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HITTING REFRESH IN STORE The latest episode of The Retail Exchange podcast discusses technology in store, and what it can and can’t bring to the customer experience.
Text: Lyndsey Dennis
Panel:
Ben Bland Host
Melanie Pittham creative innovation director, The BIO Agency
It’s hard to imagine retail stores without technology. In the latest Retail Exchange podcast episode, we discuss the futuristic technology that is promising to change how people shop in store. The choices retailers will have to make, the importance of getting it right, and why there are still many lessons to be learned along the way. The panel discusses what retailers must do to avoid the pitfalls of adopting technology for technology’s sake and ensure developments stay focused on meeting shopper needs.
Which part of the in-store retail experience do you think technology is most important in? ‘I think we have to focus on the customer first. There is a real need or requirement to understand the customer, and I think personalisation around that customer is the next big trend that’s going to make a difference for retail. Knowing the customer, when and where they’ve come from and looking back in the history to know whether they’ve come from online, whether they’ve come from physical; I think the merging of those physical and digital areas around personalisation is my next innovation,’ says Tim Manning, co-founder of Swarm. ‘I agree. I think it’s not really about technology driving innovation, it’s about customer needs and expectations changing that means we need to innovate to meet them and also, not only must technology be accessible and fit for purpose, but it also needs to demonstrate a positive impact on the business through an experience that makes customers happy,’ says Melanie Pittham, creative innovation director at The BIO Agency. ‘I think just to echo Mel and Tim’s point, we view technology very much as an enabler not the solution, so I think what we’re
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Pete Trainor author, co-founder and director, US, Ai
Tim Manning co-founder and director, Swarm
seeing over the last couple of years is people generating vast quantities of data from many, many channels now. I think the big innovation is going to be how retailers start to process and deal with that data that’s generated in and on the channel environment,’ adds Pete Trainor, author, co-founder and director of US AI.
‘Personalisation around the customer is the next big trend that’s going to make a difference for retail.’