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Understanding Millennial Shopping Behavior is Important for Retail Brands.

Posted on June 29, 2018February 3, 2023 by admin

Millennials enjoy a seamless experience while expecting a high level of convenience across multiple devices and touch-points when it comes to shopping. There has been a profound influence of smartphones and social media in everyday life. Millennials use these mediums substantially and on-the-fly to get assistance while they are shopping in a brick-and-mortar store as well as to search for coupons and other offers.

Though Millennials generally love to shop in a store, they demand cross-channel capabilities so that they can acquire whatever information and help they seek from any channel that is most convenient to them during the shopping journey. To summarize, Millennials and the newer generations expect a lot more, a lot faster, at their own convenience and at desirable prices. All this has forced retail businesses to evolve and this is an ongoing process.

The below infographic depicts certain important trends about Millennial shopping:

Millennials have been one of the game changers for the retail industry, demanding versatility, flexibility, convenience, and speed from retail brands. Going forward, this generation along with the Gen Y and Gen Z are set to disrupt the retail industry further. It is high time, retail brands take the right steps to understand these consumers and be able to satisfy their demands.

The 3 I Mantra for New Age Retail

Posted on June 26, 2018August 26, 2022 by admin

The retail industry has been a trendsetter in adopting technology and digitization. As a result, the industry has been revolutionized by the disruptions caused due to the influence of advanced technologies. In fact, the evolution of the retail industry still continues as businesses and consumers collaborate over trade to further influence the need for progressive transformation.

As the power is now in the hands of the consumers, they are driving retail businesses to constantly strive towards not only focusing on the customer, but also conceptualizing and creating experiences that customers can relish and cherish. Be it brick-and-mortar or e-commerce retail companies, every business is looking to capture a large chunk of the customers’ attention and wallet. As a consequence, the competition has intensified leading to a situation where retailers have only one way out – perform or perish. In order to stay in the game, retailers must look at the 3 I mantra: integration, intelligence and innovation.

Integration: Today’s shoppers are not ordinary shoppers, they are a new breed of shoppers who demand convenience and want speed. Moreover, they want to be associated with retail brands that are tech savvy like them and have more than one channel for interacting and shopping. These new breed of shoppers are ‘omni-channel’ shoppers. Thus retailers need to integrate their channels, operations and processes to be able to provide that omni-channel shopping experience that can leave a mark on the customer.

Intelligence: Again drawing inspiration from the customers, retail businesses need to be ready and prepared for their customer who is equipped with information that allows them to make smart and better decisions. In order to better understand the customer, retail companies must capture as much data as possible about their customer and have the data about their product and service offerings along with the knowledge of their operations and processes. Having this comprehensive information, retail owners must derive the intelligence from the data and use it to enhance their business.

Innovation: Every modern day consumer is attracted to new advancements that happen in the market – be it products, services or offerings. The lesson to learn from this is that retail brands must constantly seek to innovate. They must always look out for new ways to create shopping experiences that are unique and innovative. Using innovation – right from production to packaging and marketing of the products, to sales and post sales services, throughout the entire shopping experience will definitely appeal to consumers and will make them crave for more.

Retail businesses seeking to do something new and unique in their space must equip their business with the right retail technology that enables integration, provides intelligence and aids innovation.

Why do you need a franchise management software?

Posted on September 25, 2023September 26, 2023 by Omprasad Devadiga

To begin with, franchising is a retail business model that involves two parties – the franchiser and franchisee. The franchiser permits the franchisee to use its brand name and business model, based on certain terms, conditions and clauses involving revenue that are agreed upon. Franchising is a very popular business model especially in regions where foreign brands use franchisees to expand their presence in the market.

Since this business model involves 2 parties, complications and issues are bound to arise due to the involvement of separate entities collaborating over a business. Further, since the franchiser is the owner of the business and is allowing the usage of his brand and products, he would definitely want to have an overview and manage the franchisees. This could be tricky if not tackled the right way. Enter – franchise management software.

Let’s dive deeper into how can a franchise management software fit into the franchise model of a retail business.

