3 Things to Ask Before Deploying a Retail Solution

A reliable tech stack is essential for retailers to thrive in today’s competitive market. Whether to provide shoppers with high-quality customer service or to simply streamline operations across all channels, advanced technology is required.

Today, the question isn’t whether retailers should use technology or not, but what to look for when deploying their retail solutions.

Technology deployment isn’t necessarily a straightforward process, and there are a number of considerations that retailers must keep in mind both before deployment and throughout the implementation process. In this blog, we take a look at the top three questions that retailers must ask before deploying a retail solution…

Beginning at the end: What’s the ultimate goal?

When beginning to think about deploying a new retail solution, it’s wise to start at the end. Retailers must identify the ultimate goal that they aim to achieve by deploying a retail solution. It can be to alleviate in-store congestion, to improve visibility across the business, to streamline order management, or all of them. Retailers must conduct a thorough audit of their business to identify main challenges and gaps that need to be addressed.

Once their pain points have been identified, it’s now time to look for the right solution. However, just before brands begin their search for the perfect technology, retailers must have an understanding of what their ideal solution delivers. This will help them choose the right technology seamlessly. If a retailer is looking to deploy a mobile point-of-sale (POS) solution, their ideal solution must streamline the checkout process, reduce queuing times, improve customer experiences, and enhance user experience for retail associates. 

Does the solution cater to the unique needs of the business?

It is critical for retailers to find a solution that meets their specific needs. Retail businesses must look out for advanced solutions that can be tailored to cater their personalized requirements. What does this really mean? If a retailer is seeking a self-checkout terminal to ease in-store congestion, they must ensure their chosen solution is capable of delivering swift and streamlined checkouts to limit queues and reduce in-store traffic. If the solution isn’t user-friendly or slow, it will not solve the end goal. Instead, it may make matters worse, causing shopper frustration and potentially negatively impacting sales opportunities.

What does the ideal technology look like in this case? The simple answer is RFID-Powered Self-Checkout technology. Teamwork Commerce’s Self-Checkout technology allows customers to complete the checkout process within seconds by automatically scanning their goods placed in a designated area. Retailers can significantly enhance the number of transactions completed during operating hours, optimizing checkout times without having to individually scan all items.

Coming back to the solution selection process, retailers must opt for live demonstrations and product pilots for their chosen solution to make sure it aligns with their goals and desired outcomes. Once this has been done, retailers must finally consider the long-term aspect of the deployment.

Will it be relevant in the long-term?

Technology deployment isn’t a one-time process, but an ongoing element that retailers must consistently review based on their evolving requirements. However, to be able to do that seamlessly, retailers must choose a solution that can evolve with changing consumer requirements. Brands should find a reliable solution that is flexible and can be regularly updated based on changing market trends and expectations.

A long-term approach to technology investment can serve retailers well, delivering sustainable business results as they keep ahead of competitors with their integrations. Importantly, retailers need to find the right technology partner who can guide them through the entire technology adoption process and help evolve their offerings over time. As a result, retailers can ensure that their deployed retail solution serves as effectively as possible in the long term – enabling them to streamline their processes, improve customer experiences, and drive maximum return on their technology investments.

Technology deployment in retail is a critical process, retailers must get it right in the first place to be able to reap its benefits. Those who partner with experienced IT partners who have a track record of delivering similar solutions in the retail space can seamlessly deploy innovative solutions.

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