New Store Techology: 'Must' or 'Bust'

Reviewing some recent video clips for potential tekSESSIONS speakers, I ran across a presentation by James Dion called “The Twelve Most Common Mistakes in Retail Technology and How To Avoid Them.” Within the first 2 minutes of the presentation he states “Do not place any technology in your store that will not benefit the customer.” (He also talks about how never to trust a sales person, but that’s another blog!)

Benefit the customer… hmmmm. In the marketing world, I often struggle with what’s just new and cool and what will actually drive sales. So for retail IT professionals, who live and breath technology, I can imagine its equally challenging to sort through what’s ‘new and cool’ versus what actually brings value to your customer. Even more challenging, once you determine it could bring value to your customer - now you have to make good on it.

Digital Signage: More than just a glorified TV?
The buzz everywhere is digital media and digital signage, but does it actually benefit the customer? I think the reality is that it could, but in most current applications its not. Take a grocery store for example. In a recent shopping experience I noticed digital signage at two points of contact - one over the produce and one at the checkout. The produce screen was a cooking demonstration for the seasonal vegetables found below. Great idea, right? Well, maybe if I had a way to get the recipe that didn't involve me scrounging through my purse for pen and paper. The TV at the checkout was really just that, a glorified TV with current show clips and news. Again, didn't really serve any purpose - there were no great tips or ideas on how to save time, money or make food more nutritional and enjoyable for my family.

Now lets take Smith & Hawkin's who has recently added digital signage in their stores - they are using the screens to take people to their website to see products that are not available in the store. Beneficial to a customer? Absolutely. Example: I need a patio set that is larger than anything they have in the store, but I am not going to order anything without seeing some images and specs on the set.

Mobile Technology: Customers only a text away?
In theory, this could possibly be the most beneficial technology a retailer could learn how to use simply because everyone has a mobile phone and its always on them. Two great examples of mobile technology in action:

• Dairy Queen recently launched a mobile loyalty program, where they are issued a chip, called the Tetherball Tag, which enables customer to receive offers via robust text messages. These promotions can be redeemed at the store’s point-of-sale system during checkout, or at an RFID-enabled kiosk located inside the store.
• Burger King launched an iPhone application that enables users to instantly log in and connect with Burgerkingnow.com. They can choose their closest restaurant, input their order through the touch screen, and pay through their phone. The order is fulfilled at the selected destination.

Self-Checkout: A real line-busting solution?
Research has stated that people like self-checkout. There are certain demographics that use it frequently and prefer it to traditional checkout. Yet, I was at a store last weekend where there were checkouts backed up into the aisles and all 6 lanes of self-checkout were closed. So yes, it’s a technology that can and will benefit the customer but only if implemented correctly.

Kiosks: More than gift registry?
I rarely see kiosks in any other application than flight check in and gift registries, but can think of a million places where they might be useful. For example Jack-in-The box is placing kiosks in their restaurants so people can order and just pick up. I believe that 7-Eleven has recently done the same.

Was at a presentation a few weeks back from where Zebra Technologies made a valid statement: Why do we print coupons off at the checkout when people are leaving rather than giving them to the customers when they enter the store? Everyone in the audience sat in dumbfounded silence, because it is over the top logical. Yet no one is doing it.

So the moral of the story: Its not enough to just place technology in your store that in theory benefits the customer, its up to you to make sure its implemented in away that is actually useful to your customers' shopping experience.

Happy summer!
Dana Harder, Marketing Director
tekservePOS Sphere: Related Content

Security Beyond PCI

We talk a lot about PCI and security measures as it relates to credit card fraud - but what about the theft that occurs in our stores? NRF’s fifth annual Organized Retail Crime Survey, was recently released and the news is not good.

According to the survey, nine out of ten retailers (92%) report that their companies were victims of organized retail crime during the past year, up eight percent from 2008. Nearly three-fourths (73%) of retailers also reported the level of organized retail crime activity has increased over the past 12 months, an increase of 11 percent from 2008. To download the report, click here.

So with crime on the rise, it’s important for retailers to make sure their systems are updated to provide the best surveillance possible. This might mean upgrading your system from analog to IP surveillance.

IP Surveillance brings all the advantages of network cameras and IP networking to video surveillance. Its digital cameras give you sharper color video, greater coverage and better zooming capabilities. In addition it can actually watch for certain kinds of behavior, events and action. There is a great white paper from Axis Communication that explains all the benefits of IP technology – check it out here.

