THE RETAIL TECHNOLOGY ROADMAP
Navigating the Journey and Avoiding the Pitfalls
You have heard the terms Omnichannel and Unified Commerce enough times that your eyes roll back when you hear them, but you are also well aware that the ability to offer a frictionless journey for your customers, across all channels is an absolute must to survive.
Your customer’s expectations have shifted so dramatically due to the Amazon-indoctrination and service level being delivered in digital channels today. However, having both physical stores unified deeply with e-commerce creates an opportunity to elevate the customer engagement and experience to win the hearts and minds of your customers. You know this and that is why you are exploring this path.
If you are sitting with older legacy technology at your stores currently, here are just a few of the legacy systems friction you may be experiencing:
- No endless-aisle function, you can’t offer inventory beyond what’s in your store.
- Unable to handle BOPIS, or Buy On-line and Pick Up at store, denying the benefits of upsell, order size and increased traffic.
- Static and limited reporting capabilities
- No real-time inventory
- Inconsistency in online and in-store experiences
- No on-line returns to the stores.
- No 360 view of the customer, making it impossible to build loyalty using customer data to personalize the shopping experience.
Clearly not having these capabilities is taking a massive toll on your revenue, margins and customer engagement and you want to take action.
You face a seemingly daunting process when stepping into a retail technology decision to accomplish these objectives. Seamlessly integrating your physical stores with your digital e-commerce platform may seem like a insurmountable task. Afterall, it requires tight integration of your entire IT infrastructure, particularly the ability to access real-time inventory, real time customer data, and visibility of orders across channels.
It’s fraught with traps, pitfalls, and landmines that, with education and guidance, can be avoided. With awareness you will be prepared for the journey ahead.
So you agree that in today’s dynamic and highly competitive marketplace, the need to deliver this Omnichannel or Unified Commerce capability to your customer is an absolute must…so the only remaining question is how do you get there?
What is the best road to take?
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