A franchise management software can be perceived to be a platform that facilitates collaboration between franchisers and franchisees, as well as assists in increasing engagement between the two parties regarding various aspects of the business such as marketing, sales, branding, CRM, inventory management, reporting, operations, and so on. The software essentially establishes business rules and processes in mutual agreement between the two parties. Using these processes and business rules as a base, franchisers can look to grow their business further by hiring more franchisees. Moreover, the software with preset rules and processes allows the franchiser to monitor performance based on real-time analytics, and streamlining operations as well as exercise control over the franchisees, and also capture and store market data and trends for further analysis and bench-marking. The franchisees on the other hand can use the software to automate their business operations and also keep track of their business performance and provide necessary reports to the franchiser. Also, the franchise management software can help to connect multiple franchise sites through integrated communications.

Here are some aspects where a franchise management software can benefit your retail business:

Inventory and supply chain management:

A good franchise management software generally enables access to inventory data to help you in forecasting the inventory levels. Purchase orders can then be placed to replenish stock. The software could help the business keep track of the supply chain process from order placement to stock replenishment, allowing to foresee and mitigate risks/issues that can arise in the process.

Customer management:

Customer loyalty and retention is extremely important for every retail business and it is dependent on the quality of customer service in your franchisee outlets. A solid franchise management software aids customer relationship management by providing capabilities such as customer registration, loyalty programs, customer information look-up, inventory look-up, customer feedback, and so on that enable you to attract and retain customers in the long run.

Process management:

A good franchise management software helps in the inspection of your franchise outlets following certain industry audit standards and checklists. By having capabilities of storing historical information of your outlets, you can use the information as a benchmark for performance tracking and inspection. Moreover, tracking sales data, employee data and performance, inventory data, and other important information, you can map out any discrepancies as well as keep a tight control on the processes and operations.

Also Read: Top 5 Questions To Ask Before Investing In Retail Pos Technology

How omni-channel enables frictionless retail

Posted on May 15, 2018June 8, 2022 by admin

Picture this – a young, tech-savvy and discerning shopper wants to buy a mobile phone. She researches on the internet for the latest and best phones in the market. Overwhelmed with options during her research, she realizes and determines her needs and the configuration that will best suit them and then refines her search for the phone. She picks a few options of phones of different brands and variants. While on the way back from the office the next day, she drops by a mobile store and checks out the phones she had picked up earlier and a few others as well that interest her while at the store With all the information at her disposal, she zeros down on the phone she wants to buy but decides to wait. Her desire to buy the phone fizzles down however she comes across advertisements of offers going on for the phones she had considered earlier and this spikes her interest again. The next day she selects the best offer and places an order for the mobile phone through her own hand-held device and chooses to collect it from a near buy store within 24 hours of ordering, get her used devise exchanged and make the payment at the store. While she goes to pick up and pay at the store she stumbles upon a set of headphones that she likes instantly and decides to bundle that with her phone purchase, hands over her used phone, makes the payment and walks out with the new product.

The above mentioned is one of the many scenarios of the complicated shopping process that involve different permutations and combinations of the various stages of the shopping journey intermingled with the various retail channels customers can use to interact and shop. Moreover, there is a whole set of operations and systems that need to be running at the back-end to support such complex, dynamic and comprehensive shopping processes. One of the biggest challenges for retailers’ of today, in the age where ‘customer is king’, lies in tying these channels, systems and operations together, in a way that the entire retail shopping process becomes friction-less and retail brands are able to deliver a seamless experience to their customers. To counter this challenge there is one sure shot solution and that is ‘omni-channel’.

Omni-channel essentially necessitates that the different channels not only be connected but also integrated. In order to accomplish this, various systems and operations must therefore be integrated in a manner that enables the systems and processes and the channels to work as a cohesive unit. Further, the data and information flow across the various processes must be streamlined in a way that there is one single version of the truth and a uniform representation of the brand across all the channels. In other words, accurate and real-time inventory and customer information must be accessible and available across the business operations and processes, and channels. Having said that, it also must be easy to manage all these systems, operations and information centrally for better control and risk mitigation. When all this is achieved, it will lead to unified commerce where the customers can enjoy seamless experiences due to frictionless operations and processes.

