The goal for many retailers is to provide a shopping experience that meets – and possibly exceeds – customers’ needs, while generating an attractive profit.

Success depends on accurately understanding and responding to customer trends, which requires gathering and analyzing shopper data.

Traditionally, obtaining that information is done by tracking website engagement and point-of-sale data, which only offers retailers part of the story.

Ask for the data you wish to receive

Asking shoppers specific questions about their buying habits is one of the most effective ways to not only learn more about customers’ preferences but also to increase loyalty.

And shoppers – eager to have a more personalized retail experience – are increasingly willing to provide details about their purchasing habits.

By asking for relevant information and limiting the amount of personal information requested, customers are more likely to respond.

They understand their answers, referred to as “zero-party data,” are targeted at specifics, which can ultimately yield a better customer experience.

Such a focused approach offers retailers high-value data and is considered by customers to be thoughtful and minimally intrusive.

Evolution of attitude towards data collecting

Years ago, at the dawn of the info-gathering age, when the emphasis was too often on just collecting as much information as possible, customers were skeptical about providing information, fearing a constant barrage of marketing material.

Retailers were reluctant too, not wanting to use data insights too readily as they worried about appearing too “creepy” in their attempts to provide personalized experiences.

Today, those sentiments are reversing. Customers are willing to provide data, especially if they benefit.

For example, bargain hunters will sign up for promotional texts for discounts, while shoppers who are enthusiasts about a brand or particular market may subscribe to a newsletter or blog.

Using OptCulture for Retail Pro makes it easy to market to your customers through any and all channels are best for your business once they agree to share their information.

Savvy retailers offer an enticement, and customers offer select information in exchange for that valued item.

The retailer receives data that helps inform about appropriate future product selections, store locations, etc.

With OptCulture for Retail Pro, you can do this seamlessly by using a digital receipt to cross-sell or upsell.

Increasingly, customers are willing to provide details to brands when they can clearly understand the reason behind the request.

They will answer surveys or quizzes that help their favorite retailers create more tailored shopping environments, and they are eager to provide the names of brands they are enthusiastic about.

When a retailer is upfront about what information they want and how they’ll use it, it builds trust, and that builds loyalty: A recent Harvard Business Review study reported that companies with high loyalty grow revenue 2.5 times faster than their industry peers.

Analysis makes the most of zero-party

Collecting targeted data allows retailers to provide a more relevant shopping experience, and customers respond by offering their loyalty.

Long-term, that loyalty significantly affects revenue and profitability, as brands experience repeat purchases and no incremental acquisition costs.

After harvesting that information, retailers must be able to analyze it effectively.

Retailers use an average of five to six tools to collect feedback and data, but far fewer businesses invest in solutions to aggregate all that data.

Using business intelligence to analyze the information makes it significantly more useful in providing insights.

Business intelligence that is baked into software and happens automatically takes it to an even greater level of convenience. Retail Pro Decisions is one such POS business intelligence software that offers insights automatically, from every channel.

Ensuring every department uses the same CRM helps to create complete customer profiles, with data accessible among the entire business.

A unified view, augmented by customer-supplied data, supports content optimization and more relevant customer journeys.

Zero-party data, in unison with a focused CRM and targeted marketing strategy, improves the effectiveness of personalization efforts – benefitting brands, retailers and customers.

The Benefits of Consolidating Point of Sale Data

The Opportunities in Your Data

This entry was posted by Jennifer Bosavage on Monday, May 15th, 2023 at 9:46 pm .

Pop-ups are increasingly becoming popular among established retailers looking to inject some fun and excitement into their retail routines.

Often thought of as vehicles for direct-to-consumer and start-up brands, they are making inroads as a means of attracting new customers, as well as for trying out products and services.

Additionally, because pop-ups are temporary, they naturally project a sense of urgency, so products are differentiated from others found in brick and mortar outlets.

This urgency also necessitates the vendor’s ability to have their system run smoothly. Retail Pro Prism is able to run sales without internet, ensuring you won’t miss out on sales and technical difficulties won’t take away from the experience Here are some reasons established retailers are investing in pop-up strategies.

