Auteur : Bertrand BREGEON

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Quand on évoque la notion de PHYGITAL, les retailers ont toujours un peu de mal à visualiser ce que cela peut apporter à leurs magasins. pourtant durant ces 5 dernières années, la révolution digitale a bien eu lieu « boosté » par la crise sanitaire et ses contraintes. Tout comme les 10 années de gagnées sur le télétravail et ses outils de visio qui avaient bien du mal à s’imposer, le retail de façon un peu plus insidieuse a vécu une évolution remarquable … On peut sortir quelques exemples d’outils techno remarquables …

Shopping has always been seriously big business — with total global retail sales reaching $26.29 trillion in 2019. Yet, the actual retail experience has changed radically from just a generation ago. The only option then was to walk into a store, or if you were feeling particularly adventurous, perhaps buy from a mail order catalogue. Fast forward to today, however, and technological advancements in the retail industry have opened up a wholenew world of possibilities.Technology is taking retail phygitalThe holy grail for retailers in recent years has been omnichannel. And withgood reason. According to Aberdeen Group, companies that provide a consistent service quality across multiple channels retain 89% of their customers — companies that don’t are only able to retain 33%.But, despite the largely unified experience an omnichannel approach provides, it has still been possible to clearly delineate between these channels and touchpoints (e.g. e-commerce vs. in-store). Now, technology has started to blur these boundaries, bringing the online and offline world ever closer together and augmenting our everyday reality.This new phenomenon is known as phygital: a shopping journey in which physical experiences and digital technologies intertwine to enhance one another. Physical channels are enriched by digital technology, while digitalchannels become more human. The net result is a more personalized and engaging experience.This march toward a phygital future is only possible thanks to unprecedented technological innovation. If you’re intrigued, here are seven technological advancements in the retail industry that will make yousay wow.

1. Internet of Things

Internet of Things is a network of literally billions of physical devices communicating with each other and sharing data. IoT has massive potential for the retail industry, providing a way to create even more engaging and innovative shopping experiences — one of the reasons why Juniper Research predicted retail spending on IoT technologies would reach $2.5 billion by 2020.In fact, IoT is already being put to good use in many areas. One of these applications is beacons — small wireless devices powered by Bluetooth Low Energy that transmit a continuous signal. Smartphones are able to pick up on the signal, which they pass into a cloud server. The cloud server can then push out targeted content to a specific smartphone. Microlocation can even drill down to particular aisles within a single store. The potential for data gathering is simply immense, allowing more granular customer segmentation and personalization than ever before.US retailer Macy’s uses these beacons. When a customer opens the Macy’s app in-store, the app registers their exact location. Say, for example, the customer is in the beauty products section. The app can remind the customer of particular beauty brands or products they have previously liked online and help move the customer towards purchasing them in-store, perhaps through a tailored offer.Another practical application of this technology comes in the form of RFID tags. These smart barcodes give you total visibility for products all the way through the purchasing process. Athletic apparel supplier Lululemon uses RFID tags to update and keep track of inventory levels in stores all over the world, improving inventory accuracy to 98 percent.

2. Facial recognition

Identifying customers at the point of sale — by using loyalty cards, for example – is no longer good enough for retailers. They want to know who the people in-store are before they buy so they can deliver a personalized shopping experience. Yet, most stores don’t have the luxury of recognizingevery single face that comes through the door.This is where facial recognition software can step into the breach, scanning thousands of reference points across a person’s face to identify their unique ‘face-print’ (much like we all have our own unique fingerprints).Identifying customers this way gives your staff visibility into the types of products customers might purchase, and how much they are likely to spend — so they can roll out the VIP treatment for those high value shoppers.Facial recognition technology can even help your sales staff better respond to customers’ needs, deciphering any changes in your customers’emotion and then notifying your staff so they can attend to distressed or confused shoppers right away.Another obvious implication of this technology is around loss prevention —especially useful given American retailers lose almost $50 billion annually to theft (shoplifting accounts for 36.5% of those losses). Your security staffmight not spot a shoplifter sneaking in again, but the software certainly can. It can even compare faces against a database of known shoplifters to provide proactive theft prevention. Facial recognition in retail decreases shoplifting by 34%. That means better value for your customers and more money in your pocket.This may all seem rather Orwelian. Despite facial recognition being a way to provide people with the personalized experience they want (e.g. 41% ofconsumers expect representatives in a brand’s physical store to know what they have purchased online), there will also be shoppers who would see it as a gross violation of their privacy. So, to address any ethical concerns, facial recognition must only be used where someone has explicitly opted-in (rather than using assumed consent, for example).Shoppers could sign themselves up to the scheme and use their smartphone to perform the facial scan, or potentially even visit a dedicated booth in-store. Whatever the mechanism, it’s vital retailers retain trust by placing shoppers in control of the experience.