Therefore it is necessary for retail brands who are looking to not only strike the right chord with their customers and improve their operations but also planning to scale up their operations or add more products/channels or even expand in other geographies, to select an omni-channel retail software partner who has the domain expertise and is trusted by market leaders.

5 Fundamental Benefits of Going Omni-channel

Posted on October 30, 2023October 31, 2023 by admin

While the debates about retail apocalypse and the demise of physical retail continue, one thing is for sure, these are merely exaggerations based on certain instances, as the big picture depicts otherwise. At this juncture there is one truth only – retail as a business is being re-imagined, re-invented and re-engineered and this is happening because of technology.

Technology has been the principal driver and the enabler of the retail revolution process, leading to the modern day retail scenario where omni-channel is the new norm. All this has been possible because technology has found its place in almost every aspect of retail – right from production to supply-chain to distribution to sales to post sales services. Moreover, it has also influenced various stages of the customer journey, consequentially leading to changes in consumers’ behavior and preferences.

Omni-channel is the offspring of technology. Omni channel thrives on technology and this is one of the major reasons why, from being a mere buzzword about a decade ago, today it has become the ‘way of life’ for retail businesses and brands. Omni-channel fundamentally offers 5 highly desired abilities – reach, convenience, speed, collaboration and unified commerce. And in-turn these abilities are the basic benefits of going omni-channel.

In order to be omni-channel ready, retail businesses must use multiple retail touch-points to interact and service their customers. Subsequently, adding more channels expands the horizon of the retail businesses and enables them to reach more customers, while customers on the other hand can reach and interact with their brands through multiple touch-points. With more than one channel to shop from, customers can use different channels during their shopping journey at their own convenience, and as for retailers, they can easily make use of the different channels to influence their consumers along the shopping process. Omni-channel also enables retail brands with speedy access to information related to inventory and customers as well as helps retailers to service customers faster, while customers can receive quick gratification of their purchases or move through the shopping process faster by switching between channels. Omni-channel essentially necessitates the integration of multiple channels, systems and processes, thus facilitating them to work in collaboration, in a way that enables unified commerce. This makes it possible for retailers to have a single version of the truth about their customer and inventory information across the business and also supports them to provide a seamless and unified experience to their customers.

While omni-channel is necessary, it has potentials that can really do wonders to the retail business and retailers must try to capitalize on this. Employing the right omni-channel retail software will help retailers become truly and holistically omni-channel and thereafter reap its benefits big time.

Also Read: Four Emerging Trends In This Revolutionary Era Of Shopping

Four Pillars of Retail Customer Experience

Posted on September 14, 2023September 19, 2023 by admin

In this day and age of omni-channel, retail is all about the customer. What the customer needs and demands, how do they research and shop, which channels do they use to interact, what is their opinion about brands and products, what are their interests and preferences, which demographic segment do they belong to, what influences their purchasing, and so on – these are the questions retailers need to seek answers to, so that they are able to understand and serve their customers better. Additionally, since consumer behavior is dynamic and so is the retail business, the same answers may not hold true every time. Thus there is a need for the retail companies to put in constant efforts so as to be able to keep pace with their consumers’ changing demands.

In order to be able to service their customers to the best of their abilities, retail brands must have a holistic approach in strategizing, conceptualizing, creating and offering experiences that can impress their customers. As such, the shopping experiences must be positive and enriching. There are 4 essential pillars of retail customer experience – personal, mobile, seamless and secure, that retailers need to focus on for optimal results.

Below is an infographic that illuminates the importance of these 4 pillars with some industry statistics that retailers need to pay attention to.

Omni-channel Retailing is not about the channel, it is about the Customer

Posted on April 16, 2018August 29, 2022 by admin

In the modern day scenario, while there are numerous elements that play a role in the success of a retail business, the most essential element is to be responsive to customer demand and meet customer expectations. However this seems to be a challenging ask in today’s digital era as the consumer behavior and expectations are highly dynamic and constantly evolving. For the consumers of today, shopping is no longer just wanting to purchase products — they also demand entertaining, convenient and personalized shopping experiences. Add to this the complexity of handling multiple channels where customers can connect with the brand or shop from.

