Speed, convenience top shoppers' wants

Less than 20 years ago, people would walk into a store and be disappointed if a sales person wasn't readily available to answer questions. Today, that has changed. In fact, according to one new report, sales person interaction is near the bottom of consumers' list of wants when shopping.

by Kristina Knight

New data out from SOTI finds that, when it comes to shopping in-store, 73% of consumers prefer self-serve tech options - mobile kiosks, for example - to human interaction. Their Annual Connected Retailer Survey further found that 85% would like self-serve devices with which they can check pricing/inventory and 41% are in favor of mobile check-outs.

"[C]onsumers desire technology that enables a quicker and more convenient in-store shopping experience with limited human interaction. These results prove the critical role that mobile technology plays in reducing many of the challenges of the seamless customer experience through solutions that reduce cost, complexity and downtime in a secured for mobile, yet accessible fashion," said Shash Anand, Vice-President of Product Strategy at SOTI. "In an era where mobility can be taken to endless possibilities, retailers need to evolve beyond traditional mobile technology management to capitalize on new customer expectations quickly and efficiently."

Additional findings from the report include:

▪ 25% of consumers have used a voice-activated device like Amazon's Alexa for shopping
▪ 64% of consumers say they are open to new shipping options, including drone deliveries
▪ 22% would like store employees to have hand-held devices to communicate with back rooms/inventory areas

"With companies that have transformed how society uses technology - like Facebook, Google and Amazon - backing Virtual Assistants, we are keeping a keen eye on how these voice-activated technologies can be used in store by both consumers and associates. We suspect that by next holiday season, we will see more stores leveraging voice activation to improve the physical shopping experience," said Anand. "Retailers need to invest in platforms that provide a holistic mobile experience - from the ability to build mobile apps, that are both consumer- and sales associate-facing, manage critical processes, to being able to quickly troubleshoot devices on the floor to reduce downtime, and ultimately customer frustration."

Tags: ecommerce strategy, ecommerce trends, m:commerce strategy, mobile marketing, retail trends, SOTI