. As Cohen noted:

“Just as the consumer mindset is one component to holiday success, the holiday season is one leg of the larger retail marathon – it’s not the finish line…Consumers are more complex, and marketers have more opportunities to reach them than ever before. Truly connecting with consumers requires interaction and omnipresence, emphasizing a complete experience that extends beyond channels, beyond traditional methods, and beyond the holiday season.”

by Jennifer Bosavage

Sensors, Beacons and GPS: The IoT Is Here

 

 

One of the nightmares any retail store manager endures is keeping tabs on inventory.

Knowing instantly whether a particular item is in stock can mean the difference between a happy customer who at the very least will have the item shipped to her doorstep in a few days, and a shopper who will find it at a competitor — and may never visit again.

Many manufacturers are using Internet of Things technology to keep tabs on products in the supply chain, and IoT technology can work similarly inside retail stores to streamline the inventory process.

With RFID, products, or pallets of products, are tagged at the warehouse.

Upon distribution to the retailer, and the stock is “checked in,”  and in-store inventory issues can be tackled via a combination of IoT connectivity, including sensors, beacons and in-store GPS.

 

Sensors

Hardware and software can make the store shelf “smarter.”

A solution made up of  store shelf sensors, smart displays, digital price tags and high resolution cameras allows retailers to know what is on store shelves as well as in stock rooms.

Those sets of data are linked, providing visibility from the product’s arrival to ultimate sale.

Further, should a customer buy the last of a particular item, a notification can be transmitted to the stockroom.

The items are either restocked on the showroom, or the supplier is notified the next shipment is needed.

That is particularly helpful for retailers with a history of being out of stock, perhaps due to carrying on-trend items that can suddenly move rapidly or to seasonal sales swings.

The greater visibility IoT provides can greatly assist in managing the inventory process, which can lead to greater inventory turns and more sales.

 

Beacons

Beacon technology is another B2C application that can help drive shoppers to those “smart” shelves.

One advantage online stores have is the tremendous amount of customer information they can mine and analyze to provide more tailored and streamlined shopping experiences.

Brick and mortars, through the use of beacons and other devices, are starting to leverage such data as well.

Beacons can, for example, offer more targeted content onto smart displays within the stores (even at the shelf) or onto customers’ mobile devices.

Coupons and exclusive events can be pushed to the consumers, and via such targeted content, retailers hope to increase retail sales.

Inside a smartphone app, shoppers can define personal shopping preferences—for example, food preferences and allergies.

Next time they enter a store, their phones will connect via Bluetooth to smart displays located underneath products on store shelves.

In addition, cameras that upload digital content to a data center or to the “cloud” for later viewing, combined with beacons, offer a potent weapon to prevent internal theft (“shrinkage”) as well as shoplifting.

But that one-two combo of cameras and beacons can also help retailers plan the flow of their stores in order to accommodate their guests and help move goods that otherwise could linger, resulting in lost revenue.

 

In-store GPS

This type of functionality typically is part of a smartphone app for a large retailer or a mall.

Using a combination of Wi-Fi and GPS, the retailer knows shoppers’ locations, and can offer deals and promotions based on that data.

By offering real-time product suggestions through a shopper’s personal mobile device, the technology lets brick and mortar retailers compete effectively against online merchants.

The Macy’s flagship store in New York City has in-store GPS, as does American Eagle Outfitter.

In-store GPS is able to target consumers and glean insights about how they choose to shop, providing answers to a tricky puzzle for retailers.

Other technologies can also be used to establish direct communication with customers, such as QR codes and gamification.

For example, a customer walks into a high-end boutique and sees a QR code that’s offering a 10% discount for participating in a game about fashion.

She answers the questions and then receives a discount on her next purchase, or an invite to an exclusive event.

Not only is it a way to incentivize sales, but it also fosters customer loyalty.

IoT technology may sometimes seem like the fodder for science fiction novels.

In reality, machine to machine learning is here and can provide valuable assistance to retailers in maintaining efficient business processes.

In addition, the data gathered can help retailers provide more customized experiences for shoppers, encouraging them to return.

And creating a happy, loyal customer base is a dream come true for retail store managers.

by Jennifer Bosavage

Why Your Mobile App Is Going Nowhere

The typical retailer’s app is not all that compelling; lacking features and a discernable value proposition, such apps are typically downloaded and then deleted from a potential customer’s smartphone in relative nanoseconds.

At brick and mortar stores, the amount of time customer spends in the shop is called

There are a number of apps smartphone owners can download.

There are a number of apps smartphone owners can download, but few meet shoppers’ needs.

dwell time. For e-commerce operations, dwell time becoming a term that refers to the amount of time customer lingers within his or her phones application. Much to the chagrin of many retailers, many apps are deleted after being used only once — if at all. At that point, the retailer just has to face the fact that the customer is, “just not that into you.”