Omni-channel retailing has gained popularity over the years and now it has become the new norm and necessity for retail business to thrive and flourish. Be it brick and mortar retail companies or e-commerce companies – most have realized the dire need to go omni-channel and are thus adding new channels to their operations so as to facilitate their business with the opportunity to be where the customer is. However, one of the biggest roadblock for retailers achieving success in omni-channel is focusing on the channels and not on the customer. Retailers must understand that very essence of omni-channel lies in delivering a seamless customer experience across channels and hence it is imperative to focus on customer centricity. Here’s how:

Understanding and meeting customer expectations

Considering the shopping habits of today’s shopper it is clear that consumers themselves have dramatically changed. Technology such as the internet and social media have significantly expanded their horizons enabling them to consume more information, find a wide range of products and share about their experiences. Emphasis is on curated offerings that customers seek along with personalized product recommendations. Retail companies can find success by realizing, considering and understanding consumers’ shopping preferences and then using retail technology solutions to provide more personalized experiences. In order to continue meeting the demands of evolving consumer expectations, it is very important for retail owners to follow the shopper journey and then orchestrate information, pricing, inventory and promotions as the consumer moves through to the path to purchase.

Encouraging and enhancing consumer engagement

It is not just about delivering a personalized and seamless omni-channel experience, rather it is about being able to do it consistently. This is what retailers should seek to achieve in order to be able to stay in the game. It is important for the retailer to understand that each and every part of the shopping journey is important. Therefore they must not only focus on the purchase but also aspects like information gathering, opinion seeking, post-sales services, promotions and so on as the customer moves along their shopping journey. Importantly, the retail brand must be able to stay connected with the customer across the entire journey span, transcending multiple channels. Moreover the brand should seek to enhance their relationship with customer through constant engagement that is personalized and relevant to them. Retail business’ success lies in not only realizing that whether the customer purchases or not, every touch-point across the customer journey there is an opportunity for the retail company to meet its customer but also must be seized by the retailer and efforts should be taken to keep the customer positively engaged. With the right retail software, this is definitely possible to achieve.

Creating and enriching customer experience

As mentioned above, retail is no longer about just the transaction between the retailer and customer. It is way deeper than that and retailers must go beyond their usual practices to reach that depth. As the modern day consumers are evolving dynamically, they are not just seeking to satisfy their material wants by purchasing products; they are craving experiences – experiences that will leave an impact on them and want them to come back and stay loyal to the brand. From the customers’ perspective, it is easier for them to stick with a retail brand that stands true to their expectations. Retailers must constantly look to create and deliver enriched omni-channel shopping experiences as well as ensure that these experiences are seamlessly unified and are specially curated for the customer. By creating these personalized shopping experiences across the customer journey, retailers will able to address the needs of their consumers on their own turf – eventually moving from shopping carts to the consumers’ hearts thus leading to sales, positive experiences and brand advocacy. The right mix of retail technology and innovation will make it possible for retailers to achieve success.

Moving from E-commerce to Omni-channel – Top 3 Challenges

Posted on September 23, 2023September 21, 2023 by admin

Changing customer expectations, the advent of multiple channels of shopping and the infusion of technology in retail have given rise to a new breed of shoppers today commonly known as ‘omni-channel shoppers’. These modern-day retail shoppers are tech-savvy and highly demanding, spoilt for choice, and seek value for their money. And they will not want to associate with single-channel retail brands as they constantly look for convenience and speed. So not only brick and mortar retail companies but online only e-commerce retail brands also have no choice but to migrate to omni-channel. However, with e-commerce companies going for an omni-channel approach that integrates both offline and online retail, there are some challenges that these retailers need to be ready for.

Online-offline integration:

There are basically, two main channels for retail – online (which includes e-commerce, mobile, and social media) and offline (which includes brick and mortar store, pop up stores). While integrating the online channels to work seamlessly would seem to be achievable due to the similar nature of functionality, adding offline to this mix and looking to achieve a seamless integration can prove to be a daunting task as this calls for necessarily aligning every process and operation of the business to meet the omni-channel objective of unified customer experience. However, the good news is, that by employing the right omni-channel for e-commerce software, retailers can achieve a seamless transition from a single channel and holistic omni-channel integration.