Building excitement for a special-issue product

Pop-ups give an established brand the opportunity to go “off-script” a bit, and provide a platform from which they can build buzz.

They can be tied to a celebrity endorsement, or to the launch of a product that had previously only been offered direct to consumers.

Further, pop-ups can be creatively presented and shared on social platforms to further increase engagement.

That appeals especially to Millennials and Gen Z, which comprise 2/3 of the population as well as the majority of active social media users, who frequently share “in-the-moment” experiences.

Retailers often provide rewards to encourage social sharing as well.

Gathering customer information via pop-ups

Many brands use pop-ups as data-gathering tools for iterating on ideas such as curbside pickup and contactless payment.

Mobile POS are also a helpful tool to have available for these smaller store settings where staff may be limited, so associates can seamlessly transition from interacting with customers to completing a transaction.

Retail Pro Prism is one software for all of your devices and is designed to be used on all operating systems for your convenience.

They can also test product ideas to see what is popular and trending, as well as easily get feedback from shoppers about selections.

Changes to how a brand traditionally operates can also be test-run — and adjusted — successfully.

Testing in this type of intimate setting helps build customer rapport.

In addition, pop-ups may attract new, non-traditional shoppers, who can now be added to future marketing campaigns.

Pop-ups respond to seasonal trends

Many retailers can provide specific products for a particular season, but may not want to transform their entire retail space for that purpose.

For instance, winter pop-ups at trendy ski resort towns cater to slope-side shoppers, while summer pop-ups in quaint seaside villages appeal to sun seekers.

Retailers are able to maintain their traditional brick and mortar branding while providing an exclusive flair outside that domain.

Pop-ups can strengthen the customer relationship.

Pop-ups are smaller, more intimate affairs. They often generate publicity simply because of their temporary nature, and especially when they are a limited engagement.

It’s often more practical to try new trends in a pop-up rather than in an expensive retail space.

Some clothing pop-ups roll out inventory on racks daily to see what sells, and that informs their traditional stores of merchandise trends.

Success relies on the retailer really understanding the customer segment they are targeting and being dedicated to developing that relationship.

4 ways to use pop-ups’ popularity to boost your brick & mortar strategy

3 Technologies to blur the lines between life & shopping

This entry was posted by Jennifer Bosavage on Monday, May 15th, 2023 at 9:11 pm .

As inflation heats up, store-brand and private-label products are becoming more attractive to consumers who typically buy more expensive name-brand goods.

Recent economic reports project real GDP growth will slow to 0.7 percent in 2023.

Such a cloudy financial outlook makes private labels popular as shoppers actively seek ways to get more for their money.

The trend has given manufacturers pause as they consider how to retain customers in the face of less expensive competition.

Upgrading private-label brands

Years ago, store-brand products often had bland packaging and were often not in the same league quality-wise as their more expensive competitors.

But today, that’s changed, with stores offering good quality at value pricing.

Some, such as Target, are marketing brands that are sought-after, including Threshold, Good & Gather and Up & Up.

For example, the food segment has seen significant growth in private-label success in the past three years.

The Food Marketing Institute reports that over 40% of consumers surveyed said they are more likely to buy private brands now than before the pandemic, and plan to continue doing so.

Nationwide brands need to actively market themselves to avoid being drowned out by an impending tidal wave of less expensive competitors.

To maintain relevance, experts suggest following the following tips.

Value in the details

Name brand products need to appear relevant to customers by clearly highlighting their features.

That may include describing hand crafting, attention to detail or a unique recipe, which would justify the higher price.

In addition, the price/value proposition should be appropriately marketed to the target audience.

Branded products must differentiate how they differ from private label goods, and how those differences benefit the customer.

Bonus perks creating loyalty

By providing related services, name brand products cultivate loyalty.

For example, Williams Sonoma provides in-store cooking instruction. Customers can learn new techniques, try out recipes and buy equipment all during a single visit.

Values-based private label brands

Having a social consciousness is attractive particularly to shoppers in the younger generations.

For example, Patagonia’s Worn Wear appeals to those shoppers committed to reducing overall consumption.

And Lush cosmetics are cruelty free, while Seventh Generation is environmentally friendly.

