In a world where consumers are increasingly aware of the social and environmental impacts of the brands they buy from, it’s more important than ever for companies to focus on their social impact. 

Prioritizing social impact and purpose can help your brand in many ways, from improving customer loyalty to attracting top talent, to ultimately making more sales. 

In this blog, we present key reasons why you may want to consider making social impact and purpose a priority for your retail brand.

What is social impact?

In recent years, there has been an increased focus on social impact and its connection to brands. 

Social impact is the effect of an organization or individual on the well-being of society. It can be positive or negative, and it can be measured in terms of economic, social, or environmental outcomes.

In the retail industry specifically, social impact is often used interchangeably with terms like “corporate social responsibility” or “sustainability.” While these concepts are related, they each have their own distinct meanings. 

Corporate social responsibility generally refers to a company’s efforts to do good beyond its normal business operations, while sustainability focuses on making sure that a company’s practices are socially and environmentally friendly, as well as sustainable in the long run.

What is a Purpose Driven Business?

A purpose-driven company stands for something bigger than its products and services and walks the talk when push comes to shove. 

According to Deloitte, “Purpose-driven companies witness higher market share gains and grow three times faster on average than their competitors, all while achieving higher workforce and customer satisfaction.”

79% of business leaders, says PWC, believe that purpose is central to success while affirming that “employees see purpose as a way to bring meaning to their work and understand the contributions they are making to the company, as well as society.”

So we can say that a company that has a clear purpose and that pursues and has positive social impact has a better chance to excel and be more competitive.

Why does your retail business want to prioritize social impact and purpose? 

Businesses that prioritize social impact and purpose are not only doing good for the world, but they’re also reaping the benefits for their brand.

When customers see that a business is giving back to the community or working to make a positive difference in the world, they’re more likely to support that brand.

Having a purpose and positive social impact helps retail businesses to:

• Build a more positive reputation and brand image
• Increase customer loyalty, as the Edelman Trust Barometer 2022 reveals 58% of consumers “buy or advocate for brands based on their beliefs and values.”
• Attract and retain top talent, as 60% of employees are increasingly looking for workplaces that have a positive social impact and choose a place to work. based on their beliefs and values. 
• Boost investor confidence, as 64% invest based on the company’s beliefs and values. 

The benefits of prioritizing social impact for businesses

The Meaningful Brands Study by Havas Media shows 73% of people believe brands must act fast for the good of society and the planet. 

The study reveals 53% of consumers are ready to pay more for a brand that takes a stand on environmental and social issues.

In fact, 80 % of consumers would be willing to pay more if a brand raised its prices to be more environmentally and socially responsible, or to pay higher wages to its employees. (Deloitte)

The Power of Purpose-Driven Businesses 

Businesses that focus on purpose and social impact tend to be more productive, innovative and have happier employees. 

A study by Deloitte reveals purpose oriented companies report “30 % higher levels of innovation and 40 % higher levels of workforce retention than their competitors.”

So, not only is prioritizing social impact,  and having a clear purpose is good for the world, but also good for business. Brands that focus on making a difference are seeing real results.

It all starts with WHY!

“People don’t buy what you do, they buy why you do it”, as best selling author and speaker Simon Sinek has shown business leaders around the world. But a lot of brands may wanna pay closer attention.

94% of consumers say purpose is important, yet only 37% believe companies have a clear and strong purpose, according to a Study by Zeno Group. 

So if you want your retail business to lead with purpose, starting with Why may be a good idea.

To find your company’s Why you may ask yourselves this questions: 

• What is the collective cause or belief your business exists for?
• How does your company serve a better vision of the future?
• What makes your company matter for the world?
• How does your company make a better world?

3 Case studies of businesses that have succeeded by focusing on social impact & Purpose

When it comes to doing good and making a difference, businesses have increasingly focused on social impact in recent years. From sustainability to charitable giving, companies are finding new ways to give back and make a positive impact on the world. 

Here are three case studies of businesses that have succeeded by focusing on social impact as well as purpose:

Patagonia

One of the most well-known outdoor apparel brands, Patagonia has always been focused on environmentalism and sustainability. In addition to using sustainable materials and practices, the company also gives 1% of its sales to environmental organizations worldwide, having donated over $100 million dollars. 