Customer and inventory management:

Online retailers generally provide the ‘buy online and ship to home’ fulfillment. However, when looking to go completely omni-channel from e-commerce, there are new fulfillment options that can be added such as buy online pick up in store, endless aisle, and so on. This calls for a seamless and accurate flow of customer and inventory information across all channels. Having a unified view of the inventory and a single view of the customer across channels is necessary to handle multiple fulfillment options as well as planning and executing promotion campaigns and loyalty programs for customers across channels. Having a solid omni-channel retail software with CRM, promotions and inventory management capabilities can allow retailers to offer a unified omni channel customer experience.

Supply chain and logistics management:

Moving from e-commerce to omni-channel though has benefits, it also poses multiple supply chain and logistics challenges. One of the biggest challenges for retailers while implementing an omnichannel process is ensuring product availability at the right channel at the right time and at the right price. This is necessary for handling different engulfment options so that customers can get the gratification of their purchases as per their terms. Another challenge that is a necessity in this omni-channel age is reducing delivery time-frames. This again can be tackled by having the right product at the right place so that fulfillment centers are not too far away from the customers’ preferences of where they want to receive their purchases. With the help of a robust omni-channel retail solution encompassing supply chain management can ensure retailers succeed in their omni-channel business.

Also Read: Adopting Unified Commerce – The Next Generation Of Retail

Tips to transform your in-store customer experience

Posted on March 30, 2018February 3, 2023 by admin

Customer experience is the ‘be all and end all’ for retail businesses today. Every retailer is vying to gain the biggest share of the customers’ attention and wallet in order to succeed; and delivering a superior customer experience is the best way retailers can achieve their goals. Therefore, they need to compete in this intense ‘customer experience’ battle ground. Moreover, for brick and mortar retail companies, the competition gets even stiffer as they have to tackle additional contention from e-commerce retail players. With all this competition and other internal & external constraints, offering a fantastic shopping experience for in-store customers is a challenge for your retail business. However, below are a few simple tips that can help you transform your in-store customer experience.

Offering unique and personalized experience

Knowing and understanding customers not only by the demographic characteristics and buying history, but also following their individual shopping journey. This will enable you to go beyond the usual conventions of customer experience and drive you to innovate ways by which you can make the customer experience unique and personalized. Something as basic as knowing that a customer has visited the store on her birthday and presenting her tailored offers can leave a positive impact. Similar kind of unique and personalized experiences need to be created and delivered. This will set you apart in the perception of the customer.

Channelizing store employees

An important element that stores have over e-commerce is the personal touch factor. Store employees can be the brand ambassadors for your business and can thus influence the customers purchase decisions as well as enhance their experience. Therefore you need to mobilize and channelize your store employees and harness their potential to deliver a superior shopping experience. Investing in training your store employees is essential to the success of your brand.

Providing value added services

More is less in the new retail mantra. The modern day customers are demanding and how. They seek more channels for shopping, more choices of products and expect more value for the money they spend. Though this seems to be a challenging situation, you can convert it into an opportunity by incentivizing your customers with value added services for purchasing from the store. This is like an extra layer of customer service that will go a long way in compelling customers to come back to the store. Simple service options like offering to home deliver apparel after alteration or offering to take old stuff and providing cash coupons for purchasing at the store, are some techniques than can be implemented.

Tendering convenience and reducing time

There seem to be a few specific attributes for in-store layouts that have been tried, tested, and proven successful. Some of these attributes include speed, convenience, cleanliness, and product selection. In today’s fast-paced world, where customers expect immediate assistance and instant gratification, making it easy and quick for customers to find their products or information, or providing them with different payment options for convenience and reducing their wait time at check-out queues, can significantly enhance your in-store customer experience. Using innovative retail technologies can allow you to add these capabilities to your retail stores.

Rewarding regular customers

You must appreciate the loyalty your customers have towards your offline retail business and reward them. Customer relationship management and loyalty programs with attractive reward schemes are proven methods to enhance the brand-customer relationships. The more you reward, the more your customers will come back to buy from you, resulting into a profit churning cycle for your business while offering a superior experience to your customers. Further, these loyal customers would be your brand advocates who in-turn would use their word of mouth to bring new customers.

