This article is written by: Kirstin Maguire
It’s no secret that over the past decade, eCommerce has been an innovator in the consumer market. Offering convenient, personalised, mobile shopping opportunities, the reasons for its appeal are clear. Crucially, this also means that eCommerce players have had the upper hand in collecting customer data to build their brands. What’s not as widely known, is that this is all about to change, and online innovation is about to inform bricks and mortar retail.
How online innovation informs bricks and mortar retail
Our research has found that ‘omni-channel’, which merges online and physical shopping experiences, is presenting increasing opportunities for retailers. PSKF’s Piers Fawkes says ‘We’re seeing the digital and physical worlds start to converge, creating a new model for the retail marketplace’ in his piece here, whilst Deloitte’s report, The Omnichannel Opportunity concludes that the market is prime for convergence.
Excitingly, physical shops are now using technologies, previously only available in eCommerce, to inform the in-store shopping experience, as Amanda Berglove at Brandpoint explores. Data analytics players such as RetailNext are providing a seamless shopping experience between channels for consumers, and a cost-effective data analysis for businesses.
We see companies using GPS and beacon integration to create a much more fluid physical to digital shopping experience, which amalgamates design and consumer data. A Walker Sands study found that the latest advances respond directly to the needs of consumers.
So what does this mean for your pop up?
We know the opportunities this provides are vast. Firstly, retailers can use the unique data they collect to attract more shoppers with personalised messages delivered to their mobile. Once through the door, in-store mapping (accounting for real-time factors) helps customers navigate their pathway through the store, whilst being alerted to sale products, ably-assisted by personal shoppers through mobile concierge systems, on-demand customer services and virtual fitting rooms.
All this without having to queue to pay, through EasyPay Self Mobile Checkouts, as pioneered by Apple, as well as pre-order pick-up and free next day delivery options. Puneet Mehta, CEO at MyCityWay explores this here,
This merging of online and physical shopping experiences, provides a groundbreaking opportunity for companies to build the ultimate physical shopping experience. Temporary showrooms, local events and pop-ups now provide significant innovative opportunities to build a seamless connection between online and offline retail, keeping finger on the pulse in an exciting consumer market.
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