The key is to distill the brand’s message into something relatable to customers, and promoting it as fundamental to the product.

Lower cost private label brands for comparable quality

The primary reason private label products are bought initially is the cost factor.

Once a customer is convinced that the products are only minimally different that the more expensive name-brand counterparts, it can be difficult to win back that customer.

The best defense is therefore a strong offense.

Well financed national name brands can afford to use innovation and marketing to compete against private labels, and their survival depends upon it.

Brands Explore Creative Ways To Boost Customer Loyalty

Take Another Look at Sustainability

This entry was posted by Jennifer Bosavage on Thursday, April 20th, 2023 at 4:13 pm .

Many direct-to-consumer brands are reevaluating how they do business – and leaving the one-to-one intimacy with customers for a more traditional method of getting their products to more customers.

By embracing a wholesale strategy, often in conjunction with DTC methods,  these brands are developing a more robust omnichannel presence. 

An omnichannel presence is crucial to success in retail, as consumers have become used to having plenty of choices and will often choose convenience above most.

Omnichannel stat. Retail Pro Prism provides the capability for omnichannel operations and retail management.

Difficult circumstances for one channel of discovery

For example, in February, digitally native beauty brand Glossier announced its partnership with makeup mega-retailer Sephora.

Glossier’s products will be on shelves at 600 Sephora stores across the United States and Canada, as well as online and on the Sephora App.

The brand’s jump to traditional retail came after a trial run with wholesale sales in 2020, when Glossier experimented with its “Glossier You” fragrance that it sold in seven U.S. brick-and-mortar Nordstrom locations.

The shift for Glossier hasn’t been easy; the brand has reorganized, replacing its CEO and laying off employees as it moves from a single channel of distribution.

However, its experience highlights how DTC brands can realign their resources to help them navigate the ways in which their customers want to engage. 

Additionally, new DTC brands are partnering with wholesalers from the get-go to build visibility and build their customer base.

DTC brands have had massive access to data from having sole access to all the data of their customers due to website-based operations.

The traditional retailers have learned from DTC and aimed to replicate the level of data for a personal loyal relationship with customers.

The cost of a customer

Keeping customers is a far less expensive proposition than acquiring them, but for DTC brands, it’s imperative to increase their base in addition to keeping loyal customers happy and engaged.

DTC brands often start as small, trendy brands that appeal to a particular niche.

For example, the launch of Warby Parker addressed a customer need for affordable, attractive eyeglasses.

By bypassing wholesalers and retailers, DTC brands such as Warby Parker and Glossier have removed the costs associated with having intermediaries between manufacturers and consumers.

As they grow, however, DTC brands are realizing they need to cost-effectively increase their distribution channels.

Expansion is easier with wholesalers’ large customer base as part of the equation. Rising inflation rates are increasing operating costs; goods are more expensive to produce.

Expanding reach for DTC brands

Adding wholesale as part of an overall strategy can help attract more customers, which is particularly important as consumers are becoming less brand loyal and more value-seeking.

No matter the stage of audience and growth your business is looking to have, omnichannel is the most important aspect a business can have to

A recent McKinsey’s Consumer Pulse survey underscores that sentiment, reporting that “more US consumers reported switching to different brands and retailers in 2022 than at any time since the beginning of the pandemic—and most of them say they intend to incorporate that behavior into their routines.”

Adding wholesale into the DTC mix can benefit all those in the ecosystem.
While the DTC model has provided high margins and customer insights, growing brands are able to parlay a wholesale relationship into a larger customer base while containing marketing costs.

DTC brands have a big impact on traditional retail

Meeting Stock Availability Expectations Across Channels with Retail Pro Prism

This entry was posted by Jennifer Bosavage on Tuesday, April 18th, 2023 at 6:21 pm .

As 2023 kicks off, there are still vestiges of supply chain shortages that continue to challenge retailers. Big box stores are still dealing with consequences of 2020 bottlenecks and supply chain issues.

Recent business surveys found that a majority of logistics managers don’t expect the supply chain to fully resolve until next year.

Additionally, a healthy unemployment number nationwide coupled with labor shortages and a looming recession has added to an overall disruption for general retail operations.