Since we are relatively new to this space we would love to hear from you on what technology you are using in your stores. And if you have already upgraded to IP, what advantages have you seen.

John Pruban, President
tekservePOS Sphere: Related Content

Getting Serious About Experience

I will admit, until 2 weeks ago, I have not been in a Sears store in over 14 years. Growing up in a small, rural area, my parents have always been fans. But when you live in a metropolitan area where there is no shortage of shopping options, Sears is not first to mind. So when my husband announced we were going to Sears to buy a lawnmower, I wasn't sure what to expect.

I have to say - my husband and I were both pleasantly surprised at our shopping experience - great customer services, knowledgeable sales staff and easy, fast and convenient pickup. Would I shop at Sears again, absolutely.

We often forget that business, no matter what industry, is not always about the product being sold or the price its being sold at. Repeat business and referrals often come from a great experience. Which is why, Sears, like many retailers, is using this time to focus on creating that great customer experience.

At a recent stockholders meeting, Edward Lampert of Sears, said, "Make no mistake, I'd rather have our sales going up, and rather have same-store sales going up, but not at the expense of generating profit. When you give product away, your renting market share. We want to own market share. And you do that by providing better experiences."

Sears believes that a great customer experience is going to come from integrating its website with its in-store shopping with the launch of a new concept called mygofer. The concept allows people to shop online and then pickup their merchandise at a store - which operates more like a warehouse than a traditional retail location.

"We think that's going to be a better way for people to shop," Lampert said. "This is not just about being a new store experience, it's about there being a different way for people to shop."

Integrating store and web is just one way to enhance that shopping experince. This month's tekREVIEW is full of ideas - digital signage, barcode and mobile technology and causes worth suporting in your stores (Retail ROI). Would love to hear how your stores are working to enhance the customer experince.

And remember sometimes a simple "Can I help you find something?" is all is takes.

Dana Harder
Marketing Director, tekservePOS Sphere: Related Content

PCI Compliance: Who wins?

A few weeks back, the NRF told a congressional panel "that security standards imposed on merchants by the credit card industry are only 'an elaborate patch,' and that a system in which retailers would not be required to store card numbers would do a better job of protecting consumers against credit card fraud."

Great idea, right? The only problem: for now, credit card security is in the hands of the retailer. And with new PCI deadlines looming and cyber crime becoming tougher to fight, the question begs to be asked, when all is said and done, who wins?

The retailer?
In 2008, Gartner reported that merchant spending to protect cardholder data and become PCI compliant increased nearly fivefold during the previous 18 months. Among the Level 1 retailers Gartner surveyed, an average of $2.7 million was spent to become PCI compliant, excluding the costs of PCI assessment services. Level 2 merchants reported spending $1.1 million on PCI compliance (compared to $267,000 in fall 2006) and an average of $135,000 on assessment.

And, the PCI July 2010 pinpad upgrade deadline will only increase the financial burden. The C-store/petroleum industry is estimating the pinpad upgrade will cost as much as $1 billion plus another billion to meet unmanned payment terminal standards and and yet another billion for EMV. Matter of fact, Bob Sleeper, director of IT for Rutter's Farm Store said at NACS/CSNews CIO Roundtable "If things don't change, we think most companies will spend their 2009 and 2010 technology budgets on PCI-related mandates."

The consumer?
We have all heard the rumors – breaches are happening to companies who claim to be PCI compliant. Bob Russo, general manager of the PCI Security Standards Council, states in a Washington Post article however, "the council has never found a breached entity that was later found to have been in full compliance with the PCI standards at the time of the breach"

Yet, a recent report released by Verizon found that "in 3/4 of the confirmed breaches it investigated last year the victims were not complaint with PCI DSS or had never been audited. Another 19% were found to be PCI compliant during their last assessment.

The credit cards companies? Maybe...
Or maybe its not about winning or losing at all, but about how we play the game. While we all may agree with the NRF, for the time being, credit card security is in your hands. What you chose to do with it is what counts.

Circle K recently announced (as many other retailers have or will be as well) that it "taking steps to further secure card payments and customer information, especially at the fuel pump." The company is adding Gilbarco Veeder-Root FlexPay Encrypting PIN Pads and Encore S fuel dispensers to help the chain become compliant with Triple Data Encryption Standard treatment of PIN numbers entered by consumers during debit-card transactions at the pumps.

While PCI is the driving force on this endeavor, we all win if we work together to make the goal security. In a previous blog I posted: We need to stop asking “How to we get PCI compliant?” and start asking, “How do we get secure?”

