Today, everyone is looking to set their expectations for the year ahead. For retail, it promises more disruption ahead as they try to figure out the changing shopping behaviors they see from customers who are more digitally savvy than ever.
Retailers who promote product transparency & sustainability will flourish.
These days, you can find any information you want online and shoppers are no longer content not knowing everything about the products they’re purchasing. A worldwide shift toward sustainability, consumer desire to be more ethically conscious in purchase decisions, and a keen interest in supporting brands with a “strong sense of identity.”
Stores providing unique in-store experiences will thrive.
Retailers who can provide unique in-store experiences will be king in 2017. After all, the only way to justify a customer making the trip to your store rather than shopping online is to give him an experience he can’t get anywhere else.
Retailers across the board will adopt mobile payment solutions.
Mobile payments are the way of the immediate future. TechCrunch estimates that 70 percent of all mobile users in the United States will make a mobile payment in 2017, mobile payments in general next year are expected to total $60 billion, and if you take Business Insider’s word for it, by 2020 mobile payments will account for $503 billion in sales.
Smaller stores are in; larger stores are out.
When it comes to store size, less will be more in 2017. Consumers don’t want to waste precious time wandering around the endless aisles of enormous stores anymore. Instead, they want ease and efficiency in the form of smaller stores with specialized selections.
Personalization will become increasingly important to consumers.
According to an Accenture Interactive study, “56% of consumers are more likely to shop at a retailer in store or online that recognizes them by name.”
Same-day shipping will become more prominent.
Free shipping is no longer an option; it’s a requirement in today’s world. Consumers might not want to actually make the trip to physical locations, but they still want the instant gratification of taking their purchases home immediately.
Retailtainment will pervade the industry.
Retailtainment, as the name suggests, is the fusion of retail and entertainment. An effort on the part of retailers to provide customers with fun, unique experiences that elevate shopping above anything it’s previously been.
Data will continue to be a significant component of retail success.
More retailers will apply data to every part of the retail process, from the supply chain to the post-purchase stage of the buyer’s journey. Retailers who make data-backed decisions will outperform those who don’t. Which is why we think companies will double-down on data collection and analysis.
Retailers will turn to apps, services, and third parties to fulfill the needs of modern shoppers.
The number of retail-centric apps will increase, and we can expect merchants to leverage them to stay competitive. Retailers are seeking help from third parties to get their products into consumers’ hands quickly and easily.
The year ahead will favor retailers who come up with smart, bold ways to personalize & elevate every aspect of the shopping experience.
Success will boil down to retailers’ ability to offer customers a personalized, seamless shopping experience. Forward-thinking retailers will concentrate their efforts on a shop that responds to customers’ demands, integrating in-store technology, mobile, cloud, analytics and social media in a unified system to boost customer engagement.
Written by: for Dunlopmarkerting
List Source: Retail Industry Executives List
Contact: 800 310 8349
Email: info@dunlopmarketing.com
Additional Sources:
https://www.vendhq.com/university/retail-trends-and-predictions-2017
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