The bleak forecast has resulted in softer expectations in demand during the first half of 2023, with a possible uptick in the second half, making margins a key focus.

However, because that economic softness is expected to stick around, supply chains may appear to be working better because there’s simply less economic activity. 

The good news, according to analysts, is that the number of job openings, which reached its highest level in 21 years in 2022, is on its way down.

The Great Resignation has lost steam and the average quit rate is slowing.

Furthermore, the unemployment rate, at 3.4% in January, has been relatively stable since early 2022.

Having a good, reliable roster of associates is critical to moving goods.

Here are some tips to help get you through the next six months.

Retail recruitment strategies

The labor shortage is a significant challenge for retailers and will continue to be, well past COVID.

Competition is tough, so retailers are encouraged to look beyond financial rewards and invest in building a brand that focuses on culture, values and career growth.

Technology, too, plays a larger role inside the store. Omnichannel retailers encourage shoppers to order use multiple channels for a single order.

Associates receive, track and present customer orders – as well as deal with the inevitable returns.

Tools such as RIOT RFID can make these processes much smoother, faster and more accurate by taking care of the entire time intensive process of tracking products and updating counts upon return or order placement.  

This is a much broader scope of responsibilities, which requires a more advanced set of skills from the managers and staff.

A more transparent and connected system for retail management and point of sale leads to happier and more efficient staff. Retail Pro Prism provides total visibility across channels, saving your business and associates time so they can be more thoughtful, present resources for customers.

Streamline offerings

Supply chain troubles seem amplified when a retailer’s shelves are empty because several products are unavailable simultaneously.

Streamlining the types of products you offer and partnering with a number of suppliers to provide those specific types of items helps focus investment on high-impact areas.

You’ll be delivering a more consistent customer experience as well.

In addition, consider alternatives to what you currently offer without cutting back on quality of service. For example, florists may not be able to reliably source plastic vases for every order, so they might offer creative bouquet wrapping instead.

Map your supply chain

Ensure you have supply chain visibility. Surviving a supply chain shortage requires a steady flow of parts and materials.

Supplier mapping includes locations, details of what supplier provides and how critical each product is.

Understanding their inventory levels as well as your own is also crucial. Consider tracking your vendor’s supply chain as well.

Having the visibility of connected retail management across channels helps you in accounting for every order in process, giving you peace of mind.

Finally, as suppliers continue to feel the squeeze, be quality conscious.

It’s tempting for manufacturers to cut corners to meet demands quickly.

For designer brands, counterfeit goods can be a big problem when supplies are scarce.

Support your suppliers by investing in them, insisting they only accept first-rate work and authentic products, and offering credit terms if appropriate.

After all, if your biggest, most critical suppliers go out of business, you will too.

Strategies for Supply Chain Resilience for the Holiday Season

Rethinking the Challenges of Retail Hiring

Stock Inaccuracy and Omnichannel Operations

This entry was posted by Jennifer Bosavage on Wednesday, March 22nd, 2023 at 6:54 pm .

From using artificial intelligence to analyze shoppers’ actions to promoting their own core values, retailers are looking to deeply engage with their customers to increase repeat business.

Customer loyalty is the Holy Grail for retailers. Businesses put hours of effort into understanding just what combination of factors entice a shopper to return – as well as what makes them choose one retailer over another time after time.

The elusive answer may be to create a brand that displays insightful knowledge of the customer, without being overbearing, and connect with them on a personal level.

Retail Pro Prism provides an integrated view of data across all channels and retailers can create customer profiles to record important, helpful data to improve their relationship with customers.

To Know Them is to Love Them

Who doesn’t prefer to shop where the associates are thoughtful, attentive and – if you’re lucky – just a bit intuitive?

It’s for those reasons that retailers such as Nordstroms and hoteliers like Ritz Carlton stand apart from their peers. And it’s why they have tremendous loyalty among their customers.

Artificial intelligence (AI) can help retailers gain insights into their customers, offering data that helps provide personalized experiences with targeted product recommendations.

Brands can tailor shopping experiences to fit customers’ interests, based on real-time web browsing habits and shopping data.

