Today, customers are much more aware about the products,
services and ideas available in the market. They are also brand conscious,
price leery than ever before. Smartphones are now helping people shop anywhere
and compare products within fraction of a second. A typical characteristic of an online shopper
is, he/she can collect pricing information from different sources without
waiting in queues. The stakes for retailers have never been higher when it
comes to meeting customer expectations. The digital age customers are more
insightful, have high expectations for information regarding product quality
and use of technology to make purchasing decisions. Customers are now using
search engines to get additional information about a product or brand. They
compare products and explore manufacturers’ websites to check endorsements,
reviews, and recommendations. Based on this ground reality, retailers need to
focus on their omni channel strategy
and foster their desired products into the hands of their customers.
Getting ahead of
customers:
In today’s business environment, retailers need to get
ahead of their customers to serve them well and ensure a lifelong loyalty. Many
business owners have started to successfully grasp omnichannel retailing in
which, they deliver a seamless fulfillment experience for consumers need a fast
and easy shopping experience. Some of the retailers are successful in this
methodology and one of the reasons for their success is identifying the
interdependency between consumer facing operations and practices related to
supply chain.
However, a productive Omnichannel operation combines
unique product identification, accurate attributes, customer preferences,
purchase history and paths to purchasing. It’s all about knowing what a retailer
has, and following through on promises to the buyers.
Walmart’s
future-ready retail:
Walmart has near about 11,000 stores and 10 active
websites around the world. This retail business is experiencing more than 246
million customers and it sees near about 300,000 social mentions per week.
Walmart is using big data analytics to get control over its worldwide customers
and supply chain. This process helps Walmart in reducing overstock and stock
most in demand products. Walmartsuppliers are required to use the real time vendor inventory management
system for a particular product, if it has no significant sales. Walmart also
uses mobile big data analytics to get its mobile strategy in order. Because, e-commerce
is closely related to mobile purchase in today’s smartphone environment.
Better data management leads to better inventory
management. It is an essential omnichannel strategy for retailers around the
world. Better consumer data promotes better targeting and delivers the
knowledge of consumer needs. Retailers and suppliers need to take advantage of
this system to operate their business effectively.
The author of this article is associated with 18knowledge.com
that provides big data analytics and data mining for supply chain management,
inventory management and retail business.