But, like forlorn teenaged friends from high school, the retailer wants to know, “But why? What have I done?” And, in fact, this time it is something you’ve done. Here’s what to know about such a picky par amour.

Remember, customers are extremely fussy about which retailer apps will be granted real estate space on their smartphones. A recent Forester survey shows that 60% of consumers who use a smartphone to shop online have fewer than two retailer-specific apps on their phone, and 21% don’t have any at all. The survey noted that, “apps that do not meet expectations are quickly removed or replaced.”

So, once you’ve gotten the picky “sweetheart” to download the app, it’s going to take work to make the relationship work. Apps need to offer a value proposition, much like text-based marketing does. Users are not going to be regular customers based on having an app only. Successful apps offer great content, are relevant and motivate the user to interact.

One way to achieve that is to send a rich pop up after the user has been on a page for a specific period of time directing them to an exclusive, personalized offer. Another is to send a thank you message to the rich inbox after registration, including an offer for an upcoming purchase.

As the holiday shopping season fast approaches, retailers should shore up their mobile app offerings. Apps that neglect the mobile economy are doomed to fail. Retail brands born in the Web era may need to rearchitect their digital strategy and launch an app that is optimized for the mobile experience.

And that app needs to not only speak to the needs of the customer, but also work reliably. If a shopper wants to check the inventory of a local store via the app and then discovers the product is sold out upon arrival, not only will their irritation be know throughout the social networking universe, but also through the app itself. Providing the ability to review a store or product through the app is necessary, but is a double-edged sword. In addition, the app store itself has become  a channel through which users share all types of brand experiences.

The best retail apps showcase dynamic experiences such as one tap to see the best deals, seamless switching across devices. In addition, content and alerts are pushed at the perfect moment. Such retail experiences are customer-centric, and come from customer-obsessed teams who understand what mobile users value.

Case in point: Taco Bell introduced iPhone ordering almost one year ago. Today, app-using customers are rewarded with the ability to skip lines, and Taco Bell has increased in-store revenue and received stronger app store star ratings.

Brands such as Taco Bell have used mobile apps to become technology forward. Some have boosted dwell time, others stressing time-saving conveniences — which may not increase dwell time, but may appeal to a larger number of customers. For those intent on delighting their customers, sales increase, user sentiment improves, more users are gained and greater loyalty is won.

And in the end, after a little introspection, you might find the customer is into you after all.

 

by Jennifer Bosavage

RFID Should Be a Part of the Manufacturing Process

RFID is just one type of technology that is part of the Internet of Things (IoT). Expanded use of RFID-enabled technologies is helping retailers recognize and fight back against operational loss, improve their customers’ experiences and streamline omnichannel operations. RFID-enabled systems help companies reduce costs and labor, boost accuracy, and raise production levels. Additionally, the technology is superior compared with the limitations of traditional technologies such as barcode technology. For example, RFID tags can be read from a greater distance than barcodes, and RFID tags don’t need to be positioned in a line of sight with the scanner, as barcodes do.

RFID tags can be used for a number of retail purposes.

RFID tags can be used for a number of retail purposes.

However, many of the applications of RFID is in the aftermarket, whereby the tags are affixed to already manufactured products. Software assigns each tagged item with a unique validation code paired with an ID number encoded to an item’s tag or label. That code is encrypted and stored not only on the tag’s chip, but also in software on a back-end database. The printers, labels, thermal ribbon, and scanning equipment can be expensive for product makers that are trying to keep track of inventory.

Such challenges caused Peltz Shoes to stop using RFID and move to the far less technologically sophisticated barcode technology. Peltz, in a press release last month, noted that, “RFID is a great tool, but for all of the inaccuracies and associated high costs, it will not be a viable solution until a significant manufacturing change at the wholesale level occurs.”

That simply means that RFID should be built into items — including apparel, furniture, electronics — so that they arrive in customers’ hands ready to be recorded using RFID.  IoT solutions can help track the location of products during the manufacturing process and throughout the supply chain at the serial number level, which can help to manage delivery expectations. In addition, the identity of the distributor and end customer for any particular product can be immediately known.

Manufacturers of luxury goods can take that tracking information one step further, and ensure  that the products are what they purport to be. Some luxury brands are using the technology to fight counterfeiting. For example, German messenger-bag manufacturer Bagjack two years ago implemented an RFID-based anti-counterfeiting solution from Serfides. Not only does the solution help confirm the authenticity of goods, it also tracks the movement of the bag through the supply chain — ensuring the bags stay on their expected routes.