Setting up a solid and foolproof retail business inventory management process

Posted on March 26, 2018August 29, 2022 by admin

While strong sales are the backbone of any retail business, its inventory management process can signify the difference between success and failure for the business. Inventory management can be generally perceived to be a balancing act between demand and supply rather than just a business operation. While retail as a business has been evolving over the last few decades due to the influence of technology and innovations, the processes involved in the retail business are also a part of this evolution. The inventory management process has witnessed the need for a significant upgrade, especially due to the advent of new channels of shopping leading towards omni-channel. However laying the groundwork for a successful inventory management strategy and process that matures along with the business is extremely important for the success and sustenance of the business. Below are the basic steps for setting up a solid inventory management process.

Set the key performance indicators (KPIs).

Setting, using and sticking to KPIs to manage inventory can be one of the best methods with regards to to measuring the impact of overall business operations. Every business and therefore their set of KPIs are different, but there are a few common ones that retailers must look at:

Gross Margin Return on Investment (GMROI): This analyzes the firm’s ability to turn inventory into cash above the cost of the inventory. It is an inventory profitability evaluation ratio, calculated by dividing the gross margin by the average inventory cost.

Gross Margin Return on Footage (GMROF): This is an important KPI that measures the inventory productivity that expresses the relationship between the business’ gross margin, and the area allotted to the inventory. This is critical, especially when stocking inventory at the store for selling.

Average Days to Sell Inventory (DSI): This is a measure of the time period taken by the retail company to convert inventory into sales, and this metric varies by industry. An important point to remember while using this measurement is that large-ticket items typically move slower than small-ticket items. The formula for calculating DSI is (Inventory/Cost of Sales) x 365, according to Investopedia.

Stock-Outs: This KPI represents the number of times a demand cannot be fulfilled due to the unavailability of the required inventory. This helps in obtaining a big-picture view of the effectiveness of the business in purchasing and production.

Rate of Return: This monitors and rates the percentage of orders that are returned and therefore need to be restocked. Tracking the reason for returns while monitoring this KPI is important to identify and address any trends in problems in the supply chain and thus mitigate risks of costly returns.

Specify the W’s.

Efficient product organization aids a smooth inventory management process and can help in other processes such as picking, packing and shipping products accurately and quickly. At the basic level inventory organization begins with where and what – for achieving profitability, optimizing costs and offering superior customer experiences – that is the ‘why’.

Where: Evaluating the storage space available and creating zones, including number of doors/docks, recording their size and location, and non-inventory storage space; within these zones, determining sections, labelling each zone section clearly for employees to see and easily navigate.

What: Accurately labelling each product to avoid confusion and time in finding what customers ordered.

Choose the right software.

As the business grows, it is necessary to have an inventory management system that scales with it. Inventory management becomes more complicated with each new product the business sells and every new customer who buys it. Thus it is important to employ the right inventory management software (IMS) to help streamline multiple processes with a single program.

In order to find the right inventory management solution, it is crucial to define the pain points that need to be solved. These pain points may include overstocking/understocking, incorrect inventory levels or sales reporting, handling omni-channel inventory. Determining these needs will help in identifying the features each solution offers and how they will address the needs. Next is to evaluate the level of customization and compatibility with other systems, especially those that are currently being used or are going to be implemented within the business. Assessing the customer service capabilities (e.g., 24/7 service, dedicated representative) of the solution providers is a must as it can make a big difference when there is a need additional support.

Check and monitor.

Frequent and organized check-ins will help streamline all aspects of inventory optimization together. Considering cycle counting programs in order to gauge the accuracy of inventory levels through routine audits can help in understanding the product sell-through rates, which can then be used to liquidate products that aren’t moving in order to optimize costs and storage space. It will also enable the retailer to introduce new products into the mix that share similar characteristics with the biggest sellers. Finally, keeping an eye on the product quality and any discrepancies in size, color or style can help increase customer satisfaction and lead to lower return rates.

Continued evaluation is key for enhancing the inventory management process. Having a well-run process in place — from inventory organization to implement the software to data capture and then review and analysis – can ably support the growing business by adding efficiencies to shipping processes, reducing fulfillment timeframes, lowering rate of returns and enhancing customer satisfaction while strengthening the bottom line.

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