Digital Innovation
August 19, 2019 at 11:56 am
In 1998, economist B. Joseph Pine II wrote that the world of retail was changing. He noted that the service economy was coming to an end, soon to be replaced with an economy based on memorable experiences and shared events. Now, over 20 years later, the "experience economy" has moved from an academic theory into…
August 19, 2019 at 11:33 am
Brick-and-mortar retail is getting dissed by millennials, who increasingly prefer to shop online. With millennials representing an estimated $1.4 trillion in purchasing power, brick-and-mortar retailers can’t afford to ignore their needs as e-commerce and subscription services eat into market share. In the words of Vanilla Ice, retailers need to “stop, collaborate and listen,” brick-and-mortar retail…
August 5, 2019 at 12:33 pm
The modern-day retail environment is anything but stagnant. With a rise in e-commerce shopping and delivery, consumers’ desire for efficiency and convenience reigns supreme. With this, traditional brick-and-mortar retailers cannot rely solely on historical insights to guide them through the next phase of buying and selling. SAP’s recent study, conducted by leading industry analyst Forrester…
July 19, 2019 at 11:02 am
In both retail and marketing, there’s a “conversation” with customers in some way. Whether it’s merchandising, in-home or digital flyers, banner ads, in-store marketing, events, or email, every day there's communication with customers to see what works. What was the magical “thing” that resulted in the purchase decision? One of the biggest shifts over the…
July 18, 2019 at 1:31 pm
With the growing preference for online shopping, combined with customers who can instantly compare prices and reviews with their smartphones, the expectations and needs of the brick-and-mortar shopper are rapidly evolving. As a result, physical retailers have been in a race to deploy new technologies to provide a better experience in the hopes of keeping…
June 11, 2019 at 11:55 am
A new generation of visual tools is now available to bring the physical environment into the shopping process, allowing consumers to locate, evaluate and share products in new ways. Thanks to the near ubiquity of smartphones, consumers are viewing — and creating — more visual content than ever. This has made image-centric social media networks among…
June 6, 2019 at 5:05 pm
Amazon.com launched an artificial intelligence-powered shopping feature in its app called StyleSnap at the re: MARS 2019 conference in Las Vegas yesterday. The tool enables users to upload a photo or screenshot of a particular fashion look they admire from pictures on magazines, websites or social media posts, and then get similar product recommendations from Amazon's apparel…
May 29, 2019 at 2:05 pm
A new study from IDC predicts retailers will spend $5.9 billion this year alone on artificial intelligence (AI) tools like automated customer service and product recommendations. Furthermore, 79 percent of retail and consumer products companies expect to use intelligent automation to learn more about their customers by 2021. Yes, retailers are making big investments in…
May 16, 2019 at 11:36 am
Today’s consumers don’t differentiate between retail channels. They’ll jump between mobile, online and in-store to curate each individual purchasing journey according to their needs. It's becoming clear to retailers that shopping for them is all about ease, immediacy and the instant gratification of desires. For these empowered multichannel shoppers, convenience conquers all. Whether that’s finding…
May 13, 2019 at 10:48 am
Forward-thinking retailers are constantly being challenged and enhanced by technology. As online and mobile shopping continues to disrupt the “traditional” retail experience, retailers are relying on new technologies to better delight customers, attract them back into stores, and ultimately succeed in the multichannel environment. So, the real question is which technologies help retailers attract and…
