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Is hyper-personalization creepy or cool? A recently released Accenture study, “Retail Hyperpersonalization, Creepy versus Cool,”  finds that the answer largely depends on which demographic you’re asking. While customers appreciate personalization, many are concerned about their privacy. By and large, Millennials seem more into with retailers personalizing messaging. Boomers less so. For example, nearly three times more Millennials (17.2 percent) than Boomers (6.2 percent) think being reminded while shopping about needed items is “cool.” Also, 41 percent of Millennials say they’d welcome retailers stopping them from buying electronics that are not right or are outside their budgets. Gender influences the perception of what constitutes acceptable personalization as well. Accenture reports that 34% of male respondents think receiving suggestions personalized to account for their families’ food preferences is “creepy.” However, 40% of female respondents consider that type of personalization “cool.” Some forms of personalization are generally welcomed, though not universally. For example, these implementations are widely considered “cool”:
  • 82% enjoy discounts or loyalty coupons;
  • 59% welcome promotional offers based on items that the customer may be considering or lingering over;
  • 54% like receiving suggestions for items that complement merchandise that the customer is currently browsing.
Conversely, there are personalization efforts that customers find “creepy.”:
  • 36% of shoppers do not want to be greeted by name when walking into a store;
  • 42% don’t want recommendations based on their health issues;
  • 46% don’t want to be dissuaded from a purchase by a sales associate with preexisting knowledge about what the customer currently owns.
That leaves retailers with some specific rules of engagement: First, they must keep the value proposition from the customer standpoint in mind. There needs to be significant value for shoppers in order for them to be motivated to engage. Second, it’s important that the customer doesn’t feel overwhelmed. Too many messages or promotions can easily backfire for the retailer. Third, retailers must be transparent about how any information gathered will be stored and used. Opt-in policies let customers play an active role in the process. Fourth, retailers should have a system in place to capture and safeguard customer information. There should also be a plan in place detailing how a retailer’s information is to be used and how it will improve business. Fifth, and finally, building trust is key to success; retailers must work at establishing and maintaining a bond. It’s difficult to establish, yet easily destroyed. The Accenture study notes that there are three components for implementing a hyperpersonalization solution properly: make it expected, secure and data driven. Doing so provides a foundation for success that will drive profits as well as customer loyalty. Source: Avoiding the Creepy Factor In Hyperpersonalization | Retail Pro Blog
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Biometrics is an emerging technology in retail, used primarily to verify identity. With the debut of Apple’s iPhone 5 with fingerprint sensor in 2013, biometrics Biometrics predicted to become more widespread at POS systems. became part of the household vernacular. Samsung and PayPal followed soon after with fingerprint authentication. Today, biometric technology can be integrated into banks, ATM machines, USB keys hooked onto computers, as well as POS systems. In addition, retailers are looking at the technology to help prevent loss due to ID theft. Biometrics are incorporated into fingerprint identification, as well as palm-vein readers and facial recognition solutions to offer a convenient and additional layer of security, help prevent fraud and provide a better customer experience. Biometrics can also offer retailers controlled access and accurate attendance records, leading to a more secure workplace environment. With system and hardware prices dropping and reliability and convenience going up, more retailers are using some form of the technology. Marius Coetzee from Ideco told BizTechAfrica that biometrics were critical for fast, accurate customer ID verification — which results in fast, accurate decision making: “Point Of Sale based biometric verification is a critical aspect to reducing losses caused by increasing levels of ID fraud. Once customer details are registered, you can trade with certainty at every point of transaction.” According to Research and Markets, the global market for biometrics is on track to post a strong CAGR of 19.6% between 2014 and 2020, reaching a projected $30.1 billion by 2020, up from roughly $10.3 billion in 2014. Fingerprint recognition is estimated to be the largest technology with market, valued at $3.2 billion in 2014 while Civil ID — the use of biometrics to identify or verify the identity of individuals when interacting with governments — will be the largest application with global market of $4.6 billion in the same year. Retailers will increase using biometrics in multiple combinations to ensure security in payments, but, eventually, the technology could eliminate the need to carry a payment card or even a smartphone by letting users authorize payments with a fingerprint alone.
