Changing the Channel

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Busy shoppers increasingly expect to shop using a seamless combination of online, mobile and in-store channels, so the time is ripe for them to converge. New solutions are enabling retailers to introduce new price-based promotions faster and more consistently across multiple channels.
 
The internet has become central to our lives. Currently, 57% of European adults buy online, according to Forrester, an analyst group. Online sales in Western Europe are expected to increase more than 13% to €92 billion in 2011, following growth of 18 % to €81 billion in 2010.
 
So-called m-commerce – marketing and sales via mobile devices – has also come of age with the arrival of smartphones with better screens, bandwidth, 3G and wireless coverage.
 
Already, European consumers have moved from shopping exclusively in stores to shopping across these multiple channels in parallel. And now we are seeing the emergence of cross-channel shopping. Consumers increasingly want to be able to use any combination of online, social networking, mobile and store channels simultaneously when they shop.NCR has coined the term ‘c-tailing’ – or converged retailing – to define this new world. New solutions are coming onto the market that will enable shoppers to review consistent and relevant information on product and price promotions, complete purchases, receive deliveries and process returns at the locations that are most convenient to them. This is because consumers are continually in search of better value products but are also short of time.
 
Cross Selling
 
Today multi-channel shoppers spend 15 to 30% more with a retailer on average than single channel consumers, according to analysts IDC. NCR research suggests that with converged retailing, shoppers are even more valuable, show stronger loyalty and greater influence over the purchasing decisions of others.
 
Shoppers often turn to the internet to ‘pre-shop’ – deciding what product features are important to them – before deciding where they want to make the purchase. They may then go in-store if they need the item sooner than it can be shipped, want to view it up close or want to avoid delivery charges.
 
Multichannel sales continue to rise. They are often executed through multiple systems and organisation units and include initiatives such as ‘click and collect’, where goods are bought online but collected from stores. By value, 29 % of electrical goods were purchased in the UK this way in the run-up to Christmas last year, according to a survey by consultants Deloitte. This compares with 13 % for homewares and 10 % for clothing sales.
 
These consumers are especially valuable, because when they are in a store they often buy other items as well. Retailers now face the challenge of creating a single customer experience across their digital and physical stores and of personalising the interactions – in effect moving from multi-channel silos to a converged channel experience. This can include basic considerations such as ensuring the prices or special offers are the same, whether the customer is buying in a shop, via the internet or a mobile app, and targeted with relevant marketing messages and discount vouchers appropriately.
 
For these reasons NCR has developed Retail Transaction Services (RTS) – a store automation system combining the latest point-of-sale (POS) application and a suite of sales transaction services. It enables retailers to manage consistent product, price and promotions data across in-store, online and mobile customer touch-points.
 
This is achieved through RTS’ use of service-oriented architecture (SOA), development techniques, object-oriented components and standard web-based interfaces, which means transactions can be written once and re-used many times.
 
From the shopper’s perspective, no matter where a consumer queries the price of an article, RTS’ item look-up service can access the data and present identical results. In addition, as the same sales engine is used when goods are bought online and in-store, shoppers can also benefit from ‘click and collect’ and ‘buy online, return to store’ services that they increasingly want.

Targeted Campaigns
 
RTS is complemented by the NCR Advanced Marketing Solution (AMS) which helps retailers develop and execute targeted promotional programmes. It combines promotional planning, offer logic, graphical content and channel management into a single workspace. Retailers can craft incentive offers based on basket size, item mix, loss leaders or other parameters.
 
The AMS offer management solution monitors real-time customer activity at the point-of-sale and communicates targeted promotional offers based on the individual’s purchasing activity. The promotional message can then be delivered across multiple channels such as email, the web and the point of sale.
 
Complementing these solutions, ‘Endless Aisle’ touchscreens give consumers access to an extended online range of goods which are not immediately available in-store. With their large screen and high speed broadband connections, kiosks deliver a better shopper experience than m-commerce. Loyalty card holders can even be automatically recognised when they swipe their card, making the transaction easier.

In contrast, shoppers use mobile sites in a different way. The information has to be relevant to the context of the user – linked to their location or timeframe. It’s more likely for consumers to glance at retailers’ offerings in a bus queue; the mobile relationship is brief and casual. It is also poised for massive growth.
 
This is why NCR is bringing out a hybrid laser and imaging barcode scanner. This will enable shoppers to collect loyalty points or redeem discount coupons using an app on their mobile at a self-checkout or regular till. Beyond that, mobile payments are on the horizon.
 
Retail is undergoing its fastest rate of change in living memory. In this new world, shoppers will mix and match channels to suit themselves.