For the last two years, the retail industry has been in flux. Supply chain issues, labor shortages, surging inflation, and the war in Ukraine continue to disrupt the marketplace. Yet, at the same time, consumers’ expectations are growing, and the path to purchase is expected to be as convenient and personal as possible. So, what is a retailer supposed to do?
When Nordstrom opened its doors as a shoe store in 1901, it was no doubt a place where the retail customer experience was intimate. Initially as a store with just one product, it’s easy to imagine the owner and clerks knew the habits and tastes of their customers. Some may even have had lines of credit there. Fast forward 121 years.
One of the key benefits virtually every industry has seen as a result of the pandemic is the increased adoption of digital services and solutions to streamline processes and make businesses more efficient. We’ve certainly seen it within the retail industry as merchants looked to make new fulfilment options available to customers, like buy online pick up in-store (BOPIS) and curb side pick up options. And while these eCommerce-centric options provided peace of mind for consumers during the pandemic, new data from ChaseDesign shows that BOPIS purchases are declining compared to 2020 and 2021.
When you think about an ideal smart home, it probably includes smart appliances like a fridge or a stove, your thermostat, light bulbs, a sound system, security system, etc. And while having all these connected devices can certainly make managing your home easier, it’s likely that that most devices come from different service providers. This means the need for multiple apps to manage all of your services, which for anyone is less than ideal if you’re trying to do multiple tasks at once – like changing your lights, audio system and thermostat to turn on when you get home. Now imagine being able control all these systems from one app – wouldn’t that make your life a lot easier? You could make changes for multiple devices at once or even allow them to send data to each other to improve your experience.
While all companies have been impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic, the hotel and lodging industry was hit particularly hard. And while the industry continues to rebound with more people traveling every day, it’s important to remember that consumers expectations have shifte
d significantly. To that end, Hospitality Technology’s Lodging Technology Study found that 52% of respondents reported that their guests increasingly prefer digital experiences over encounters with staff. This follows the trends we’re seeing in other industries as consumers continually are opting for more streamlined, associate-less merchant interactions. For example, buy online, pick up in-store in retail and mobile ordering for restaurants.