Source: Biometrics: More Than a Way To Turn On Your iPhone | Retail Pro Blog
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Mobile technology has become a major player in recent years, and it has had a lasting impact on the retail sector. However, recent reports have shown that while consumers are using their smartphones and tablets to research purchases frequently, the rate of people actually buying goods with these devices is much lower than many may think. Better understanding how people are interacting with retail stores through various channels can help merchants develop more effective marketing and sales strategies and make it easier to choose the right ecommerce software for their needs. Mobile purchasing still lagging A Gallup poll conducted in March 2014 revealed that most consumers prefer to purchase big ticket items worth at least $50 in-store (60 percent) or through a computer (34 percent). Only 4 percent of shoppers who participated in the survey said they had spent $50 or more using their mobile devices, whether through the retailer’s website (3 percent) or mobile app (1 percent). While purchasing through mobile channels may not be the most prominent path to the point of sale, the lower numbers suggest that there is room for improving the mobile shopping experience. For instance, the Gallup poll revealed mobile technology led to more brick-and-mortar shopping for 22 percent of survey participants. Mobile ecommerce strategies to boost sales Retailers with physical locations may want to capitalize on this by focusing on multichannel marketing strategies. Retail Week pointed to click-and-collect as a rising trend that retailers may want to explore. This service allows consumers to select and buy items online through their mobile device or computer. The purchase is then made available at a local brick-and-mortar location where the shopper can easily pick it up. Retailers can also consider developing mobile-friendly websites with secure POS software that could give consumers the confidence to make larger purchases on their phones and tablets. A better mobile site experience could increase brand recognition and loyalty. According to Gallup’s survey, when customers are more invested in and engaged by a brand, they tend to spend more with that retailer. Fully engaged shoppers spend about 23 percent more than the average customer. By focusing on the user experience, offering an intuitive mobile site design and increasing security at the point of sale, retailers may see a rise in mobile sales. The fact of the matter is that mobile technology is here to stay, and while there are still kinks to be worked out in terms of mobile retail, merchants that focus on improving their mobile shopping experience will be able to stay at the forefront of this developing consumer sector.
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Customers are constantly looking for ways to make their shopping experiences more convenient, and retailers are happy to oblige. Customers are constantly looking for ways to make their shopping experiences more convenient, and retailers are happy to oblige. To accommodate patrons who want faster and more streamlined transactions, businesses have a wealth of tools at their disposal. But one element that has been receiving more focus from brands recently is mobile point of sale technology. Traditional cash registers are located at fixed points throughout stores, meaning that customers have to find the products they want, walk over to the registers and often wait in line. However, with mobile POS solutions, the normal checkout process is changing. Now, employees are equipped with mobile devices that can accept credit and debit card payments, giving shoppers the chance to complete their transactions quickly from any point in the store. Retailers of all sizes are seeing this as an opportunity to leverage the technology to boost customer satisfaction and their revenue. Small merchants taking to mobile POS For smaller retailers, staying ahead of the competition and their larger counterparts is a vital part of operations. Fortunately, mobile POS is helping them do just that, as Media Post reported that the technology is becoming more popular with developing retailers. The source cited research from the Local Commerce Monitor by BIA/Kelsey, which found that 40 percent of small companies are currently using mobile POS systems to process transactions. This is an increase from the 28 percent that said the same last year. And while improving convenience for customers is one of the main reasons cited for adopting the technology, smaller merchants are enjoying that benefit as well. “The key is they’re not thinking of this as digital,” said Steve Marshall, director of research for BIA/Kelsey. “They’re not using mobile platforms because they’re digital – they’re using them because they’re convenient.” Larger brands steadily adopting mobile POS But the emergence of mobile POS within the retail industry is not only limited to smaller merchants – large brands are also getting in on the trend, according to Mobile Payments Today. Citing research from the Yankee Group, the source explained that 32 percent of U.S.-based retailers with more than 500 employees are currently using mobile POS systems. An additional 29 percent have plans to roll out mobile POS technology within the next year. The source explained that analysts are expecting these solutions to continue to grow in popularity among retailers, especially as the holiday shopping season approaches. These systems provide more convenience for both consumers and merchants, which is an essential element for a great retail experience. (Source: http://www.retailpro.com/News/blog/index.php/2013/08/19/mobile-pos-gaining-traction-with-retailers-of-all-sizes/)
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