Technologies That Are Going to Transform the Retail Industry Forever
Technology continues to reshape the retail industry in ways that could not have been thought possible just a couple of decades ago. For instance, conversational commerce was reasonably unheard of back in 2016. However, the retail sector took significant steps into the era of conversational commerce. New solutions that involve the use of artificial intelligence, chatbots and machine learning have been incorporated into business operations to enhance consumer brand experience. The CEO of SheerID, Jake Weatherly, says that the current market demands convenience which can only be offer by technology. As we move forward, we are likely to experience multi-channel retailing at a higher level.
Augmented reality marketing. Hand holding smart phone use AR application to check information
It is also projected that businesses will spend more time and resources to hire the latest state-of-the-art technology as well as to hire consumer experience teams. Improving consumer satisfaction using technology is essential in creating a loyal clientele. Returning customers will create a high volume of sales which enable the business. And it will lead to generate wider profit margins and attain a higher return on investment. In this article, we are going to discuss the technologies that will influence how the retail industry will interact with the consumer.
Drone Delivery for Retail Industry
Drone delivery was on the runway and ready for take-off back in 2016. However, the federal authorities cast some doubt over the entire idea. The feds argued that the technology might not get around as the finalization of the rules and regulations that will govern drone delivery will take another couple of years. Despite these hurdles, business enterprises continue to advance their projects that involve drone delivery in supply chain control. Some corporations are now ready to get out of the trial stages and expand into more significant pilot programs. Some of the renowned retail industry players in the United States such as 7-Eleven and Flirtey have already taken significant steps in that direction. These two companies had already made some deliveries in the Reno Area, Nevada in November last year. Amazon also completed its first drone delivery back in 2016 in the United Kingdom.
Blockchain and Bitcoin
Blockchain technology has made headlines in the business world for quite some time now. The technology has a more imminent application in the retail ecosystem and supply chain. In simple terms, blockchain is a shared ledger system that enables corporations. And their business partners to track and manage complex digital transactions in an accurate manner. Blockchain technology also stores the numeric values and objects securely involved in those digital transactions. One of the leading retail stores to announce the international incorporation of blockchain technology was Wal-Mart.
Wal-Mart intends to use this technology to track its produce and pork transactions in China safely. Bitcoin has also taken the world of digital currency by storm. Bitcoin uses blockchain as its underlying ledger technology. Many retailers around the globe have come up with bitcoin as a way for their consumers to pay for goods and services. Just three years ago, Overstock became the first retailer to accept bitcoin as a mode of payment. Although bitcoin’s value continues to be increasingly volatile, cryptocurrency will always have a place in the world of commerce.