As a result of its commitment to social responsibility, Patagonia has become a beloved brand with a loyal customer base. 

Worthy to mention that in September 2022, founder, billionaire Yvon Chouinard donated his entire company to a specially designed trust to fight climate change. 

Adidas 

The three stripes brand based its responsibility structure on 3 complementary pillars: community involvement, employee engagement, corporate giving. Its initiatives bring access to fitness to children between the ages of 5 and 12. Parkinson Woman empowerment Program and SOS Chilldren’s Village, which is one of the largest non-governmental organizations dedicated to supporting children without families in the world. 

From 2024, only recycled plastic will be used in their products, and by 2050 all production will be climate-neutral.

Nordstrom

This well known retailer from Seattle, during the pandemic, launched Nordstrom Cares increasing clothing donations by nearly 42%, and reduced energy use by 20.3% per square foot over five years and even committed to making 1 million masks for healthcare workers on COVID-19 frontlines. 

Nordstrom will meet 6 key environmental sustainability goals by 2025: reduce single use plastic by 50%, use sustainably raw materials in 50% of Nordstrom Made products, extend the life of 250 tons of clothing, ensure 15% of all product is considered sustainable, donate $1 million dollars to support textile recycling innovation and set a science-based target to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and raised over $2 Million Dollars to support homeless youth, and gave $3.6 M to non profits, among other socially responsible initiatives. 

CEOs are expected to be the force of change in the world

According to the Edelman Trust Barometer 2022, “84% of people said CEOs should be personally visible when discussing public policy with external stakeholders or work their company has done to benefit society”.

The same study also reveals 60% of people, when considering a job, expect the CEO to speak publicly about controversial social and political issues that concern them. 

Worthy to mention that family-owned businesses are the most trusted organizations, so maybe they have a better shot at leading the change we want to see in the world. 

Social Impact and Purpose for a Better World

When you focus on making a positive difference in the world, you naturally attract attention and followers. 

Consumers are increasingly interested in supporting brands that share their values, so by aligning your brand with a cause, you can improve your bottom line while also making a difference. 

There are a number of ways that organizations can increase their social impact. One is by partnering with other organizations that have a similar mission, and now the world needs that more than ever, and your retail business can grow while we make the world a better place.

Retailers Gather in Paris for Annual Week-Long Event

The 8th edition of Paris Retail Week 2022 is here!

September 20, 21 and 22 at the Expo Porte de Versailles, get ready to see some of the best e-commerce retailers and retail tech leaders in the world.

Paris Retail Week is probably the largest meeting in Europe for the entire retail ecosystem.

This year the event promises to be in an increasingly experiential format. 

As in previous years, there will be conferences, workshops, presentations, Awards, Innovation Tours, Store Tours and announcements of new innovations in the industry that will energize this event dedicated to sharing knowledge, experiences and best practices in the retail industry.

What can you expect from PRW2022?

PRW2022 will have more than 25,000 professionals, and more than 600 Companies. The event offers extraordinary retail business opportunities, since more than 70% of its attendees are key decision makers.

More than 1,000 business meetings will be held.

Visitors will get closer to the companies that represent the e-commerce landscape for Europe.

These companies are part of 5 exhibition areas: Marketing, Data & Customer Relations; retail technology; IT for Commerce; payment solutions; Logistics, e-logistics and supply chain.

In addition, there will be more than 400 speakers in plenary sessions throughout the three days of the event.

Highlights of Previous Editions of PRW

• More than 15,500 participants, with a strong increase in the number of premium retailers
• More than 330 exhibitors
• Nearly 60 speakers at the plenary conferences
• Many events were organized during the 7th edition:
• Plenary lectures including 8 sessions dedicated to 2021 trade themes
• More than 100 solution workshops presented by exhibitors
• The Paris Retail Awards that reward innovative companies in 7 commercial categories + 2 categories Jury crush and Rookie of the year

Teamwork Commerce at PRW22

Teamwork Commerce, leading omnichannel solution, will showcase its wide range of retail technology offerings, as well as its latest solution: POS Pro. 

The technology provider will offer advanced solution demonstrations, detailing how next-generation technology can help retailers drive infinite scalability while delivering a seamless customer experience.