Products with integrated tags are much easier to process and track, even when original packaging is lost or product labels are damaged. Also, for complex systems for which component level returns must be managed, tags are effective at preventing fraud and abuse of warranty replace policies. And, if a product must be recalled, RFID can make that entire process more efficient.

by Jennifer Bosavage

Beacons, SMS Combine To Boost Loyalty

Beacon-Zones-Shopping-Retail-Mobile-Phone

Today’s retail channel is so fluid that consumers move effortlessly between channels. A shopper may begin online, for example, to learn the price of a 50-in television. But that’s just the beginning.

Online, the shopper might discover he can afford a 55-inch television, so he begins his search again. Then, he realizes he’d like to view the picture quality in-person, so he searches for a nearby store. Once there, he pulls out his smartphone and looks for brand reviews online. The product has a QR code, so he scans it with his mobile device for more information. If the brand meets all the shopper’s criteria — quality, price and style — and is in the store, odds are the purchase will be completed at the brick and mortar location. If not, the consumer may opt to order online, place an order at the store, or, in the worst case for retailers, decide to postpone the purchase.

As retailers evolve to make the most of the ever-changing marketplace, they must select digital technology to enhance their model. For example, online services such as Amazon Mom offer special savings for a targeted group of shoppers: caregivers of small children. Amazon recognized that some items are purchased on a regular basis and are completely driven by need, rather than spontaneity or, frankly, fun. Buying baby wipes and diapers is a necessity for parents of young children, and once a brand is selected, there is an associated degree of loyalty, for any reason: Fit, absorbency, price, etc. Amazon takes some of the drudgery out of such mundane purchases by offering members benefits such as 30 days of Amazon Prime including free two-day shipping, 20% off diapers which are on an auto-delivery schedule, and other promotions geared toward parents.

Auto-replenishment is a terrific driver of loyalty online, encouraging shoppers to “set it and forget it.” But brick and mortars can boost loyalty as well, and in a few crucial ways are better equipped to do so. The primary factor offering them the advantage is what defines them in the first place — their physical presence.

Some stores promote loyalty by their atmosphere and their sales people. Savvy retailers understand the need to build on that using digital technology. Beacons, for example, can alert shoppers to in-store promotions as well as offer coupons and invitations to exclusive events. In return, the retailers receive analytics from which they can create marketing solutions. Business Insider Intelligence predicts that the technology will be used at 85 of the top 100 US retailers and influence $44 billion in retail sales in 2016.

Mobile devices are surging to the forefront of how people interact in today's retail industry.

Mobile devices are surging to the forefront of how people interact in today’s retail industry.

Combine that with SMS messaging, which can be used for proximity marketing campaigns, and that’s a powerful retail solution. Take a look at a recent Adroit survey of 1,000 U.S. and Canadian consumers, ages 18 to 34 and 500 U.S. and Canadian consumers ages 35 and up. Adroit found that the majority of paths to purchase are affected by digital: In both age groups, more than 70% were likely to change their plans to visit a retailer or restaurant if they were away from home and received an advertisement on their mobile devices for local deals or discounts.

The winning equation for brick and mortars? Beacons plus SMS equals efficient, affordable tools, ready to arm retailers in the battle for customers’ loyalty.

by Jennifer Bosavage

IoT Adoption By Retailers Set To Soar

The global market of the Internet of Things in retail is expected to grow from $14.28 billion (US) in 2015 to $35.64 billion by 2020, at a Compound Annual Growth Rate (CAGR) of 20.07%. Big names driving and supporting that growth include IBM, Intel Corp., Zebra Technologies, SAP, Google, Microsoft, Freescale, PTC, ARM and Cisco. All those major leaguers are connecting devices to make shopping more personal.

IoT technology can be used for inventory management.

IoT technology can be used for inventory management.

It’s not just retail, of course. Transportation, smart buildings and industrial uses of IoT are growing. But connected technology in retailing is something most of us see and even experience every day. It is becoming embedded in every process of retailing such as advertising and marketing, smart kiosks, vending machines, inventory management, and customer payments. IoT is rapidly connecting with these retailing processes largely because of increasing internet ubiquity, and emergence of cloud platforms.

In addition, the declining cost of sensors and RFID have also significantly increased IoT adoption by retailers. Along with these drivers, the market is facing certain restraints such as lack of common standards, skill gap, and security and privacy concerns. Those are challenges that must be faced for IoT to reach its full potential.

What is that potential? There are a number of ways retail can use IoT technologies, including: product tracking; interactive consumer engagement; dynamic, hyper-local marketing; shopper intelligence; mobile payments; inventory management and asset management.

Retailers can benefit from huge efficiencies gained when devices and data can collect, present and use real-time information in meaningful, actionable ways. Retailers grow more nimble because the information and insights they need are readily available. Stores can program smart screens in an “aware” retail environment that deliver more comprehensive information to shoppers about what they’re looking at, influencing buying decisions, and potentially leading to up-sells. Consumers benefit because connected devices — including POS, cameras and beacons —can help provide improved, more efficient shopping experiences.