3 Tech Strategies for Improving Customer Retention This Holiday Season

As we look ahead to the rest of the holiday shopping season, customer retention is front of mind. As retail has become an increasingly competitive sector with evolving customer expectations and abundant shopping options, retailers must find innovative ways to keep customers engaged and drive brand loyalty.

In-store technology — notably digital signage, touchpoints, kiosks, digital fitting rooms, and more — is pivotal in reshaping customer retention strategies. These powerful tools allow retailers to enhance personalization, streamline the shopping experience, and build lasting relationships with customers.

Here are just three ways these technologies are redefining customer retention in retail:

1. Real-Time Content Updates to Keep Messaging Relevant

As customers have evolved, so too have digital immersive experiences. Today's retailers can move beyond static messages, images and promotions to explore dynamic content that adapts quickly based on customer activities and conditions.

This flexibility is invaluable in the fast-paced retail environment, where promotions, inventory and customer preferences can change rapidly. By utilizing a combination of videos, images and messages, brands can deliver content to screens in real time, effectively engaging consumers and encouraging purchases.

Additionally, retailers can pre-schedule content to update at specific times, ensuring that messaging remains timely and relevant. This approach enhances the overall customer journey by responding to behavioral insights.

Shifting to a dynamic, digital in-store experience also allows retailers to integrate real-time user-generated content from social media feeds or posts with specific hashtags — from customers and influencers — directly onto screens.

Real-time content can even be triggered by time of data, weather, or specific in-store actions, such as offering a promotion when a customer enters a particular section of the store.

2. Personalized Communication Tailored to Customer Preferences

Personalization based on behavioral insights is key to enhancing the overall customer journey and retention. For instance, brands can use demographic data, location-based triggers, purchasing patterns, or real-time inputs from loyalty programs, point-of-sale, and CRM data to deliver targeted and personalized communication. Examples include customized promotions that align with customers' preferences, purchase histories, and desires.

Localized content is another form of personalization. Tailoring digital signage to reflect local preferences, events or promotions creates a more relevant experience for customers in different regions or stores.

3. Interactive Experiences That Foster Customer Engagement

Interactive content allows customers to engage directly with screens via touch or mobile integration, further personalizing the experience based on their actions and choices and providing a memorable experience that drives loyalty.

Here are a few examples of how interactive features can be used:

• Touchscreen displays: Touchscreen-enabled digital signage allows users to interact directly with content. For example, in retail stores, consumers can browse product catalogs, check inventory, or explore product details through interactive screens.
• QR codes for mobile engagement: Retailers can display QR codes on their signage, allowing customers to scan the codes with their smartphones to access special offers, product details or exclusive content. This bridges the gap between digital signage and mobile interaction.
• Wayfinding and navigation: Interactive wayfinding screens help customers get directions or find specific locations. Customers can input their destination, and the screen will display a personalized route.
• Self-service kiosks: A powerful tool for streamlining the customer journey and adding convenience. Customers can place orders, customize products, or check out independently.
• Gamified experiences: Retailers can create interactive games or contests on their screens, engaging customers while promoting brand-related messages. For example, a store might display a trivia game that rewards participants with discounts or prizes.

By leveraging these capabilities, retailers can create meaningful, one-to-one communication with their customers, enhancing engagement and creating experiences that draw shoppers in, foster connections, and keep them coming back for more.

James Robins is chief marketing officer at Yodeck, the Intelligent Digital Signage Platform™.