Jonathan Mauerer, Vice President of Operations for Teamwork Commerce, said

“Teamwork Commerce has grown exponentially in recent years and we are already gaining recognition in the European and UK markets. We look forward to meeting everyone and spreading awareness of how our technology can drive growth for retailers.”

Teamwork Commerce POS Pro is an advanced tool for modernizing retailers’ in-store and online offerings and delivering the best customer experience.

So get ready to meet with Teamwork Commerce at PRW 2022! 

Looking forward to seeing you there!

Generation Z is causing the world to evolve. A product of the digitally driven environment that we now live in, zoomers (as the group is more colloquially known) are the first generation of people that are digital natives, and have never known life before a technology-first approach.

Born between 1997 and 2012, the eldest of Gen Z are now in their mid-twenties – in full-time employment and spending their hard-earned cash. As more and more digital natives grow older and become consumers in their own right, retailers must consider how they can best cater to the demanding needs of zoomers.

The Need for Balance

According to IBM, 25% of Gen Zers said they spend more than five hours on their mobile phones every day. Naturally, it would be right to assume that this probably means they also do most of their shopping online… correct? No. In fact, the same IBM report claims that 98% of zoomers still prefer to make their purchases in brick and mortar stores.

So what does that mean for zoomers? Firstly, if your operations don’t include an online presence, you’re not off the hook. Zoomers spend a huge amount of their time online through a range of devices. Just because they purchase in-store doesn’t mean they don’t do their research and rigorously browse for the products they want – reading reviews and comparing prices.

Retailers need to find the balance between in-store and online sales channels, providing a seamless omnichannel experience that allows Gen Zers to shop on their own terms. Whether that means buying online and picking up in-store, shopping completely online, or visiting the high street and browsing before purchasing.

Delivering the Ultimate Omnichannel Experience

With Teamwork Commerce’s natively integrated retail management solution, retailers can deliver an all-encompassing approach that delivers the ultimate omnichannel experience – ranging from inventory and order management, through to Secure CRM, Mobile Point of Sale (POS), and analytics and reporting.

Retailers can gain access to real-time insights that provide both in-store associates and customers with up-to-date information as and when it is required. All solutions are interconnected, and automatically feed information into one another. As a result, customers can jump between multiple sales channels and stores at different times and continue to receive an exceptional customer experience that encourages them to return. Their information and preferences are analyzed, and retailers can even make recommendations or provide personalized offers for them based on their purchase history.

Customer Experience Should be a Top Priority 

A study recently undertaken by Zendesk found that 21% of 18 to 24 year olds claim to have higher expectations in terms of customer service interactions, compared to only 11% of consumers over the age of 55. As the digital-first generations continue to grow in numbers, higher expectations will naturally increase.

In a world where competition is so fierce within retail, and where consumers will happily choose an alternative retailer if they suffer a poor experience, high quality customer service should be a prime priority for businesses. 

Teamwork Commerce’s retail management solution provides the foundation that enables retailers to provide top-quality customer experience. All the way through the customer journey, from initial interactions right through to checkout.

With Teamwork’s secure CRM function, retailers can record and track customer preferences and nuances that allow in-store associates to become more personable in each specific encounter – from shoe size to pet names. Furthermore, With a mobile POS solution that can track inventory from a handheld device, staff can track down items for customers without ever having to leave their side. Once customers are happy to checkout, the same member of staff can take payment wherever they are situated in the store – removing the need to find the queue.

Our retail management solution is designed to deliver ultimate convenience to both retailers and their customers. Customers can enjoy a seamless shopping experience however they prefer to shop. Suddenly, the apparent threat of Gen Z is gone.

To better understand the full range of Teamwork Commerce’s retail technology solutions, click here.

Video content is becoming an essential tool in the digital world for online sales in the retail industry. It can be used to create a product demo, present or show how a product works, as well as share testimonials from satisfied customers.

Videos are also a great way to engage with customers and keep them interested in your products, services, and brand experiences, since they communicate a story, allowing the brand to convey emotions with the consumers.

In addition, videos can help improve your brand’s presence in search engine rankings (SEO), potentially generating more traffic and sales, and can also be shared on social media platforms, helping to reach a wider public. Here is some information about the importance of video content marketing. 

