- November 30, 2021
- By Chris Eby
- 3 min read
Transitioning to Contactless Retail
The COVID-19 pandemic pushed retailers toward contactless services. Explore the lasting lessons for flexible systems and a better shopping experience.
PANDEMIC IMPACT
Introduction
The COVID-19 pandemic affected nearly every aspect of life and business. In retail, it forced many businesses to change how they operated, including how they served customers without physical contact.
That disruption pushed businesses to become leaner and refocus their operations. The lessons from that period remain useful when planning more flexible retail systems.
Lasting Changes
At the start of the pandemic, some retailers expected a temporary disruption followed by a quick return to familiar ways of doing business. Instead, they had to reconsider how customers could shop, collect orders, and receive support. Contactless services offered a more convenient experience as well as a way to adapt to the restrictions of that period.
The useful question for retailers is which of those services improve the customer experience beyond the circumstances that prompted them.
CLOUD MIGRATION
Accommodate Changing Requirements
During the pandemic, retailers faced rapidly changing requirements and had to adapt their operations repeatedly. That experience highlighted the value of systems that can respond to changing customer needs.
The days of being able to support old green screen Point of Sale (POS) systems is quickly becoming antiquated and moving into modernized systems is becoming the norm for companies that wish to roll with the punches. Adopting cloud-based architectures is the way many of these retailers are able to make that happen. By migrating their systems out to the cloud, the companies are able to react much quicker to client needs and offer a better experience overall.
It’s unfortunate how many retailers have outdated, hard to upgrade, non-scaling systems floating around in their organization that currently prevent them from being able to pivot to changing requirements and customer needs. All of those systems should be identified and put into a plan of action to keep them from becoming blockers for your success.
DIGITAL CHANNELS
Digital Support
According to Rakuten, in 2019 online grocery sales in the United States accounted for only 4% of overall sales. In 2020, online order volume for grocery sales rose by over 200%.
Grocery retailers were not the only businesses affected. Other retailers also faced increased demand for apps and mobile websites, often under pressure to launch quickly. That experience reinforced the importance of planning mobile services around customer needs rather than rushing a product to market.
Aside from apps and mobile websites, retailers should evaluate other ways to interact with consumers. During that period, customer service phone lines were flooded with calls that existing systems could not always accommodate. Video, chat, and SMS can give customers additional ways to engage with a business.
In addition to offering other methods of contact, retailers should consider offering booking or appointment-based systems, depending on the type of retail. In some cases, this can really streamline the customer experience as well which will result in a happier customer and increased revenue. Not all retail businesses are a good match for appointment-based shopping, but it would make sense to evaluate your business to see if it is something that could work for you.
Retailers also experimented with subscription-based services. For customers who value convenience, a subscription can offer an alternative to repeated purchases without making the lowest price the only reason to choose a retailer.
INNOVATE
Conclusion
The pandemic showed why retailers need the ability to adapt their systems and services. The lasting opportunity is to use that flexibility to make shopping easier and keep pace with changing customer needs.
To ensure your business becomes one of the success stories, I’d urge you to consider adopting new and innovative ways to engage with your customers so that you can improve their shopping experience and increase sales as a result.
Changing the way things have been done is a scary thought. But change can be a good thing. And if you are concerned with which direction to go, please ensure you have the ability to take in customer feedback along the way. That will aid in your decision-making process so that you are always doing what is best for both the consumer and your business.
KEEP READING
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