The advent of technology has dramatically changed the retail landscape. Online shopping has opened doors for the customers to buy what they want, when they want, from the convenience of their homes. With the offerings of a wide range of products and deep discounts, ecommerce has started gnawing into the market share of the retail industry. While technology may have brought a revolution in this sphere, it must be seen not as a threat but an opportunity. Joining hands with technology can be the right step for brick and mortar retailers to create more efficient and profitable hybrid businesses.

Generally, brick and mortar businesses encounter the following issues:

Inventory Management vs Customer Satisfaction:

All customers have different preferences and hence, they like a wider range of products to choose from. When they may not find a certain product available, the retailer would have to place a special order and the customer would have to return later for the product. This may be a bothersome process for the customer and could lead to churn. If the retailer decides to placate the customers by maintaining a higher inventory, he would have to incur higher costs, thus cutting into the profits of the business.

Competition from Ecommerce:

While the Ecommerce companies have the luxury of giving a wider portfolio of products with better discounts, brick and mortar stores don’t. Moreover brick and mortar stores have overheads such as rent, maintenance and employee salaries, which are not present in Ecommerce. Moreover marketing techniques can also majorly affect brick and mortar retailers. Due to the inherent affinity Ecommerce has for technology, they benefit from the data collected about the customer preferences and trends of buying patterns. On contrary, brick and mortar stores have no such alternative towards data analytics.

Surveillance:

While customers are unaware of the footprints they leave while browsing online, they may have privacy issues with security cameras in stores because it’s all out in the open. While the cameras are good at detecting both good customers as well as thefts, their advantages are still dwarfed by the advantages of the customer profiling brought about by online data.

What the retail market needs:

A Personalized Shopping Experience for Customers in a Brick and Mortar Store Hassle free Advertising Process Instant Reach Better Conversion Rate Lower Advertising Fee A Win-Win Situation for both Retailers and Customers

Only these benefits can overcome the gaps created in the offline retail market and help to create sustainable business opportunities for brick and mortar stores.Want to know how ? Visit us at: https://centareum.io/ OR Join our telegram group here: https://t.me/Centareum to stay updated.