Why Video Content Marketing is Essential for your Business.

Statistics on Video Marketing.

Online shoppers are more likely to purchase items after watching a video about the product, according to recent studies. By the end of 2022, online video will account for more than 82% of all Internet traffic, 15 times more than in 2017 (Cisco).

In fact, as of January 2018, 85% of all Internet users in the United States viewed online video content on any of their devices on a monthly basis (Statista, 2018).

Videos Improve SEO Ranking. (Search Engine Optimization)

Videos can be used as a tool for SEO (Search Engine Optimization), since it helps to improve the ranking in search engines such as Google, to attract more traffic to the company’s website.

Wyzowl notes some relevant data, especially in its most recent study with video marketers: “The State of Video Marketing 2020“

• 89% say that video gives them a good ROI.
• 83% say that video helps them with lead generation.
• 87% say that video has increased traffic to their website.
• 80% say that video has directly helped increase sales.
• 95% plan to increase or maintain investment in video in 2020.

Videos Help Explain your Product and Build Trust with Your Audience.

Video content is an engaging and effective way to communicate with customers and sell products. That is why retail businesses that want to increase their online sales should invest in creating engaging product videos.

Video can be used to create an emotional connection with potential customers and show them how the product can be used. You can also help build trust by providing customer testimonials and demonstrating product quality.

Overall, video is an extremely effective way to promote products and increase online sales. By including videos on their website, retail businesses can see a significant increase in conversion rates and revenue.

Types of Video Content For Your Retail Business.

There are many types of video content that can be created for online retail businesses. The most popular types are product demos, how-to videos, and customer testimonials.

• Product Demos: These are a great way to showcase the features and benefits of your products. They can help persuade customers to make a purchase.

• Instructional: Videos can teach your customers how to use your products correctly. This may reduce the number of customer service inquiries your business receives.

• Customer Testimonials: Give potential customers the confidence they need to buy your products and services. With videos, customers can see real people talking about how your business has helped them solve a problem or improve their life.

• Vlogs (video blogs): This is a great way to showcase your products and create a connection with your customers. In addition to product videos, you can also create videos that provide information about your company or industry. These types of videos can help build trust with potential customers and encourage them to visit your site.

• Interviews: This format is becoming an increasingly important part of online sales for retail businesses. They provide a personal connection with potential customers and help build trust. In a video interview, the customer can see and hear the retailer’s representatives, helping to create a more personal connection. The customer can also ask questions about the products or services, which helps build trust.

• Sales Presentations: These are important for online retail businesses because they provide a personal touch that cannot be replicated with images or text. They help show products in use, which can be helpful in convincing potential buyers to make a purchase.

• Live broadcasts: Known as Live Selling, these videos can help create a personal connection with customers and give them a behind-the-scenes look at what your company is doing. It also helps show customers that you are a genuine and trustworthy business, and provides a sense of urgency for the purchase.

• Ads: They are a great way to attract potential customers to your website, and to show your products and services in a more dynamic way than just text or images. According to Statista, the videos had an audience reach of 91.4% of internet users worldwide. A LIGS study reveals that video ads can help increase purchase intent by up to 82%. This is because video ads allow customers to see the product or service in use, which can help them understand what they’re buying.

If you’re looking for ways to improve your online sales, consider using video ads. They are an effective way to emotionally connect with potential customers, explain your brand’s products, and differentiate yourself from the competition.

Create engaging video content.

There are a few things that retail companies can do to create compelling video marketing content.

Length: Viewers don’t spend a lot of time watching long videos, so it’s important to make sure your videos are short and to the point.

Creativity: Retail companies need to use creative videos and animations to grab the viewer’s attention. Staying on top of trends of Tik Tok and Instagram, using trending music and hashtags, among other attention-grabbing features will help businesses to have more reach on social media platforms.

Educational: Videos will be better perceived if they provide interesting and informative content, as they will be considered of greater value to viewers. Content like “how to”, checklists, and demos, will be of more interest to the audience since it is not just trying to sell a product, but to educate and inform its users.

Wrap Up.

By creating engaging and informative videos, retailers can improve their website visibility, traffic, and conversions.

Additionally, videos can help create a more personal connection with customers, which can lead to increased loyalty and spend.

