We see new store concepts appear and online and offline commerce is merging. In the introduction to “Refresh Retail” Retail Institute writes that:
“Experts predict that retail will change more within the next five years than what we have seen the last 50 years.
At the same time, we see a skepticism and lack of trust from consumers about sharing data. This can slow down the development since the possibilities of individual offers, targeted campaigns and user targeted online help are limited without data.
PwC recently launched a trust barometer made in collaboration with Epinion. The barometer shows that digitalization is challenging the trust of the Danish people (link to text in Danish) and that it especially is when it comes to online shopping we’re skeptical:
When it comes to online shopping it is particularly when the Danish people have to answer if they’re willing to submit more data about themselves to get a better service when shopping online (35) and if they’re willing to submit more data about themselves to get a cheaper price (33) the trust is low.
There is no doubt that responsible use and storage of data concerns all of us. Building up trust with consumers is partially based on the individual relation between consumer and provider but it is also a tendency which probably will move over time. In pace with consumers’ trust increasing and technology being used intelligently we will hopefully also see an increase in willingness to share data.
It also means that once consumers are ready we’re likely to experience the explosive change Dorte Wimmer talks about in “Refresh Retail”. While consumers are nice and easily moving up the trust barometer it gives you the opportunity as retailer to gear your retail chain technologically so you’ll be at the forefront and won’t lag behind when the market is mature.
If you can manage the same prices, campaigns and discounts for the individual consumers on all your sales channels they will have the best impression of you and your business and hopefully that will increase the trust. Furthermore, it is the best foundation for you to continue to build on with more sales channels or functionalities when you know that everything can interact. How stable is the technological foundation of your retail chain? Are you managing data in the best possible way across sales channels?
You can download our check list and create overview of what you specifically should pay attention to when you’re establishing the technological foundation for your retail chain.
We have made a check list going through five areas you can’t compromise if you want to ensure efficient operation and great customer experiences across all sales channels. One of the areas is called “Your prices, discounts and campaigns are the same everywhere.” We also ask the questions you should ask yourself to find out whether you’re meeting this and thereby are ready for the future.