Knowing what’s of interest to a particular customer allows the retailer to curate selections.

Further, to keep an experience fresh yet relevant, AI can use browsing data to automatically present shoppers with new product selections whenever they visit an online store.

That creates customer excitement over new merchandise, prevents boredom and helps encourage spontaneous buying behavior, especially on mobile devices.

Personalized shopping experiences are central to customer engagement, retention and loyalty in today’s retail environment.

Personalization is also linked to higher conversion rates and product sales. According to McKinsey, personalization can deliver 5 to 8x times the ROI on marketing spend and improve revenue by 10% or more.

AI creates seamless experiences that leave shoppers satisfied and inclined to return.

Personalized ecommerce uses company data to recommend, cross-sell and upsell relevant items to shoppers.

By synthesizing shoppers’ onsite actions, AI can deliver recommendations tailored to individual customer’s tastes.

It’s a strategy aimed at providing better customer experience and higher conversion rates.

AppCard with Retail Pro allows retailers to leverage every bit of data collected from their POS system and using AI to create personalized marketing strategies to increase customer loyalty and in turn, retention.

The Value Proposition

Knowing and catering to the values of your customers can also help foster repeat business.

Values-based purchasing takes into account more than just price, quality and convenience.

These customers look at factors such as sustainability and resale practices as well as cruelty-free manufacturing, local sourcing and fair labor practices.

Sustainability casts a wide net. It can include retailers that sell pre-owned clothing or furniture, for example.

Some brands, such as Patagonia and Coach, incorporate both new and preowned products.

Such retailers have loyal followings that particularly enjoy “vintage” finds of their favorite brands.

Conversely, “pre-loved” merchandise is often available at lower price points, which provides a convenient entry point for a new set of customers.

Sustainability can also include retailers that support certain delivery practices – bundling orders for similar areas, providing eco-friendly shipping materials and cutting back on their carbon footprint throughout their supply chains and operations.

Sometimes it’s just a matter of looking at points of friction to find alternate options for those points of operations.

With Retail Pro Prism, retailers have an integrated view of the data from every corner of operations so they can analyze the whole picture and look for ways to eliminate unnecessary steps or trips.

“Value-driven retail” is more than a buzzword. In a crowded market, it differentiates a brand, and encourages loyalty.

There are factors in addition to fair pricing and convenience that encourage customers to return. A strong set of brand values fosters emotional investment and positions a brand as the best solution for customers’ needs.

And AI-powered technology can help brands create the customer experience that drives success.

6 Ways to connect your physical and digital store operations with Retail Pro Prism for better omnichannel experiences

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Take Another Look at Sustainability

This entry was posted by Jennifer Bosavage on Wednesday, February 15th, 2023 at 5:35 pm .

Get Retail Pro Prism!

Powerful POS & retail management platform for better retail experiences

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This entry was posted by Jennifer Bosavage on Thursday, December 22nd, 2022 at 10:24 am .

As retailers continue to emerge from the pandemic and gear up for the 2022 holiday season, the challenges of retail hiring and retaining employees are becoming increasingly apparent.

First, there’s the struggle to find employees to fill open positions, as the onsite nature of retail jobs has limited the applicant pool.

Then there’s the challenge of keeping current associates happy and fulfilled, all while not overwhelming them due to staffing problems.

Retailers are on the case. According to a Deloitte study, 83% are investing in employee recruitment and retention.

Those issues include reassessing salary but go beyond that to rethinking flexibility and culture, as well as diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI).

The key is to create a culture that’s worthy of employees’ time and energy on its own merit, rather than one in competition with another, such as those exemplified in the gig economy.

At a glance, jobs in the gig economy such as Uber, DoorDash and Instacart are tough to compete against, retail executives acknowledge.

Gig jobs may be considered more attractive than traditional retail positions because they often offer flexible hours for the same (or better) pay.

They successfully attracted workers who were forced to leave their retail jobs when stores closed during pandemic lockdowns, and many don’t want to return.

With a reported 1 million unfilled retail positions available, stores will require some creative solutions to lure back former employees.

During the past two years, many wage earners have reflected on what work means to them individually.

