5-Point Plan for Digital Store Transformation
Get great content like this right in your inbox.
Subscribe
11/8/16
By Joe Skorupa
So, your organization has a spotty record for motivating store personnel to adopt big corporate strategies like a digital store transformation. What you need is a way to benchmark how your organization stacks up in key phases of the transformation. You also need two sets of recommendations: one set to leap ahead in areas where you have strength and another to catch up where you are lagging..
Defining the mission: By digital store transformation I am referring to the flood of technology flowing into the brick-and-mortar store.
A short list of this technology includes mobile devices, mobile apps, beacons, RFID, digital wallets (Bluetooth), in-store shopper tracking, digital signage, kiosks, location-based marketing and more. And let’s not forget all the enterprise software that is also needed.
The impact of this transformation is profound, according to the recently published RIS Custom Research report “Game Plan for Digital Store Transformation,” which found that two fifths of retailers (40%) say the impact of this transformation is large and significant.
The study also found that technology is only as good as the people who use it. A big majority (70%) say the role played by associates and managers is “very important” to the project’s success and of this group 32% say it is “extremely important” and decisive.
Step One: Make store personnel a key pillar of success. So, by combining these two points we see that the first step a retailer has to take is to teach, train and motivate store personnel in the transformation process to fully leverage the flow of technology into the store.
Step Two: Put a senior executive in charge. When asked who is responsible for managing the digital store transformation the answer turns out to be “no one.” A fifth of retailers responding to the survey (21%) say the executive in charge is the Chief Marketing Officer. The rest of the responses are scattered among nine other job titles ranging from store operations to CEO to CIO to CDO
That’s a problem. One of the reasons retailers have been struggling with their omnichannel strategies for at least five years is that no executive was truly in charge. And by the way, is the marketing guru the right person? Nothing against CMOs, but my guess is that creating a schema for unifying back-end technology is probably the last thing they want to spend their time on.
Step Three: Set well defined strategic goals. Retailers say the top goal for moving forward with a digital store transformation is to drive shopper loyalty and return visits, which was chosen by 82%. Others include increasing sale store sales (74%), improving customer experience in the store (71%) and improving customer satisfaction metrics (63%).
Step Four: Enable strategic goals through well-defined tactics. The top services and functions that should be added during a digital transformation of the store are equipping store associates with mobile devices (61%) and recognizing high-value shoppers when they enter the store (61%). Others include implementing a real-time order-management solution (58%) and rolling out same-day pickup or delivery (55%).
Step Five: Focus on 5 high-priority technologies. The major technology components of a digital store transformation that must be implementyed or upgraded include: CRM/ Personalization (71%), real-time inventory (68%), shopper WiFi (66%), order management (66%), and integrated e-commerce platform and POS (63%).
The above recommendations are a good starting point for creating a game plan that will take your organization through a digital transformation of the store, a journey that will be somewhat different for every organization depending on current strengths and weaknesses.
For an in-depth look at the RIS Custom Research report “Game Plan for Digital Store Transformation,” which includes a full set of charts and analysis, click here.
By Joe Skorupa
So, your organization has a spotty record for motivating store personnel to adopt big corporate strategies like a digital store transformation. What you need is a way to benchmark how your organization stacks up in key phases of the transformation. You also need two sets of recommendations: one set to leap ahead in areas where you have strength and another to catch up where you are lagging..
Defining the mission: By digital store transformation I am referring to the flood of technology flowing into the brick-and-mortar store.
A short list of this technology includes mobile devices, mobile apps, beacons, RFID, digital wallets (Bluetooth), in-store shopper tracking, digital signage, kiosks, location-based marketing and more. And let’s not forget all the enterprise software that is also needed.
The impact of this transformation is profound, according to the recently published RIS Custom Research report “Game Plan for Digital Store Transformation,” which found that two fifths of retailers (40%) say the impact of this transformation is large and significant.
The study also found that technology is only as good as the people who use it. A big majority (70%) say the role played by associates and managers is “very important” to the project’s success and of this group 32% say it is “extremely important” and decisive.
Step One: Make store personnel a key pillar of success. So, by combining these two points we see that the first step a retailer has to take is to teach, train and motivate store personnel in the transformation process to fully leverage the flow of technology into the store.
Step Two: Put a senior executive in charge. When asked who is responsible for managing the digital store transformation the answer turns out to be “no one.” A fifth of retailers responding to the survey (21%) say the executive in charge is the Chief Marketing Officer. The rest of the responses are scattered among nine other job titles ranging from store operations to CEO to CIO to CDO
That’s a problem. One of the reasons retailers have been struggling with their omnichannel strategies for at least five years is that no executive was truly in charge. And by the way, is the marketing guru the right person? Nothing against CMOs, but my guess is that creating a schema for unifying back-end technology is probably the last thing they want to spend their time on.
Step Three: Set well defined strategic goals. Retailers say the top goal for moving forward with a digital store transformation is to drive shopper loyalty and return visits, which was chosen by 82%. Others include increasing sale store sales (74%), improving customer experience in the store (71%) and improving customer satisfaction metrics (63%).
Step Four: Enable strategic goals through well-defined tactics. The top services and functions that should be added during a digital transformation of the store are equipping store associates with mobile devices (61%) and recognizing high-value shoppers when they enter the store (61%). Others include implementing a real-time order-management solution (58%) and rolling out same-day pickup or delivery (55%).
Step Five: Focus on 5 high-priority technologies. The major technology components of a digital store transformation that must be implementyed or upgraded include: CRM/ Personalization (71%), real-time inventory (68%), shopper WiFi (66%), order management (66%), and integrated e-commerce platform and POS (63%).
The above recommendations are a good starting point for creating a game plan that will take your organization through a digital transformation of the store, a journey that will be somewhat different for every organization depending on current strengths and weaknesses.
For an in-depth look at the RIS Custom Research report “Game Plan for Digital Store Transformation,” which includes a full set of charts and analysis, click here.
