Shopper convenience in a retail store in the age of mobility. In-store mobile applications to provide an enriching customer experience. An article by Shijo Sunny Thomas

1. TECHNOLOGY
WHERE DO
YOU KEEP
THE CHEESE?
Shopper convenience in a retail
store in the age of mobility is
generating tremendous buzz
across all retail formats. There
are various opportunities for
retailers to deploy in-store
mobile applications to provide an
enriching customer experience.
By Shijo Sunny Thomas
S
In-store mobile apps can resolve shoppers queries
138 . IMAGES RETAIL . OCTOBER 2013
hoppers ask a lot of questions. Where do
you keep the cheese? Does this deodorant
have any side effects? Are there any wash
care instructions for this dress? How do I
connect to a Wi-Fi network in a Wi-Fi TV?
Can you tell me the balance points on my
card? Would it not be great to have store staff address
and answer each and every customer query in the most
descriptive and satisfying manner? It would also be ideal
for a store associate to be available at an arm’s length to
a customer, every time a customer has a query or needs
assistance. Reality is different.
More than often, due to higher foot falls, it is not
practically possible to provide individual attention to
customers when desired. It is also not possible for each
store associate to have in depth knowledge about each
and every product and its usage. So, how do retailers
balance the demands of personalised in-store customer

2. service and lower store operational
costs? A possible answer could lie
in retailer managed in-store mobility
devices and applications that can be
accessed by their shoppers.
The adoption and deployment of
mobile devices and applications in
the retail store have taken a variety of
forms. Shoppers can now download
applications to get information on
the latest promotions and view their
loyalty points. Store applications are
used by the associates on tablets and
smart phones for range of business
activities such as task management,
space execution, inventory
confirmations, performance reports etc.
One way of providing in store
convenience through mobile is
through software applications on
shopper devices. In technology
parlance, this is called Bring Your
Own Device (or BYOD), where
shoppers can bring their own phones
and tablets into a store to be used
for various activities. BYOD might
work great for employees, but for
customers there is still time to go.
Retailers are still apprehensive about
the security implications of allowing
customer devices to connect with the
retail enterprise from within a store.
In addition to security concerns,
retailers also have to invest in making
the applications compatible across
popular mobile platforms and devices
to appeal to a large customer base.
A vast majority of retailers around
the world are keenly considering an
in-store mobile strategy around their
own devices. Retailer mobile devices
are deployed within the store taking
advantage of connectivity to an instore network. Shoppers can access
the applications on these devices
during their visit to retail stores. The
devices and the applications are fully
managed by the retailer, putting to
rest any major security concerns. This
is also cost effective considering the
gains from standardization of devices
and applications across all stores of
the retailer.
For the device, retailers can opt for
rugged tablets, attractive form factor
devices or even commercially available
low cost tablets. The choice depends on
the customer profile, usage assessment
and physical security risk to the
devices. Depending on the business
purpose of the applications, the
devices can be mounted on shopping
carts, or at key points within relevant
departments in a retail outlet.
Ultimately, it all comes down to
the purpose of these devices, which
is determined by the applications
and its usability. The applications
on the in-store mobile devices are
designed primarily to offer sales floor
Mobile apps offers sales floor support to drive conversions
FOR THE DEVICE,
RETAILERS CAN
OPT FOR RUGGED
TABLETS, ATTRACTIVE
FORM FACTOR
DEVICES OR EVEN
COMMERCIALLY
AVAILABLE LOW
COST TABLETS.
THE CHOICE
DEPENDS ON
THE CUSTOMER
PROFILE, USAGE
ASSESSMENT
AND PHYSICAL
SECURITY RISK TO
THE DEVICES.
support to drive conversions. These
help in providing a unique customer
experience by allowing customers to
access various types of information
and perform various transactions that
would normally require the assistance
of a store associate.
First of all, access to these devices
can be provided only to house
customers. Customers will be required
to login to use the device. This can be
synced to the ecommerce account that
the customer has with the retailer.
Customer registration can also be
provided as an option for first time
customers, thereby serving as a point
to capture new customer data.
Identifying a customer helps the
retailer achieve a wide variety of
objectives. The retailer can derive
usability parameters, get information
on merchandise preferences, and
invite customer feedback. Retailers
can also drive personalized
promotions and offers through
targeted messaging. The shopper also
stands to gain, by being able to access
her account information, loyalty
points and personal preferences. The
services can be extended to accessing
her online shopping cart, requesting
for home delivery etc.
OCTOBER 2013 . IMAGES RETAIL . 139

3. TECHNOLOGY
The customer facing applications
that can be made available on the
in-store device are endless. Shoppers
can search for a product using
a standard search interface. The
customer can view detailed product
information, pricing information,
available inventory, product videos,
product location etc. on the mobile
device. The retailer can also display
any promotional offers for the
searched products, inciting the
shopper to buy the product.
This can be of huge value in
merchandise departments such as
consumer electronics, where shoppers
can achieve a self-service access to
detailed information about product
specifications, usage and installation.
If the device and the store IT
infrastructure are designed for
tracking the location of the device
within the store, then the customer
can request for assistance from a store
associate. Associates within the store
will get an alert with the customer
coordinates using which they can
reach out to the customer in no time.
The applications on the in-store
device can also be used to solicit
customer feedback, opinions,
complaints or suggestions. It can
also be used to drive customer
surveys. These can all be consolidated
A RETAILER WILL ALSO
NEED TO ENSURE
THAT ALL IN-STORE
DEVICES ACROSS
THE ENTERPRISE
ARE MANAGED AND
MONITORED FROM
A CENTRALISED
LOCATION TO
PREVENT ANY
UNAUTHORISED
ACCESS
within an enterprise CRM to derive
actionable insights.
In addition to the customer service
and convenience benefits provided
to the retailer, these applications
can also supply a constant stream of
data pertaining to in-store shopper
behavior, shopper experience with
merchandise categories, reaction to instore promotions and lost sales.
The applications will need to be
built in such a way that they can
connect to a retailer’s enterprise
systems in a very effective way.
The applications will require access
to customer information, product
information, inventory information,
140 . IMAGES RETAIL . OCTOBER 2013
promotional offers, customer
preferences etc. It has to be ensured
that all this information is transmitted
securely within a retail premise to
the in-store mobile device. A retailer
will also need to ensure that all instore devices across the enterprise
are managed and monitored from a
centralized location to prevent any
unauthorized access and also to
prevent damage or loss of the device.
Centralized administration is also
necessary to manage the content
on all in-store devices across the
enterprise store landscape.
Designing an in-store mobility
program cannot have a one-sizefits-all approach. A retailer needs
to carefully analyze a multitude of
parameters before determining not
only the applications, but also the
content and the usability. In order to
cater to wide strata of customers, it
is important to orient each customer
class in different way, which best
suits the needs of that customer class.
A certain amount of hand holding
through demonstrations and signage
will be required to increase user
adoption. The interface can be made
available in regional languages to
promote adoptability as well.
Usage of retailer devices and
applications within retail might not
be common place in today’s world.
Yet, a need for superior customer
convenience and experience exist
at all modern retail stores. The idea
is not to suggest a phenomenally
expensive proposition to retailers to
procure and deploy a large number
of in-store devices across all retail
outlets. Retailers should consider
evaluating a pilot project in certain
key stores or certain merchandise
categories where providing a
superlative customer experience can
derive visible results in store sales
improvement.
About The Author:
Shijo Sunny Thomas is the Industry Lead
for Retail & CPG at Fujitsu Consulting.
He works closely with retailers in coinnovation of retail solutions for the store
and the enterprise.