Money is not always tied to feelings of satisfaction and purpose. Many are seeking a better balance between work and their personal lives.

And then there’s the desire to work from home – a request that is impossible to align with the requirements of retailing.

All of that has created the perfect storm of people leaving their current job while seeking work that allows them to live their lives on their own terms.

Executives must therefore think outside the box to attract talent.

Career Advancement

The challenge facing leadership is the acknowledgment of the constraints of retail work, while leveraging its advantages.

Those benefits are many times directly influenced, if not created, by employers. Significantly, such advantages must benefit both the employer and the employee.

Developing and promoting clear career paths encourages employee tenure. Employees are not simply seen as filling a shift, but rather, as representatives of their brands.

Offering professional development programs demonstrates to workers that a business wants to invest in them.

They provide the retailer with a trained workforce and the employee with a resume-worthy credential.

Not every company can offer in-house training; some employees may be looking to continue their education more formally, for instance at a college or university.

Tuition assistance options can support those career-advancement goals.

Many workers want reassurance their activities mean something and are valued.

Providing an actionable plan to the next level as well as the education or training needed to get there can promote longevity in the ranks.

Diversity, Equity and Inclusion

Infusing DEI into the fabric of a retail business requires a commitment to investing in staffing.

Deloitte’s research found that 94% of retailers believe employees prefer workplaces that “consider DEI.” That means DEI initiatives should be in place at all levels of a company, from entry-level to the C-suite.

Improving DEI starts with an audit of current recruitment practices to identify gaps in the hiring practices.

Each element of the recruiting process—from job descriptions and candidate outreach to employee satisfaction surveys, should be evaluated.

Just as a retailer would promote its career advancement opportunities, it should also be transparent about its DEI goals and initiatives.

The two strategies can work collaboratively, helping traditionally disadvantaged groups receive training and education that can provide entrée into the elusive C-suite.

In a post-pandemic world, retailers must reevaluate what they offer employees beyond salary and standard benefits.

The past two years have given the workforce an opportunity to contemplate how they want to work, and what they want to receive for that effort.

Retailers now must reevaluate what it will take to get associates back into stores while developing a commitment to their staff as well as to their bottom line.

Meeting Stock Availability Expectations Across Channels with Retail Pro Prism

7 Ways to get your store tech and staff ready for the holiday rush with Retail Pro POS

This entry was posted by Jennifer Bosavage on Wednesday, December 21st, 2022 at 12:18 pm .

The retail landscape is challenging, regardless of business success and size. Visit Retail Pro’s website to see how you can get total visibility into the operational issues that keep you from rebuilding strong customer relationships.

Rebuild customer relationships

Improve your relationships with customers with smoother operations and personalized service tailored to their individual needs and shopping habits.

• Serve customers more effectively with operational efficiency and flexibility to use your whole business to its full extent – merging inventory visibility across store, branches and channels
• Gain visibility, and in turn insight to their desires: track responses to promotions, price points that capitalize on value, and pinpoint trends across the business
• Improve the personal connection by staying in touch using your choice of marketing tools that best help your business, and reducing the strain that comes with human error

Streamline for operational efficiency and better experiences

When you connect all your retail technologies to the Retail Pro Prism platform, you get more accurate insight into operations to help you streamline across stores and regions and better serve your customers.

• Reduce friction in purchase experiences with the ability to see current or potential bottlenecks
• Identify areas where automated functions can increase efficiency and reduce human error
• Strategize and uncover alternative options or ways to re-direct a process
• Determine customer-facing associate strengths and weaknesses
• Gain clarity on areas for improvement and staff’s best place in your company
• Set parameters for inventory functions on a store-by-store basis
• Automate replenishment and distribute inventory to needed locations with allocation tools

Integration between Retail Pro Prism and our ecommerce platform enables us to ensure inventory updates and smooth order flow across the organization. With Retail Pro, it is easy to keep track of inventory and display online whether an item is out of stock or ready to be picked up, resulting in less frazzled associates and happier customers.

Pawan Dangol, Area Manager

Grow your presence internationally with ease

Retailers learned a lot during COVID about what works for your customers. Apply these insights to grow your presence across borders and make it easier for customers to shop with you wherever they are.

