Technology is changing shoppers' lives at an ever-increasing pace. Technology marches on and failing to embrace it is a sure way to be left behind.
Information is a central facet to this change. Information increases opportunity, but it also increases expectations. A more informed shopper may increase sales opportunities, but the stakes are high: fail to keep up with a shopper's new habits and they may leave you behind, spending their limited shopping dollars with the retailer who has stocked what you didn't or delivered the shopping experience that you don't.
Increasingly, meeting informed consumer demand has moved beyond diverse products and into the shopping experience. The safety and convenience of online shopping and diverse features like home delivery or curbside pick-up are all-but the new normal.
This hasn't ended the power of a shopper's in-person engagement. According to IDDBA's Vice President of Events Jeremy Johnson, "click and collect" grocery shopping may realize increased sales for the retailer but it also hurts impulse-driven shopping areas like bakery and deli. Retailers cannot afford to lose sight of the power of look, smell, and touch.
Smart operators need to think strategically about not only the opportunities opened up by embracing new technology, but how they will respond to the vulnerabilities technology also creates.