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Retail Technology and Customer loyalty
By Neil Jones
Customer Loyalty via Mobile Self Service Shopping
Mobile Self Service shopping is a very new concept adopted by over 2000 stores in a wide variety of countries around the world. The result is definite increase in sales, which is being attributed to the increased level of customer loyalty perhaps due to the implementation of mobile self service shopping.
Customer and Retailer Goals
Customers pursue just one goal when they go shopping, to get full value for their money. Retailers therefore set out to somehow convince them that it is only at their store that they can get their money’s worth. Once they succeed in doing so, the customer’s loyalty is theirs, a conviction that is never shaken off. They also prove to be the best proponents for the retailer convincing family and friends about how they too get the best value for their money. It is for the retailer to ensure then, that every shopping experience of such customers is a truly enjoyable one. A known recipe for the shopper’s happiness is complete information and full control.
How to Make Customers Happy
Customer happiness is the toughest part of catering to their needs, at least from the retailers’ point of view. Customers like to make well informed smart decisions, and being convinced, that each time they buy a product they have made the best possible choice. The best decisions are possible only with sufficient amounts of information about the products in question. Information holds the key to intelligent decision making even while shopping. The end result is that the customer walks out with his purchases with the satisfaction of having bought the best product.
Customers have become wary of irrelevant information that is passed on to them and tend to filter it out. Retailers realize the futility of providing irrelevant information in adequate amounts or excess of it, and in order to help customers come to them and hasten their intelligent decision making process adopt various measures like increasing investment in Customer Relationship Management (CRM) and offer facilities like faster checking procedures, visibility of their inventory, reduce the number of out-of-stock products, deploy both hardware and software for workforce management, integrate cross channels, management of new fresh items, label products with country of origin and adopt PCI compliance, among other things.
All these measures enable retailers to meet the customer requirements halfway. Customers have a clear idea of what makes a product a good buy, and this method proves as an effective interface between the two sides. Mobile self service enters the scenario at this stage providing a benefit to both sides.
How Mobile Self-Service Eases the Shopping Experience
Mobile self-service is a novel concept of providing the customer with a mobile scanner as soon as he enters the store. It is meant to scan barcodes and provide complete information about that product, helps to interact with self weighing scales while keeping track of his own shopping list. Finally it helps in adding up the total of goods placed in the basket to prevent shocks about the total spent at the check-out counter or even the self payment station. Being able to pack as he shops is a unique concept and makes his shopping even more personalized.
There are more sophisticated mobile devices that also permit the transfer of other relevant information to the customer like nutritional advice besides nutritional facts about the product. They can issue warnings about allergies and list forbidden foods for specific ailments like diabetes, reveal the age of the product, special offers if any, recipes and tips for cooking, and thus give the shopper complete control over each of his shopping decisions.
All this is possible now when mobile self service concepts and the technology is still in its nascent stage. Immense possibilities await customers since there is a lot of potential for information to be stored in these devices. These include product substitutes, reviews, estimates about requirements, list generation for specific applications, and much more. Customers can ask for little beyond this.
How Retailers Gain
With fierce competition and struggle to keep profits high, retailers are set to outdo one another in the race to stay ahead. By adopting a system of mobile self-service, retailers are increasing their customer loyalty, and since all the information is in the hands of the customer through the mobile scanner, employees are no longer needed to answer customer queries or attend to their needs. This leaves them free to attend to more pressing business matters.
Additionally, this concept will help to incorporate retailer based mobile solutions, which will provide support for better inventory management, improve price management, warehouse processes, point-of-sale and enhance staff connectivity. Again, all this must bring a great sense of satisfaction to the retailer, and would leave little else to ask for especially for his business.
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Thank you for sharing this information on customer loyality and technology, Neil.
I find it very upsetting when I'm trying to shop and customers all around me are distracted with their hand held electronics. In my book, they are irresponsible and self centered.
These new scanners will really interupt the social networking.
Keep up the good work.
Best wishes.
Frederick
The copyright for this content entitled "Retail Technology and Customer loyalty" has been specified by the contributor as:
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This intel was contributed by ntjones
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May, 2012
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