Have you ever considered how we make decisions or what motivates us to make a choice? What is the fundamental need for making a decision? Well, I hope you got your answer. Yes! I am talking about information.
Starting from decision making to managing everything, we need information. And this is what makes information technology come so far. If we look back, a decade ago, we had no clue that we would be able to try on our clothes just by looking into a mirror, and we could click our picture too on that mirror. But now, this is actually happening. It is called the Smart Mirror. The traditional mirror is out, and the smart mirror is in, using Artificial Intelligence, Virtual Reality, and Gesture Recognition technology. OAK LABS.INC has such a mirror in The OAK fitting room. Oak Labs is creating technology for physical retailers. Oak helps customers do what they come to a store to find and experience products excellently. And what’s more, you will find that this is the easiest and most convenient way to choose and purchase products.
Today’s supply chain is working on consumers’ demands and wants through information technology, trying to find out what will make shopping more seamless and what will make shopping more fun. Big Data and Cloud Computing are making this work more convenient for supply chain analysts.
We are all aware that retail businesses generate troves of data every day. But Retail organizations have never had an issue collecting lots of data, but analyzing it and using the data to solve problems or create new solutions has been a struggle. Predictive analysis is a proactive approach whereby retailers can use data from the past to predict expected sales growth due to changes in consumer behaviors and market trends. Predictive Analysis with Big Data enables retailers to realize the enormous potential of understanding consumers’ purchasing behavior, needs based on where and what situation they are in, priorities, shopping experiences, different purchasing tendencies, and where to cut costs and where to invest more, as well as how to be more efficient and agile. In light of the above requirements, today’s merchants are attempting to create consumer-friendly retail systems using information technology.
Now I am going to tell you about an amazing technology that may not surprise you if you are already informed about it. Well, joking apart, I am talking about “Just Walk Out Technology,” which was introduced by Amazon. Using the Amazon Go App to enter the shop and put away your phone and start picking whatever you want and like, and coming out of the shop without any checkout and any lines is the most amazing part of the “Amazon Go” retail system. In this cashier-less Amazon shop, when you start picking up any product, your virtual cart will automatically add it to your cart. And if you put anything back you picked, this technology will automatically update the virtual cart. And when you get everything you want, you can just go, and when you leave, the technology will add everything into your virtual cart and charge the shopping to your card or bank via the app. The “Just Walk Out Technology” works by using computer vision, deep learning algorithms, and sensor fusion.
We all know the term “Extended Reality”. Virtual and augmented reality is not new in the retail system. But the significance and the opportunities of this technology in this ongoing pandemic are sparkling like never before. During this pandemic, people are trying their best to avoid the crowds and trying to buy all their necessities from home. But the problem with online shopping is that we can’t try the products from home and can’t realize how it is in reality. Many retailers have already added this technology to their retail systems, such as Gucci, Dior, Chanel, Burberry, Ikea, etc., to take their consumers’ shopping experiences to the next level. Considering the pandemic situation, it seems like virtual and augmented reality is going to be the best options for retailers to provide the best experience to their consumers at this time. What is your thinking?
In addition, the rise of Big Data makes supply chain management more responsive and efficient than ever before. And when it comes to the retail system, the mentioned technology in this writing proves how Big Data is portraying the retail system day by day beyond people’s imagination. Everything information technology is inventing is directly connected to Big Data. Due to the volume of data retailers have available and the ability to process it, consumers can receive a personalized shopping experience that was not possible before. Moreover, Automated Stock Management in the warehouse helps retailers keep updated about stock data in real-time, allowing retailers to manage stock flow, and make solid predictions, intelligent decisions, and forecasting that help improve the store’s bottom line.
And there is another powerful technology for retailers: recommendation engines, which help and direct consumers to find things they need at relevant times in their shopping journey. The more data the algorithms have to assess a customer’s shopping behavior, the better the recommendations. This technology is a bit similar to Beacon technology but helps retailers get more sales and consumers find their desired products more efficiently.
In this competitive world, no invention can lead the market for a long time. Due to the bombardment of data, you will see your competitors come up with another new idea or invention. This is happening to the world’s retail system, which is being embellished with the assistance of information technology, as portrayed in this article. This shows that the world’s retail system is moving forward with information technology in a rhythmic manner. Not only the retail system, but the whole supply chain is now moving beyond our imagination.
