TEC37 Webinar: Customer Experience in Retail

Technology is transforming virtually every aspect of retail: changing how consumers shop, expanding the tools they use to gather information and raising their expectations. Smart retailers are integrating technology and resources and using data analytics to better understand customer behaviors and needs, and then to deliver a seamless, secure, personalized retail experience that generates higher tickets and deepens loyalty.

In this 37-minute webinar, our industry experts – moderator Tim Brooks, Director of WWT's AI and Analytics Practice; special guest Jon Stine, Global Director Retail Sales, Intel Corporation; Neil Anderson, Director of WWT's Network Solutions Practice; and Bob Elfanbaum, WWT Vice President of Product Development  – examine how retailers can take advantage of emerging trends, technologies and strategies to create a blended, personalized customer experience. They explore the evolution of the omni-channel, the potential for using data analytics to predict customer behavior and fulfill needs; and the maturation of mobile technologies used by consumers as well as retailers.

In this session you'll learn:

• The importance of breaking data silos.
• How to combine back-end analytics with in-store operations.
• How to balance a consistent mobile application experience with the in-store experience.

Watch our webinar on demand to discover how you can leverage technology to create a seamless, no-friction retail environment that protects the privacy and security of the shopper, increases your marketing accuracy and efficiency through behavioral analytics, and ultimately increases customer loyalty, revenue and in-store retail efficiency. Or, catch the highlights by reading our webinar transcript and FAQ section or subscribe to our #TEC17 podcast channel to listen on the go.

Webinar FAQs

Q: What big data architectures can accommodate the improved customer experience and resulting data flow?
A: Moving from batch to streaming is something we're seeing for retailers at scale, as well as breaking down silos. Some of the methods to break down those silos include Hadoop architectures and elements of Kafka. For some retailers, it may be a simple step of data virtualization across those silos to extract insights from the data flow.

Q: What are our first steps?
A: First, define your business objective in terms of the customer experience, with less emphasis on your current capabilities. You need a vision of what your shopper's journey will look like now and in the future, then build the technology architecture you need to support that vision. Consider how your shopper will shop with you across all channels, and how that will differentiate you in three to five years.

Q: What sort of lift can retailers expect from in-store mobility?
A: We can address this in the context of lift and conversion. As a benchmark, you can raise conversion by up to a full point just by focusing on the smart device in the shopper's hands as well as a mobile device in the associate's hands to answer questions and provide the insights that shoppers expect and usually find on the Web. Think about how you can experiment with technology to improve the interaction and gain deeper insights; you'll likely experience continuous, sustainable lift.

Q: Where does mobility help on the operations side of retail?
A: Approaching every consumer with a mobile-first mentality gives tremendous insight into consumer behaviors and expectations, which can help improve operations, including inventory requirements, store staffing and potential demand surges that may outstrip supply. Next, by analyzing the data created, the store can optimize which products are expected and in what quantities, and how to increase ticket prices and, ultimately, same-store sales. Finally, by connecting the online, mobile and in-store experiences in a seamless way, you can generate higher conversion and raise customer satisfaction. All of these elements contribute to having the right operations infrastructure, and it starts with the mobile strategy.

Q: What's the current state of RFID in retail?
A: RFID implementations are growing among large retailers. Passive RFID capabilities have improved, and the data flow from RFID movements, product aging, accessibility, and other metrics – tied to additional data sources such as promotional campaigns and pricing – enables retailers to make real-time decisions on inventory management, staffing and operational planning.

Q: Where is leadership and innovation happening?
A: An agile, disruptive culture can happen with innovation. Retail is fast-moving with diminishing barriers to entry; store expansion, reengineering of the in-store and digital customer experience, dynamic pricing initiatives and personalized offers tied to transactional behavior and loyalty. WWT is currently involved in all of these with various retailers.