Systems Integration

The crowded aisles and booths in Chicago last week were again a reminder of the longstanding industry presence of the Internet Retailer Conference & Exhibition (IRCE) within the maturing digital marketplace. The list of exhibiting companies ran the gamut from niche startups to established platforms. The historically B-to-C-driven conference continues to broaden its appeal beyond…

We’ve been hearing about the "Store of the Future" for some time now. Retail executives have spent the past 18 months experimenting with digital store technologies such as contextual digital displays, in-store sensors, beacons and analytics. These early pilot projects have yielded some successes, increasing customer convenience and unlocking new value as shoppers opt to…

This June, the headlines exploded with story after story about Facebook offering free beacons to retailers. Finally, the potential to bring e-commerce-level shopper engagement to brick-and-mortar stores through beacons became more plausible. Since Facebook has a massive, always-on user base, this opens doors for widespread beacon use, overcoming the major hurdle of beacons relying on…