Cross-channel, the key to tomorrow's retail
Consumers are now familiar with online shopping. New practices have developed, and are profoundly changing the retail sector. What changes are retail players facing, and how can they adapt? Read our full review of ERP.
Retail is changing
The e-commerce revolution involves hybridization with other forms of commerce. Consumers are combining the information sources and supply outlets available to them. So it's neither the death of physical retail nor the advent of all-digital retailing, but a subtle in-between that's unfolding.
Physical retail
- A pleasure outing
Physical outlets are still popular. They are simply viewed from a different angle: that of the pleasure outing, the relaxing stroll. Shopping centers are evolving in this direction. Relaxation/family areas, meeting places and quiet wi-fi zones are flourishing. Retail aims to enhance the consumer experience and become a true place to live.
- Crowding: the bête noire of brick-and-mortar outlets
But this serenity is fragile. One variable can shatter it all: crowds. These "pleasure" spaces can become nightmarish if they are saturated. The Saturday before Christmas is to be avoided at all costs. It's an apprehension and a definite loss of earnings for retail players. Controlling traffic is a priority. E-commerce therefore appears to be the ideal adjustment lever.
Digital retail
- Easier and more efficient
For many, buying online seems simpler. Rather than making a trip to the supermarket, they prefer to select products online and have them delivered. Even more so when delivery is offered, or when your basket from last time is in memory: less time spent looking for your usual products. Digital retail is good.
- Comprehensive, accessible information
Online, information is just a click away:
- competitors
- product information
- consumer reviews
- price comparison sites
- etc.
The Net is a mine of information. As a result, consumers quickly become experts in their chosen field. Let's say he wants to buy a sofa, he can easily become unbeatable on the technical characteristics of a meridienne compared to a BZ. And he soon has a complete knowledge of all current private sales and promotions. If he'd simply gone into the store and asked a sales assistant, he'd probably have received far less 360° information.
Cross-channel
Buying habits and behaviors differ from one person to another, or from one product to another. Some people prefer :
- do everything in-store: this is known as " brick and mortar ".
- do it all on the Internet: the " all click " approach
- get information on the Internet and go to the store to buy: this is known as " click and mortar ". For these consumers, it can be interesting to offer web-to-store: order online and collect in-store
- enquire in-store and complete the purchase online. This is what 69% of consumers do. This is known as store-to-web.
Retail players need to adapt to maximize customer satisfaction, whatever the purchase path.
Retail players must adapt
Making information available in-store
It's important for consumers to have as much information available to them in-store as they do online. This is what physical points of sale are gradually offering, by providing a wifi network on the one hand, and Internet access terminals on the other. The challenge: to show that physical purchasing is not lagging behind online purchasing.
Improving the in-store user experience
Online purchases are made by clicking, so they are instantaneous. In-store, however, there's always the fear of standing in front of a huge queue before being collected. For retail players, it's essential to work on this point. Some ERP (Enterprise Resource Planning) tools, such as Archipelia, offer mobile checkouts. This is the POSia tool: POS for Point Of Sale and ia, a suffix specific to Internet applications. POSia is compatible with all devices: smartphones, tablets and computers. It can also be connected to the store's Internet access terminals. This means that, when the store is busy, the kiosks initially designed to provide customers with information or browse the web can be transformed into automatic checkouts. Customers are thus autonomous: they pay themselves. And checkout queues are reduced.
Optimizing cross-channel logistics
In the back office, the cross-channel approach poses a logistical challenge. Since the same stock is distributed simultaneously via two different distribution channels (web and store), these flows need to be managed in real time. Here, too, Archipelia offers an adapted application: TCBia (Terminal Code Barre). This is an application connected to your WMS (Warehouse Management System). It reads and records product and parcel references. Your warehouse is thus managed by a single, unified and comprehensive tool.
Operating in disconnected mode, the application remains available in the event of difficult wi-fi conditions: in large warehouses or cold stores, for example. The solution alerts you in case of need, and also offers time-clock and inventory functions for your staff.
Retail has come a long way. It is now cross-channel. To optimize the customer experience across the different buying paths, retail players need to be agile. New-generation ERP systems and associated applications help them to be digitally competitive, so they can better approach their end-customers and win their loyalty.
Article translated from French