Headquartered in Mumbai, Systems+ is a Technology Consulting service provider offering business-specific solutions such as IT Consulting, Managed Captive, Technology Solutions, IT Infrastructure, and Mobility & Open Source services that enable companies to realize and maximize their total cost of ownership.

With consumer segments gradually migrating towards the digital world, traditional businesses are striving to compete with e-Commerce giants. Shifting from brick-and-mortar to digital (or setting that up as an additional platform for interaction with your customer base) is definitely a challenge. But, the demand for an evolved shopping experience is leading the change. The difference is the complete transformation in the ‘space’ of interaction. The need for convenience, 24X7 availability and mobile engagement are now essential additions to the customer experience design.

Although, digital retail experiences seem as cold virtual interactions and transactional relationships with less loyalty and long term bonding, they are an opportunity to get a lot more insight into Who your customer really is! There are three main foundation pillars which define and provide brand and service experiences for a retail establishment:

Engagement: Storing and capturing the data that can be acquired from the trail that consumers leave behind through online shopping will help determining the demography and lifestyle pattern of the consumer. Data Mining, is automated and creates a bank of information, when used to its potential, allows for a Retailer to create a personalized experience. It creates an opportunity for cross-sell, upgrades, bundling and pre-emptive service parameters.

Predictive analytics and options like ETL enable the creation of a robust CRM system. Although integrating the analytics capabilities and operational process flows do not sync, it provides for a better service experience. Furthermore,combining traditional business processes with the best of IT architecture and software technology helps create synergy between POS and virtual channels. With the process becoming customer-centric, it helps the retailer to participate in the purchase decision making cycle of a consumer and thus, 'one view' of the elusive buyer.

Automation and predictive analytics can help all elements in the retail setup.For eg:POS systems,today, are a combination of fundamentals like flexible payment options, high transaction speed and robust security. A traditional retailer has outlets and vendors in different locations and may

have tie-ups with an E-commerce platform along with order management systems to facilitate effective delivery to the customer. Multiple customer identities can be formed depending on where the customer shop, which is problematic for the retailers as it, affects their marketing, CRM and loyalty programs.

Harnessing the power of data by building a master database and integrating it in one place,helps maintaining the customer record easily.

Technology can drive retailers to grow exponentially and when used intelligently, help in the creation of businesses digitized to deliver

Through domain experience and expertise, we tried to create such a database with a bi-directional field that aimed at reduced transaction time and quicker response towards promotions that were executed at the POS. Thus, to create the right experience, you need the right technology.

Delight: ‘Instant Gratification’ is the hallmark of customer interactions today. The last mile- fulfillment, is the key and is completely dependent on efficient Inventory Management. With a managed inventory, there is an organized warehouse that prevents product shortages by increasing efficiency and productivity. It reduces manual work and has real time monetary benefits as inventory can be stocked according to pre-emptive demand, reducing warehousing costs and delivery time for customers. Legacy IT architecture is the backbone of the supply-chain, since an organization’s operations processes executes online purchases. It is not flexible or intuitive enough to function in a digital market place. However, technology has helped bridge that gap.

How to provide customer delight is a question that traditional retailers face today, especially with E-commerce giants like Amazon. These biggies are technological company functioning on the pillars of data and cost-effective pricing. If consumers look for the physical experience of touch and feel, which comes with traditional retail, pricing may not be the only factor for consideration. It is easy for traditional retailers to build an amazing storefront to compete with an Amazon. Too often, an E-commerce platform does not fully capitalize on this data, but a retailer can. Imagine this: When a consumer buys a shirt for his 10 year old from a retailer, the retailer identifies the age, demography, purchase history and patterns of the consumer. It is based on the 80-20 rule that says 80 percent of the time, the next purchase of the consumer can be predicted. If traditional retailers digitize and mobilize this data, they can build deliver a much better customer experience, which ensures one step more than satisfaction and transcends to customer delight.

Maintain: Value creation through digital product innovation, real time data analytics supporting personalized product choices and secure, error-free consistent experiences requires adapting with technology and integrating it all into a cumulative consumer experience.

Through a system that we developed, technology enhanced the entire shopping experience while bringing interactivity into the picture. An app was developed that enabled consumers to upload product pictures from kinds of platforms- like magazine, a billboard etc. After uploading, the picture could be customized to one’s liking and could virtually customize the product as per their choice of colours, sizes etc. This introduced the whole augmented reality aspect into the picture. Consumers could share it within their social circle, thus making it a collective shopping experience. If the customer was satisfied with the product, he/she could then purchase it from the nearest store or online, according to their convenience. Every brand must aim to provide each customer an exclusive personalized experience.

Today’s consumers are looking for constant availability, convenience, suitability and a holistic experience. Technology can drive retailers to grow exponentially and when used intelligently, help in the creation of businesses digitized to deliver.