Digital technology and "physical" stores can still coexist, indeed they do: according to a research carried out by Axis Communications in collaboration with Largo Consumo, Italian consumers are increasingly looking for what they want on the web, but the majority of sales are concluded in a physical point of sale. From the study, entitled "The store experience in the post-channel", it therefore emerges that retailers are aware of the changes taking place and of the coexistence of an online world that the consumer is less and less distinguishing from the physical one: if on the one hand with online shopping the customer seeks efficiency and comfort, on the other hand he can have direct experience, contact with the product and professional advice in the shop.
At the survey 50 retail managers participated (food, fashion, durable goods, cosmetics and catering) with the aim of defining which methods and technologies physical points of sale are adopting to better understand customers and improve their shopping experience. And the data collected provides more than one interesting starting point:
– Sales assistants retain an important role inside stores: for 62% of participants, offering immediate assistance from staff is essential for customer satisfaction;
- New devices such as tablets, PDAs and totems, made available to staff and customers, reduce the distance between the physical and digital world according to 48% of those interviewed;
- It feels the need to collect more extensive and complete information on consumers: 52% of respondents believe it is important to know how often and why people leave the shop at check-out, using traditional tools and new solutions thanks to artificial intelligence;
– Greater care is dedicated to the environments, not only to their technological equipment, but also to the furnishings, lights, indications inside and sound systems who broadcast a music often chosen with care and appropriate to the context.
“For consumers – commented Pietro Tonussi, Business Development Manager Southern Europe of Axis Communications – it will no longer make a difference to shop in stores or on the internet. The hub of commercial activities will no longer be the physical location, which will continue to play other important roles, but the place where the customer will decide from time to time to get in touch with the store and make a purchase. Consumers will want to be able to have a high-quality experience both online and in stores, both in the research phase and in the purchase phase and above all to be able to choose how to spend and where to collect the chosen products".
