Rising tech trends in retail
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1) Mobile Payments
Contactless payment has become increasingly popular for consumers making quick purchases under £30. Although already a staple in many retail chains, the demand for contactless and other mobile payment will continue to rise and become the ordinary as consumers search for more swift and efficient ways to shop.
2) Internet of Things (IoT)
IoT technology is already reshaping the retail industry. IoT is driving innovation and new opportunities by bringing every object, consumer and activity into the digital era. At the same time, leading businesses are making similar changes within their enterprises by digitising every employee, process, product and service. There’s only a matter of time before our fridges are ordering milk for us.
3) Virtual Reality
An emerging branch of IoT and no longer associated with just video gaming, virtual reality. Fashion retailers have used VR to engage with customers by taking them to ‘virtual catwalks’. Travel companies are using it to create virtual brochures, allowing potential customers to get a taster of what to expect on their holiday. Some retailers are even building shops through the power of VR.
4) Beacons
Bluetooth beacons transmit information to nearby smart devices. These can be used in retail to send messages to a potential customer’s phone as they browse around in store. This could be a welcome message, information about a new product or even discount codes to use instore. However, retailers are still seeing some teething problems when implementing these devices due to certain apps consumers will need to download in order to be targeted.
5) Cloud Computing
Cloud computing is a very effective solution for retailers to build capabilities quick enough to attract consumers; it allows for them to adapt their offerings to meet the expectations of today’s digitally connected consumers throughout their shopping experience.
6) Security
Data breaches are becoming more common and costly (not just the fines but the damage it has done to reputations too). Retail is one of the most exposed of all industries to cyber attacks due to the volumes of information it processes, the quantities of sensitive private data retailers are trusted with and the number of entry points to their networks and systems.
