Retailers should use technology to create unique customer experiences. Advancements over the last decade give retailers, and marketers specifically, the ability to understand their customers and tailor the brand experience based on a variety of factors. Technology has also made it possible to unify a customer’s experience with your brand across channels, both online and offline. In the past, it was cumbersome to tie an in-store customer to someone who might also purchase online, but today’s marketing technology makes that simple. Data is the underlying key to creating these individual customer experiences, particularly being able to listen to signals from customers and respond in the right way. Finding a technology that can make all of your customer and marketing data easy to access, understand and take action on is the first step.
From your current vantage point, what does the future of retail look like?
The future of retail will see continued proliferation of mobile, networked and IoT devices and online channels in buying. Retail will increasingly become less about the destination and more about the timeliness, personalization and unique value that retailers can deliver to customers. Particularly as smart home devices, like Amazon’s Alexa, become more pervasive, retailers run the risk of losing business if they aren’t top of mind for customers. The relationship retailers have with customers will be very important -- is a customer asking a smart device to add batteries to their cart, or Duracell batteries?
ng profWhat would be your message to a retail business looking to provide the best experiences possible for their customers?
Data is everything. It will tell you who a customer is (regardless of channel), what their preferences are, what you need to do to meet their needs. Consumers today are sharing more than they ever have with brands, but they expect something in return. If you don’t collect, understand and take action on that data it will be impossible to deliver the kind of experiences that customers are looking for. Whether it’s in-store purchase data, online browsing data or social engagement - customers are offering up pieces of information about themselves, and retailers need to be in a position to use it effectively and within regulation.
What is the biggest challenge retailers will face in the next five years?
The biggest risk or challenge they face is not evolving and become industry laggards. In retail, customers ARE the business model. It’s crucial that brands recognize this and stay in tune with customer behavior and trends. What may be a prominent trend or challenge today may be different in a month or a year - if retailers remember that it’s all about the customers and keep the focus on them, they can stay relevant and in business.