The retail landscape is changing rapidly. Customers now expect seamless, unique, and meaningful experiences both online and in-store. Meanwhile, back-of-house there is a focus on improving internal efficiency and reducing business costs. Leading brands are investing in the right technology, into stores and back-office environments, to streamline processes and deliver superior customer experiences that keep people returning time and time again.
Customers are no longer basing their loyalty on a retailer’s prices or products. Instead, loyalty is built through better customer experiences - if a brand cannot keep up with a customer’s expectations, the customer will quickly leave.
Delivering a great customer experience also boosts the bottom-line; 86% of buyers are willing to pay more for a better customer experience, and 49% of them have made impulse purchases after receiving a good experience.
Consistency across channels is vital, as the number of devices used by consumers has increased dramatically. 48% of customers cross back and forth between digital and physical interactions with brands - both need to portray a retailer in the best light.
Processes and technologies, therefore, need to adapt to provide a cohesive experience across all channels. Retailers that effectively join-up the online and offline worlds enjoy a 10% year-on-year growth, 10% increase in average order value and a 25% increase in close rates.
Technology like RFID tagging is helping retailers to trace products across the entire supply and delivery chain, supporting a range of purchasing options from online to in-store and click-and-collect. Decathlon is one such retailer investing in the technology to deliver a more efficient shopping experience.
In demanding and fast-moving environments, the flexibility to print on-demand labels and receipts is vital. Portable label printers can be used throughout a store to quickly label and markdown products
Digital signage in-store can deliver tailored, consistent messaging in shop windows and throughout a building. With communications matching the same messages on a retailer’s website, social media, and other online channels.
Today’s consumers demand immediate gratification. In-store, they want a quick queuing and checkout experience. Indeed, 70% of customers want retailers to use more tablets in-store to shop rapidly and browse ranges; 60% of customers who used a tablet while shopping then purchased the product they were considering buying.
Devices such as the A4 multifunction device printer can enable fast print confirmation (through Wi-Fi printing) of orders from tablets located across a store. Meanwhile, interactive touch-screens and totems provide further self-service options for customers.
Back-of-house, retail managers are looking to improve productivity and efficiency with 40% stating that this is an important initiative to drive growth next year. This is their second-highest priority behind cost cutting.
Simultaneously, the swift rise in Internet retail has put pressure on managers to quickly process and dispatch orders to meet customer expectations for quick ordering and delivery. This has been accelerated due to COVID, with online sales rising 76% in June alone. Investing in a dual-sided label printer enables managers to quickly dispatch and ship items across a store or warehouse. With picking, packing, dispatch and return documents printed on one dual-sided label, processes are sped-up - with additional environmental benefits too.
Meanwhile, remote monitoring and management systems are helping managers to proactively identify and remediate any server or software issues as they arise, preventing unexpected downtime. Document management software ensures all important information is locatable in one central place, creating significant savings in storage and employee time. The digitisation and automation of document workflows, ensures retail businesses can operate productively and securely.
It’s also critical for managers to improve visibility of stock levels and demand. A lack of oversight (and the resulting poor inventory management) can cost retailers between 3 to 5% of their margins. Moreover, insufficient inventory causes a negative customer experience, leading to attrition and more lost sales.
Using RFID printers, retailers can automatically generate restocking order notifications and facilitate more sales with click and collect options.
Customers are becoming more aware of their environmental impact and actively seeking brands that have a positive effect on sustainability. This is a topic that particularly touches a nerve among younger generations. Half of Gen Zs in Europe and North America do not feel positive about the future of the environment. 64% of Millennials and Gen Z try to buy natural or organic products.
Retailers must work to improve their environmental credentials with energy-efficient and carbon-neutral solutions. Toshiba Tec, for example, is committed to a carbon zero scheme that delivers consumables and devices carbon neutrally.
A range of technology to help
Retailers face unprecedented challenges on the horizon. However, there are a plethora of technologies to assist them in meeting higher customer expectations, increase productivity and efficiency, and hit sustainability targets. By investing in the right solutions that align with each area, retailers can turn such challenges into opportunities - differentiating themselves in the sector and using it to their competitive advantage.
Discover the right retail solution for you. Contact the Toshiba Tec team today to find out more.
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