NOVEMBER 2017CIOAPPLICATIONS.COM8IN MYVIEWHow are Customer Expectations Driving Changes for Retail?There is extreme competition in the retail industry today and thousands of stores are closing in what is being described as the retail apocalypse. You cannot focus merely on survival, you have to have innovation and disruption as top priorities on your roadmap. Focusing on survival or a single core competency has been the downfall of numerous erstwhile behemoths such as Blackberry and Blockbuster Video. Nobody can be content with the status quo, no matter how strong your sales numbers are. Consumers demand a simple and seamless purchasing experience across channels. They do not think in channels, only retailers do! Unified commerce is more than just having a single view of inventory, it is as much about consistency in customer experience and communication. The digitalization of the economy is all about how to reduce friction points in consumer interactions and becoming easy to do business with. Anytime, anywhere, any device. Device does not only refer to a hand held device such as smart phone or tablet. The internet of things (IoT) is here to stay with Gartner predicting over fifty billion IoT devices by 2020. Innovations in customer engagement and experience will allow retailers to stay relevant and grow their presence. This hinges on a strong 360 view of the customer but requires a strong digital core that can drive personalized interactions both in store and across digital touch points.Big data is another buzz word that is rarely leveraged to its ultimate potential. Today we have more data than we have ever had: through decades of internal data, market research on competitors, and social media. The data alone will not fuel growth but better real-time decision making and business insights will. This represents a unique opportunity to embrace this digital revolution and drive more personalization. Digital leaders need to constantly look at how the latest technologies on the market can disrupt the customer engagement paradigm and drive their brands to new growth. Remaining grounded and driving alignment and prioritization in the boardroom is essential if you want your brand to avoid being the next casualty in the retail apocalypse.SAHAL LAHER, CDO & CIO, DESTINATION XL GROUPAVOID BEING THE NEXT CASUALTY IN THE RETAIL APOCALYPSE Sahal Laher
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