3. Autonomous delivery robots and store assistants

Sci fi has long painted a picture of a world where robots are commonplace in our daily interactions. That vision has never really become a reality. But,in retail at least, that might be about to change.According to Boston Consulting Group, the global robotics market is estimated to reach $87 billion by 2025 — more than half is likely to go to the retail market. The size of the global customer service robots market, meanwhile, is projected to increase from the estimated $53.77 million in 2016 to $87.97 million by the end of 2022, according to market intelligence firm Tractica. Imagine robotic store assistants, with built-in 3D scanners that help them recognize products and even lead your customers to products by navigating through the store. What happens if the customer has a question the robot can’t answer? No problem. The robot simply starts up a video conference with a human staff member who can assist them as required.Robots can also be used in the supply chain — checking stock, identifying errors in pricing, and locating misplaced items, for example. The data theygather helps to improve the customer experience by optimizing store layouts and processes.Robotics has already transformed distribution center operations, with retailgiant Amazon reportedly using more than 100,000 robots to move stock around warehouses and group items for order fulfillment, leading to a 20%drop in operating costs. Now, technological advancements in the retail industry are starting to robotize last-mile delivery, too. Amazon has famously been trialing drones in preparation of launching an Amazon Prime Air, a service that promises to get items from order to delivery in 30 minutes or less — provided they are under 5 pounds in weight that is.Not to be outdone, Alibaba announced a last-mile delivery robot called the G Plus, with plans to use it for delivering parcels, groceries, and food within residential areas. Customers won’t be left twiddling their thumbs as they wait either — they can monitor the entire journey via smartphone.

4. Cashierless stores

The idea of queue-busting cashierless stores has been given extra impetusby social distancing measures imposed on the back of COVID-19. One survey looking at shifts in shopping habits due to the pandemic found that 87% of customers would likely choose stores with contactless or self-checkout options.The ability for customers to simply walk out of the store with their items being scanned automatically and the total debited from their account will likely soon become widespread. Amazon originally pioneered this approach through the Just Walk Out system, put into practice through Amazon Go stores.Taking this approach even further, it’s also possible to develop an almost entirely touch-free shopping system. With COVID-19 concerns likely to stick around for a while, we may start to see customers scanning barcodesand QR codes, not only to pay for products, but to receive information about those products right into their smartphones, too. This will both cut down on direct product handling and address sustainability and accountability concerns by being more transparent around production methods.

5. Augmented shopping

Perhaps the flagship technology for creating a phygital future comes in theform of AR/VR. And, it seems customers are on board with it. According to one report, nearly two-thirds (61%) of U.S adults surveyed said that augmented reality has influenced where they shop.COVID-19 measures have played a huge role in increasing the demand for AR systems, allowing customers to adopt a “try-before-you-buy” approach in absentia, and helping replicate, and even build on, the in-store experience online. Ikea, for example, created the “Ikea’s Place” app, allowing shoppers to access 3,200 items from Ikea’s inventory via a live view function on their smartphone, and use AR functionality to see how specific items would look, positioning them virtually within rooms in their home, before committing to purchase.AR promises to radically change the in-store experience, too. In fashion retail, smart mirrors will bring previously unthinkable levels of interactivity. Customers won’t even need to get undressed to try out a whole new wardrobe, with virtual changing rooms allowing them to superimpose items and outfits and gather the opinions of friends by sharing images to social media.Oak labs use similar technology to create interactive changing rooms. The smart mirrors recommend other items customers often pair with the products customers are trying, helping complete their outfits, and bringingthe convenience of online shopping in store. The process produces a wealth of rich data, too. For example, you can see what the conversion rates for particular items are from the dressing room to checkout and adjust the products and product range accordingly.

6. Voice commerce

Voice commerce sales are set to reach $5 billion in U.K .and $40 billion in US by 2022.Ever since Apple’s Siri came on the scene, voice assistant technology has exploded in popularity, and has now even started to break free of smartphones and spread into other devices. One survey showed that 60 million people now have at least one smart speaker system at home. For many, product research, price comparison, and now even product purchases, are all just a few utterances away.Walmart has capitalized on this development by creating the Walmart Voice Ordering service. Customers can use any device powered by Google Assistant or Siri to add products to the cart. Shoppers simply need to say “Hey Siri/Google, add to Walmart” and name the product. The items are then packed and delivered by the customer’s chosen method.7-Eleven Inc. also launched a voice ordering within its 7NOW Delivery app.Customers can open a 7NOW app by saying “Hey, Alexa! / OK, Google! Open 7NOW” and similarly place goods into their basket purely using voicecommands. Once it’s paid for, the shopping is delivered to customers within 30 minutes.

