The advancement of technology has already made it possible for the retail industries to pursue an omnichannel business strategy to increase their business reach all over the globe. The advancements are too dynamic in nature which is definitely good for the industry as a whole.
In this article, we will go through a few hi-tech trends that are going to revolutionize the retail industry in 2017. Let’s go through them without further ado.
- The rise of robots
The concept of robots is nothing new. They have been in use for a pretty long time indeed. But these days, we are noticing a huge surge in their use for a number of reasons ranging from their increased availability to improved dexterities to low costs.
More and more retail industries are adopting this trend to their benefits. Even customers are getting increasingly benefited through the use of these retail bots.
Now imagine this from the point of view of a customer-
Say you walked into a store and you are greeted by a cute little robot. You can then simply tell the robot the things you need either verbally or through signs (you even show it the image of the products that you need through the aid of your smartphone). The robot will then immediately use its inbuilt GPS or any other proximity technology to get you to the item(s) in matter of a second.
Convenient; isn’t it? You bet it is. It’s faster as well. Now such types of robots are already gaining in popularity because of the convenience that comes with them. Here’s an example for you (the video below).
It’s a robot that’s based on the Autonomous Retail Service Robot (ARSR) technology that can actually improve your store employee training and enhance in-store services at the same time.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=6&v=Sp9176vm7Co
- The use of beacon technology
The beacon technology is an innovative piece of technology that’s mainly used as a form of in-store retail analytics. It can be used to track user data, based on which marketing policies can be made.
The beacon technology is also used by physical retailers to reach out to customers and provide them with targeted offers and promotional messages. Beacons are essentially small hardware that are installed within targeted regions of the store. These are capable of emitting Bluetooth signals that can communicate with smartphones of the shopper in a jiffy.
In a nutshell, we can definitely say that the beacon technology aids a lot in providing personalized service to the customers in general.
- Augmented reality and virtual reality
Augmented reality and virtual reality are surely going to dominate the retail world because of a number of reasons. Today, the use of AR and VR is mainly limited to the realms of advertising. But this is just the start. The potentials are immense.
As costs go down, the popularity goes up.
The retail industry uses AR and VR to market their products to their customers in general. These two technologies play a critical role in inflicting the maximum impression on audience which is considered priceless from the point of view of marketing.
Here are a few exceptional uses of AR and VR in marketing.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wuln2bJkp1k
- Increased use of cloud technology
Cloud based technologies aren’t considered a fad these days. In fact, they have now become a necessity.
Cloud technologies help to smoothen up retail procedures and give them an organized approach that benefits businesses as a whole. A cloud based technology is an inexpensive piece of technology that helps in:
- Customer scheduling
- Time tracking
- Project management
- Billing
- Signups
For omnichannel retail businesses (by that, I mean businesses having an online and an offline presence), cloud based services are considered to be some form of a blessing. That’s because with the aid of this technology they are able to keep everything under a single roof.
Even geographical barriers cease to be a problem anymore. Any permitted employee can access cloud data from anywhere, anytime according to his/her convenience. This has also made it possible for the retail business to hire remote employees with bare ease and comfort. Thus, they are able to save a lot of money in the business. Sticking to the budget ceases to be a problem anymore.
The use of cloud technology is definitely going to increase in future as far as the retail is considered. This is not even a possibility; it’s more or less like a guarantee.
So what do you think of these trends discussed up above? Will they benefit people in general? Don’t hesitate to disclose your opinions in the comments section below. With that, I’ll bring this article to an end for now. Hope you had a good read.
Information shared by icreate3d.com