• Leverage Retail Pro resources like region-specific fiscalizations and localizations and local technological professionals with regional expertise
• Gain total performance visibility across stores, channels and subsidiaries
• Spot trends from a wider perspective with the whole data picture in one unified view

As you grow, you need clear visibility on all parts of the business and we want to ensure we’re not letting down one side of the business at the expense of the other – to be successful we have to develop the online and offline experience simultaneously, which we’re trying to do. We are hopeful and confident that Retail Pro will be able to support us on this journey.

Miniso UK

Request a demo to start the conversation on how you can start using the Retail Pro Prism POS and retail management platform this year to gain the insight and efficiency you need for rebuild customer relationships.

This entry was posted by Jennifer Bosavage on Tuesday, December 6th, 2022 at 8:25 pm .

Many retailers are heading into the holiday season facing low stock and a reduced workforce, increasing the need for supply chain resilience.

Investments in technology may be the fastest way for retailers to meet the needs of shoppers, particularly as stores are facing a shortage of labor as well as products.

Omnichannel POS systems like Retail Pro Prism help fill the gaps created by these problems.

Supply Chain Resilience Fills the Shelves

Once a customer is in the store, keeping them there with a breadth of products is the key to sales and repeat business.

Empty shelves are the enemy of the retailer.

Spotty selection often equates to no sales and the customer is lost, perhaps permanently, to the competition.

In addition, today’s shoppers may not be as brand loyal as they may have been previously.

Customers being ready to entertain brands they haven’t been loyal to also demands that retailers stay abreast of trends to conduct successful merchandising.

Retailers wishing to capitalize on increased desire for brick & mortar shopping would do well to heavily curate their selection.

A recent study found that 80% of retailers believe customers will prioritize stock immediacy over brands, so having a selection of similar products is more important than focusing on a top brand.

Product visibility, from the vendor through the delivery dock, helps ensure retailers have stock when they need it.

Product visibility encourages consumers to shop in-store – seeing products they desire and wish to see in-person in stock across channels – regardless of any loyalty or lack thereof to that particular retailer.

Omnichannel systems account for both online and in-store purchases and help customers as well as sales associates understand where inventory is located.

To derive the most thorough data, they should be integrated with other technologies, such as point-of-sale technology, inventory tracking, and customer relationship management systems across all in-person locations as well as online stores.

Customer data is also necessary to inform retailers’ decisions about what to buy and when to buy it. Managers use SKU-level sales and warehouse inventory insights to gear up for holidays as well as to predict the next “big thing.”

During times of supply-chain uncertainty, getting stuck with unwanted products is a luxury that retailers can’t afford. Planning can be more accurate and efficient by sharing inventory, sales and order data with vendor partners.

In addition, accurate demand forecasting cuts waste in production, leading to more sustainable consumption and production.

When demand is predicted more precisely, items can be manufactured and ordered according to customer demand.

Fill the Job Roster

Business analytics can also maximize efficiency by providing instant access to store staffing data and order volumes. That helps managers plan work shifts and also improves employee productivity.

Some retailers are automating more tasks‑‑for example, increasing self-checkout‑‑to accommodate a shrinking workforce.

Others are looking to software that can help accurately target the timing of store visits so retailers can provide the personal touch when it’s needed.

Mobility tracking data provides retailers insights about what’s attracting customers to shop in-store.

Additionally, it offers information about where shoppers may linger, avoid and pass through. That data can be used to reorganize stock, change department layouts and set staff schedules.

Anonymized tracking doesn’t compromise customer privacy, but offers managers the ability to draw more meaning from analytics, and to understand customer behavior with greater accuracy and detail.

COVID-19 taught retailers that they can’t control major disruptions that impact the global supply chain.

However, with proper planning and implementation of software tools they can increase visibility into their supply chains, which will lead to better resilience through the holiday season — and beyond. With Retail Pro Prism POS associates have visibility across stores and channels, and are able to quickly determine any weaknesses within their supply chain and possible solutions.

Is your omnichannel meeting customers’ expectations?

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This entry was posted by Jennifer Bosavage on Wednesday, November 16th, 2022 at 5:52 pm .