Reimagining the future of retail means positioning next-gen POS at the heart of the customer experience.
It’s a tough ask for any brand or retailer – how do they remain profitable, relevant and meet their customers’ changing expectations, during a period of massive transformation? Buzzwords like ‘agility’ and ‘innovation’ are bandied around by the C-Suite but for organisations to truly deliver growth, blending the physical and digital retail spaces is vital.
Leveraging data and insight to forecast and drive intelligent decisions is important in order to create new and meaningful customer experiences. It’s about staying on top, if not ahead, of ever-changing trends, reimagining your in-store offerings in the digital world and stripping away complexities in the buyer’s journey.
At the centre of it all is next-generation point-of-sale (POS); frictionless, experience-rich, tech-driven solutions that are steadily shifting from the conceptual to the norm. Here’s how next-gen POS keeps brands competitive in the new world of retail:
The store of the future fuses the physical and digital, providing customers with technology-enabled convenience, while allowing for real-life interaction and engagement. To omnichannel shoppers who seamlessly move from web or app to physical stores, next-generation POS offers them the best of both worlds – a frictionless, integrated, and unique brand experience. For businesses, this opens doors to higher shopper engagement, improved customer retention, and better sales.
Navigating the ‘phygital’ landscape is Indicia Worldwide’s in-store, contactless sampling solution. Developed in partnership with Alta Media in Vietnam for Unilever’s brand of gel toothpaste, Closeup, the robot detects, greets and interacts with shoppers in-store, while limiting contact with Covid-wary customers. Combining automation and customer interaction, the robot communicates in a shopper’s chosen voice and language, collects their data, and dispenses a product sample from its ‘backpack’. It records and saves information that can be extracted and analysed at any time.
The contactless sampling solution won 'Highly Commended' in the Technology category at the 2021 Creative Retail Awards; recognition for its ability to improve productivity while also creating an exciting experience in the customer buying journey.
Beyond leveraging technology, the new generation of POS is designed to optimise data, enabling brands to gather consumer insights to inform business decisions and marketing efforts.
Indicia Worldwide’s Intelligent Retail applies data to POS to drive meaningful ROI. Our Retail.i technology, for example, gives brands a real-time view of who’s browsing and choosing their products. Using the anonymised data and expert analysis, we then unlock insights on consumer demographics, dwell time and engagement volume. Our Intelligent Retail solutions are already creating new value for global brands such as Heineken and Chiquita, helping them better apply analytical clout to their work and improve cost savings and performance.
Choosing to shop more sustainably are 50% of global consumers who say they’re now more environmentally friendly. Consumers in Southeast Asia lead the way (86% in Indonesia and 74% in both Vietnam and the Philippines). On the business front, sustainable solutions not only translate to better brand preference and visibility but also promote innovation and adaptability that drive long-term savings.
Demonstrating such adaptability is the Closeup robot, which can be reprogrammed and modified for other campaigns or brands. Its fitted screen can run various ads and display customised information.
Adaptability, along with technology and innovation, will be the core competencies that businesses will demand from their next-generation POS; harnessing them to put customers in control of the shopping experience while empowering brands to create enhanced experiences, as quickly as consumers imagine new ways of engaging with them.
Interested to learn more about how we can help you deliver next-generation POS that will engage, create new value and keep you ahead of the curve?