Jeff Wakefield of VeriFone, summed it up best. “You goal should not be to get PCI Compliant. Your goal should be to secure your payment processes and hopefully you get complaint in the process.”

Please share with us way in which you have turned getting PCI complaint into a positive for you and your customers.

Dana Harder, Marketing Director
tekservePOS Sphere: Related Content

Digital Signage: More than just advertising

We've recently had the pleasure of working with Helius, a Hughes Company, on a digital signage project. This company provides flexible methods of delivering customer and standard content via digital media solutions. The thing that has impressed me most about Helius is their flexibility over past companies that have attempted to enter the digital media marketplace with a more “subscription & advertising” based approach.

We worked with Helius on a very impressive solution at Smith & Hawken. In this environment, the retailer is pushing content to the screens at all times, however, when needed, the associates are able to essentially walk a customer to the terminal and “convert” it to a kiosk application by using a keyboard and navigating a website. This has proven to be a remarkable customer service tool for them.

At JC Penney, the company has provided a way for the retailer to facilitate live and on demand training sessions at all of their stores. Additionally, they have instantly gained the ability to communicate with all stores simultaneously with live broadcasts or pre-recorded messages. All in all, the multi purpose approach at JC Penney has provided innovative ways to effectively communicate with associates. The retailer estimates they will save over $ 20 million in travel and other related training costs. Talk about balancing the fine line between well-trained associates and the bottom line! Drop us an email to receive a copy of the case study.

John Pruban, President
tekservePOS Sphere: Related Content

Keeping up with the Zappos

Reading through the possible story ideas for this month’s newsletter, a common theme quickly emerged: e-commerce, e-marketing with a little more e-commerce and a sprinkle of Twitter. The digital world is no longer something people talk about and only a few are doing. Now that everyone is doing it, its about who is doing it better and faster. (And the crazier the better!)

In a recent blog, we talked about retailers needing to think outside the box and diversifying offerings in order to get and retain customers. The longer the recession goes, it seems that retailers are using e-commerce, e-marketing and social media as the avenue of choice to get shoppers attention.

Take Jack in the Box's six-week "Hang in There Jack" campaign: a 360-degree social media event that utilized the power of YouTube, Twitter, Facebook and Flickr. "Along the way it leveraged irony to the breaking point with "viral" cellphone and faux-paparazzi videos, ring tones and texting. Among the crowd-sourced content were 27 get-well videos from fans, some quite brilliant," sourced from an LA Times article.

Or Sears with “ShopYourWay – Where Shopping Revolves Around You 24/7" campaign touting their multichannel retail capabilities which combine Web site, catalogs and other marketing vehicles to showcase services such as the ability to buy online and pick up in-store, mobile commerce and in-store Web shopping kiosks.

Or even Coke who owns the second largest fan club on Facebook second only to O'Bama's. Interestingly enough, Coke didn't even start the page. A fan did. Click here to read more.

Our monthly newsletter, tekREVIEW, featured two other articles on e-marketing and Twitter proving only that if you are not currently playing in this arena, you are behind and missing out.

I leave you with last night's Tweed from zappos CEO: Impromptu tweetup in SF! Free tastings of Haamonii Shochu at 119 Utah St. 630-830 PM tonight, stop by for a drink & say hi!

How many of of his 255,000 followers do you think showed up?

Dana Harder
Marketing Director, tekservePOS Sphere: Related Content

POS Maintenance Alternatives

In the current economic climate, there is a huge increase in the amount of retailers looking for POS Maintenance alternatives. While obvious that retailers would want to save money in this area, not so obvious is the willingness to embrace alternative service levels in exchange for that savings. In the past, retailers looked to save money in this area by doing the same thing the same way, but save money doing it. This approach can certainly work when driving savings with large OEMs on a smaller level. True savings, however, can only be achieved by considering service levels while taking responsibility and ownership of the incidents and their cause. My experience is that with this dual approach, savings can reach up to 40% over the first two years of the project.

It is important to partner with someone who can offer you a wide array of approaches that can take into account the unique needs of your stores and culture. No two retail environments are exactly alike so, the ability to be flexible is critical. Additionally, a partner than can help you understand incidents, their cause and solutions is also important. Lastly, the retailer has to possess a true desire for an alternative approach and be willing to form a close bond with store operations and other necessary corporate departments. When implemented correctly, not only are strong savings and increased service levels are achievable.

John Pruban
President, tekservePOS Sphere: Related Content