Mobile devices are greatly changing consumer habits. Against this backdrop, retail companies need concepts for offering their customers special shopping experiences in the form of personalized mobile services. Using the TP Application Suite software platform and its individual modules, Wincor Nixdorf will demonstrate at EuroCIS how to efficiently operate mobile touch points and how retailers can support their customers during the purchasing process, excite them with innovative services and maintain their loyalty to their company.
A study* commissioned by Wincor Nixdorf and carried out by the international market research company IDC Retail Insights shows how mobile technologies are changing consumers’ shopping behavior and, as a result, influencing the range of services offered by the retail industry. Already, 72 percent of European customers use their smart phone or tablet to look up additional product information. Nearly one in three customers also expect sales staff at the point of sale (POS) will have mobile devices available to provide more details and demonstrate product features. The same number of consumers also expect sales staff to be able to reserve unavailable products for pick-up at another store as part of their customer service. From the results of the survey, IDC concludes that “mobile services are on the way to becoming an equally important criterion for deciding where to shop as product range, brands and prices..
“Retail companies should quickly define and implement their individual mobile strategy for stores,” says Sabine Grün, Head of Industry Marketing Retail at Wincor Nixdorf. The emphasis here is on “individual.” The basis for every promising mobile concept draws from “first analyzing the cross-channel shopping behavior, gaining a detailed understanding of this customer journey and developing specific mobile services for the company’s own target group,” Grün explains. Customers appreciate flexible delivery and pick-up services, with employees having real-time mobile access to stock levels and orders. Customers save time because they can scan their purchases themselves, for instance with their smart phone, and simply pay at a self-service checkout with either cash or a card. Customers receive personalized smart phone messages with special offers that precisely match their shopping basket, their needs or their current location in the store. These are just a few examples of mobile services. Every retail company must assess how relevant such services are for its own target group and which services in particular contribute to the shopping experience.
In view of its holistic approach to solutions and extensive experience in international retailing, Wincor Nixdorf sees itself as a consulting partner for retailers that has the ability to accompany and support such decision-making processes. In its study, the market research company IDC also recommends that retailers define their mobile strategy in cooperation with an IT partner “who is not only able to implement mobile applications but is also well versed with sales concepts and customer behaviors and has a deep understanding of the processes in the retail sector.”
As a special highlight, Wincor Nixdorf will demonstrate to visitors at EuroCIS 2016 the opportunities new mobile applications offer to brick-and-mortar retail companies using a model store environment. Wincor Nixdorf’s tried-and-tested software platform, the TP Application Suite, is the basis for such processes. The new version TP.net 6.0, with its individual application solutions, provides numerous functions for mobile devices with iOS and Android operating systems. “With TP.net 6.0, we have managed to map many functions, in particular omnichannel functions, and make them available for mobile use,” says Lars Wiesner, Head of Product Line Retail Software at Wincor Nixdorf. For example:
Mobile merchandise management. The software module TPOMM brings user-friendly merchandise management solutions to mobile devices. At the trade fair, Wincor Nixdorf will demonstrate how sales staff can use their tablet to call up product specifications, check product availabilities and enter or change customer orders, for example. With this solution, retailers give their customers the flexibility to buy, order, reserve, pick up and return products in the way that works best for them.
Mobile scanning. Whether customers want to pop in for a quick purchase or leisurely stroll around the store, mobile self-scanning processes using a hand-held scanner provided by the retailer or with the customer’s own smart phone save time and offer new services. Customers can scan their goods directly at the shelf, view additional product information and the total sum of their purchases on the display at any time, and pay quickly and conveniently at a self-service terminal. These processes are controlled through the TPiSHOP software.
Mobile marketing. Addressing customers directly and personally in the store with messages on their smart phone containing special offers that have been specifically selected on the basis of insights from “historical” business relations with the customer: This is an example of the kind of personalized marketing applications Wincor Nixdorf provides with its latest version of TP.net. Special tools for real-time analysis and proactive planning make the campaigns particularly effective and contribute to long-term customer loyalty. “Retail companies benefit from an informative 360-degree view of the customer relationship and can, as a result, gear their offers specifically to the requirements of the customers,” Wiesner says . To implement direct customer communication using beacon technology, Wincor Nixdorf cooperates with Zebra Technologies, a company that provides the WiFi and beacon infrastructure required for such applications.
With BEETLE/moPOS, Wincor Nixdorf will showcase a tablet POS solution at EuroCIS 2016 that can be used as a stationary and mobile point of sale. All the necessary POS functions, information on products and payment by card are thus offered in mobile form wherever the consumer needs them. This solution can also be used by store staff to call up stock information or reorder goods anywhere on the shop floor.
Wincor Nixdorf will present its mobile solutions for retail stores at EuroCIS 2016 (Düsseldorf Exhibition Center, February 23 through 25) at Stand C 26 in Hall 9. What’s more, various projects in practical use and Wincor Nixdorf’s omnichannel solutions will be introduced as part of the presentation program that accompanies the trade fair. Claude Gerber, Head of IT at Calida AG, will talk about his experiences with the SAP Order Management solution Wincor Nixdorf has installed at the global clothing group, for example. A presentation by s.oliver about the omnichannel concepts the international fashion group has pursued together with Wincor Nixdorf is also planned. In addition, Sabine Grün, Head of Retail Industry Marketing at Wincor Nixdorf, will give a brief presentation titled “Explore the store with mobile solutions.”
* In-Store Mobility Technologies: Realizing the Opportunity of Personalized Customer Experiences In-Store. IDC, 2015.
