Retailers top objective for 2012

Posted on by
Reply
The top objective for retailers in 2012 is to raise profits without selling more items, according to Bjorn Weber from Planet Retail. Not any easy thing to pull off but I think that it's an excellent objective to test every business decision against. If an action does not help you achieve this objective either don't do it, or do it differently. Retailers have moved on from just cutting costs. The obvious reductions have already been made and some cost cutting actually damages profitability, particularly where Read more [...]

Multichannel or Omnichannel?

Posted on by
Over the last two years almost every major retailer recognised that if they don't offer shoppers the option of buying their products online other retailers certainly will. In response to this challenge most retailers rapidly set up their own online shops, often with teams that were not part of Retail Operations. As stores and online were two separate channels and shoppers could choose which to buy from the term multichannel described the approach perfectly. What changed? Things developed rapidly.  It Read more [...]

Promotions – Maximising ROI

Posted on by
According to Market Force (previously known as Retail Eyes) 51% of shoppers confirmed that promotions drive them into stores. But, once in the stores are shoppers spending as much as retailers would like?  Not always. Some promotions may have missing POS, be unclear, lack key information or simply not be of much interest to shoppers in that specific store. Any of these points will reduce the ROI on a promotion. The challenge gets harder For some retailers the increasingly sophisticated Read more [...]

More effective promotions at the shelf edge

Posted on by
In The Times supplement on the Future of Retailing, amongst the issues of multichannel retailing and exciting new technology, a small statement from an SAP survey highlights an important operational reality. It said that 78% of retailers see customers as being more responsive to promotions and offers. Most retailers fully understand this reality but don't want to give away margin unnecessarily. Retailers are therefore re-evaluating if they are really capitalising on the power of promotions Read more [...]

QR codes are NOT dead

Posted on by
The demise of QR codes has been greatly exaggerated. Certainly some implementations of QR codes have added little value to customers and rightly gained negative publicity. It's a shame that the successful use of QR codes has not had the same amount of visibility. At Retail Bulletin's Multichannel conference on 1st February Schuh, Marks & Spencers and Halfords all said that QR codes was the most important technology for 2012. Tesco didn't go quite as far but did see them as a key way to access Read more [...]

Electronic Shelf Labels (ESLs) – update

Posted on by
Back in November I blogged about Electronic shelf labels and predicted that most major retailers will be deploying them, or planning to, within the next 12 months. Here is a update. Just recently I've noticed that the number of searches on our website for Electronic shelf labels has risen significantly. Excluding derivates of our company and product names it's become the second most popular search term.  I also spotted in RetailWeek that Waitrose are considering ESLs and I know of several Read more [...]

What’s important in a new signage or ticketing system? Survey results.

Posted on by
Thanks to everyone who completed our survey and shared their comments with us. One of our objectives for the survey was to find out if there were significant differences in the views of  IT, Retail Operations and Marketing about what's important in a new signage or ticketing system.  Representatives from all three functions are involved in selecting and operating a signage or ticketing system but we discovered that their priorities are often quite different. At the top of IT's priorities Read more [...]

Notes on RetailBulletin MultiChannel Conference Feb12

Posted on by
Another excellent event put together by Retail Bulletin. The top message was that mobile is seen as the vehicle that linked together on-line and off-line channels and enables multichannel integration.  One speaker actually called mobile the saviour of bricks and mortar stores!  Other common themes were:  QR codes, trial things quickly, focus on customers, iPod & Pads and channel integration. Here are my notes on some individual speakers. Kenny Ball, IT Director, Schuh Major success Read more [...]

What’s important in a new ticketing system? Survey

Posted on by
Retailers need a good ticketing and signage solution because the point of decision for the majority of shoppers is still at the shelf edge but, which benefits and features are most important in a new ticketing and signage solution? Please help us find out by completing the below survey. In return we will send you a summary of the results and also make a contribution of a least £1 per survey to AbilityNet who are a charity that helps disabled children and adults use computers and the internet. Just Read more [...]