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ers will be impressed with capabilities
that are similar to those they hold
in their hands. Possibly it would be
better to have in-store touchscreens
or smartphone apps preloaded with
specific and easily digestible product
specifications and intended usage.
This information, ideally delivered by
scanning a product code, must be well
organized and quick to access – void
of the scrolling, clicking and maneu-
vering of a smartphone Web search.
In the longer term, the use of smart
shelves, interactive displays and vir-
tual sales assistance can address this
shopper frustration. In the shorter
term, sales staffs can be armed with
tablets pre-loaded with product infor-
mation and comparison presentations.
Waiting in line has never been pop-
ular with shoppers, and long checkout
lines remain a frustration with Gap-
Gemini’s respondents. It won’t be a
problem for too long, as stores that
enable users to automatically self-pay
through smartphone apps and mobile
wallets are around the corner. At that
time, the customer device essentially
becomes part of the in-store IT infra-
structure, pushing some burden of
operations onto the shopper. In the
nearer term, we’ll continue to see in-
vestment in mobile-checkout-enabled
floor staff and, if theft issues are prop-
erly address, self-checkout stands. For
smaller dealers, off-the-shelf services
such as Square may be enough to get
through the occasional rush.
Internet users also apparently
want to see the type of personaliza-
tion they see in the digital realm
brought into the in-store experience.
Sixty-five percent of respondents
cited discounts and promotions not
being personalized as a top in-store
annoyance. This is one area, however,
where physical retailers simply must
emulate and incorporate the func-
tionalities of online shopping. After
all, the only way to personalize at
scale is through customer data, and
the very essence of IT centers on the
collection, organization, analysis and
cross-referencing of data. So unless
shoppers are willing to fill out forms
and employees are willing to crunch
the information and keep it accessi-
ble, the most efficient ways right now
to gather customer information are
through purchase histories, search
behaviors and social network activity.
From there, data analytics provide
the actionable output.
It should be noted that, while Gap-
Gemini’s respondents complain about a
lack of personalization in the store, and
a solid majority of consumers say they
want and appreciate personalized offers
based on purchase history, there is a
limit to how “personal” shoppers want
retailers to get. A survey of more than
4,000 North American shoppers by
Salesforce Research suggests most con-
sumers are uneasy with location-based
technologies that alert retailers to who
they are as they walk into a store. That
includes 61 percent of millennials and
73 percent of Gen Xers. (Most people,
meanwhile, can relate to that creeped-
out feeling that comes when pop-up ads
reflect a recent Internet search.)
Nonetheless, personalization was
the top customer engagement priority
for 2017 among retailers surveyed earlier
Spring
2017
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Inside
Outdoor
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