Olubunmi Odejimi
The year 2020 was a year that saw the world at large, bow to a common enemy, menace, or pandemic as it was labeled globally, COVID-19, which caused a major closure on the world’s economy, businesses, livelihood, and survival. Listed in this article are 3 in-store technology trends that have been shaping the world since the pandemic.
With the virus fast spreading, industries and businesses were forced to shut down to avoid a broader and more deadly outbreak. The survival of the human race as we knew it was hanging by a thread.
Traditional brick-and-mortar trading became a thing of the past, and the world was forced to embrace the in-store mode of operations that quickly reshaped the global economy in a matter of months. Given the sudden drop in sales, e-commerce collapse, inflation, and total global lockdown, the in-store was left with the burden of catering to the heavy and constant needs of the people.
Here are three in-store trends that have shaped the world in 2022 :
The FITTING ROOM EXPERIENCE:
A lot of stores have experimented with this method by equipping their establishment with enhanced smart mirrors in the fitting rooms that can give a customer more privacy and comfort. The customer doesn’t have to leave the fitting room to have more items sent to them for testing. Also fitting rooms with digital kiosks that shoppers can use to scan products to check prices and see similar items were introduced.
This approach has been considered a way to free up associate time.
The QR CODES:
QR codes are square barcodes that can be scanned using mobile phone cameras to be directed to more information or payment portals. The technology was years ago but quickly garnered adoption during the COVID-19 pandemic when menus and person-to-person payments were pushed aside.
QR codes have the potential to be a way in which customers can discover more information about a product, giving them better insights into buying that product, making that decision, and comparing information across other products.
Earlier this year, major stores globally launched prototypes at their incubator locations that featured QR codes along with other in-store technology that helped create opportunities for digital exploration
These cases show that QR codes can deliver personalization for shoppers who might want recommendations based on what they’re inquiring about, but also create a level of convenience for associates who can spend more of their time on operational tasks.
The INVENTORY ACCURACY SYSTEM: Because profits are based on sales, it is crucial that stores optimize their inventory management. As the retail environment switches to an I’m no channel model, consumers expect to be able to visit a store’s website and check if an item is in stock before they visit the location. This means that retailers need to be able to accurately track all their inventory and even predict potential in-store and click-and-collect sales for that day to ensure that the promised amount of inventory is accurate and available to customers.
In general, software can help the retail operations manager determine how much stock to order and when, so that the store can maintain the right amount of stock to service customers. An auto-restock feature can even automate some of this work for the manager and automatically order additional stock when inventory levels reach a certain point.
Although the trends are not limited to these, they are an excellent way to improve your store.