7. And of course, it’s all underpinned by AI

It’s impossible to talk about technological advancements in the retail industry without bringing artificial intelligence into the conversation. And rightly so. AI powers so much of the change happening in the retail sector. In fact, Servion Global Solutions has predicted that by 2025, 95% of customer interactions will be powered by AI. Perhaps the most common way shoppers encounter AI at the moment is through product recommendations — something we have almost come to take for granted. Now, AI technology is driving further change by allowing other technologies to reach their full potential. Scan-and-go shopping, facial recognition, and so many other advancements all rely on AI. Technology is at the very heart of the future of retail. And, as this technology continues to push the boundaries of what’s possible, shoppers’ expectations rise in tandem. They want retailers to deliver the kind of ground-breaking, phygital, and personalized experiences that make them say wow. Do that and you’ll be more likely to stay relevant well into the future.

Merci à Benedict Clark pour cette excellente analyse dans RETAIL CUSTOMER

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Juste un petit clin d’oeil sur nos habitudes de consommation dans ce moment hors du temps que nous sommes en train de vivre ! Et on constate que les français ne font rien comme les autres. Alors que la consommation d’ALCOOL a fortement augmenté partout en EUROPE pendant le confinement, elle a plutôt diminuée dans la FRANCE confinée (- 4%). Mais le français a des ressources et dès que le déconfinement a été sifflé, il a célébré… et les alcools étaient alors de nouveau de retour dans les caddies (champagne (+74%) et bière en tête).

Selon Nielsen, la première semaine de déconfinement a été marquée par une forte hausse des dépenses alimentaires (+9%), notamment le retour à la croissance des ventes d’alcool. Surgelés, proximité et e-commerce restent plébiscités par les consommateurs. Voici l’analyse de Nielsen de la semaine du 11 au 17 mai 2020.

“Les foyers français ont fréquenté massivement les magasins cette semaine, notamment pour leurs courses alimentaires : 9% de ventes en plus dans la grande distribution, par rapport à la même semaine l’an passé. Comme ces dernières semaines, les produits surgelés salés , l’épicerie salée, le rayon frais… sont en très forte hausse. Ils bénéficient toujours d’un report massif des circuits hors-foyer (restaurants, cantines…) vers la consommation à domicile”, explique Nielsen dans un communiqué publié vendredi 22 mai 2020.Les tendances de la vie en confinement restent donc largement visibles, avec notamment les ingrédients de cuisine (épaississeurs pour sauces à +137%) ou de pâtisserie (produits pour pâtisserie +75%, farines +35%…). Tant que le télétravail restera largement répandu, que de nombreux enfants seront toujours à la maison, que les restaurants seront fermés… ces tendances resteront marquées. La fin du déconfinement signifie aussi apéritifs et repas avec famille et amis, et donc des achats supplémentaires : revoir ses proches était très clairement la priorité des Français pour l’après-11 mai

UNE NOUVEAUTÉ : LE RETOUR MASSIF DES VENTES D’ALCOOL
La comparaison des tendances avant/après le confinement est révélatrice. On y voit un maintien de la hiérarchie des tendances : les surgelés restent les mieux orientés après comme pendant le confinement, l’hygiène-beauté et les boissons sans alcool restent les moins bien orientés. Une exception est néanmoins très visible, et de manière flagrante : les boissons alcoolisées.

Contrairement à d’autres pays où le passage des foyers en confinement et la fermetures des bars, pubs et restaurants a entraîné de fortes hausses des ventes d’alcools, ces dernières sont restées en France plutôt moroses avec un repli de 4% dans l’ensemble. Mais la première semaine de déconfinement marque une nette rupture : les ventes d’alcool ont augmenté de 23% par rapport à la même semaine l’an dernier. Déjà le samedi 9 mai avait révélé une mobilisation certaine des Français pour préparer la fin du déconfinement 2 jours plus tard.

Plébiscités le 9 mai, les vins pétillants, champagne en tête, confirment ces résultats la semaine suivante avec une croissance retrouvée… après des semaines de fort recul. Très clairement, cette première semaine a été l’occasion pour les Français de célébrer ! Le vin retrouve des couleurs, notamment les rouges et blancs qui étaient en repli ces pernières semaines. Les spiritueux voient leur tendance nettement s’améliorer, même les gins et rhums qui étaient restés en progression pendant le confinement, accélèrent
lors de cette dernière semaine.

LIEUX D’ACHAT : CONFIRMATION DES TENDANCES DU CONFINEMENT
Côté circuits, la hiérarchie des performances observée pendant le confinement se maintient sur cette dernière semaine : e-commerce et proximité progressent toujours très fortement.

Source : LSA – YVES PUGET