Therefore, video is an important marketing tool for online sales of retail companies. It can help increase brand awareness, drive traffic to websites, and convert leads into brand-engaged customers.

Are You Ready to Make Videos for Your Retail Company?

It is vital that you have the best technology that allows you to create experiences that are worth telling your customers about.

Teamwork Commerce is a leading Omnichannel Solution, providing retailers with Point-of Sale, Order Management, Inventory Control, CRM and Analytics. They also boast an ecosystem of integrations with top solutions making unified commerce a seamless activity. Serving top retailers in over 20 countries globally including, Moose Knuckles, Colorado Rockies, Asics, Milwaukee Bucks, Catbird and Paul Stuart. Learn more at www.teamworkcommerce.com

Consumer habits have seen radical change over the past two years thanks to the pandemic and now they are in a state of flux again as the cost of living crisis bites. So how can you best operate in this dynamic environment? Jonathan Maurer offers some order management tips.

The past couple of years have transformed consumer behaviours. Whether they are comparing prices across different sites, managing pick-up for an item they would like to purchase or arranging delivery for a purchase, consumers have started to take advantage of online platforms more than ever before. 

According to a study conducted by Google, it is evident that the online shopping habit of consumers is here to stay. In the fashion sector alone, 57% of shoppers expect to shop online in the next six months. 

What’s more, a range of popular retail giants have already started to leverage these advanced systems to enhance the omnichannel experience for consumers. 

Consumers are now turning to a blended approach towards purchasing – some prefer reviewing the product online and then buying in-person, or buying online and picking up in-store, whereas others are comfortable with carrying out their transactions completely digitally. As consumer demands continue to evolve with technology, retailers must utilise next-generation order management to fulfil consumer requirements and avoid any potential pain points throughout the customer journey.

The recent surge in the cost of living will only make consumers more fastidious about their purchasing decisions. In what has become a difficult time for many consumers, retailers must continue to cater towards consumer habits and preferences to personalise and provide the desired experience. Whether it’s with faster returns or a more seamless shopping experience in general – optimising order management can enhance the customer experience. In an era where consumers have become quite selective about their purchases, a high quality customer experience can serve to be a powerful tool for retailers to retain customers. 

Simplifying order management

E-commerce has been growing for years, but the market has undergone further exponential growth specifically since the pandemic. Although through their own ecommerce platforms, retailers initially gained a surge in sales, it isn’t enough in today’s cut-throat competition just to have a standard website and app. Retailers need to ensure that their services on these applications are simple, swift, and systematic. A lack of efficient order management can cause delay in delivery or even stockouts – resulting in a bad consumer experience. The question remains how can retailers avoid these?

This is where the role of technology comes into play – brands can leverage order management systems (OMS) to automate the entire process. OMS can be directly connected to a retailer’s e-commerce platform for automatic shipment generation, with an allocated location. All this is made possible by the use of real-time data that not only saves time, but significantly boosts accuracy – creating a much more efficient workflow than if the task was to be undertaken manually.

Maximising visibility

To bridge any gaps and maintain accuracy within the entire selling process, it is essential to keep track of different areas such as point of sale (POS), customer relationship management (CRM), order and inventory management, and analytics. Typically, each of these processes will operate independently from each other. Without complete integration of each platform into one ecosystem, retailers run the risk creating friction along each stage of the customer journey and hindering the customer experience. 

Today, retailers can take advantage of advanced platforms that allow the integration of multiple processes in one place. Through this integration, order fulfilment can be simplified and made more efficient. What’s more, the single pane view through these platforms can strengthen a retailer’s offering across the entire customer journey, provide real time insights across all areas and enable quicker and more effective decision making. 

Boosting customer loyalty

In an ideal world, retailers would have a minimal number of returns to process and manage. However, returns are an inevitable part of modern consumers’ purchasing habits. According to a survey of 18,520 consumers from more than 20 countries, 55% of consumers believe that an easy shopping experience (check out and returns) plays a vital role in keeping them loyal to the brand.

Consumers expect a seamless experience during the returns process, just as they expect when purchasing items. Faster returns with a variety of options, such as quicker refunds or online exchanges, have now become table stakes. And consumers who have had a poor experience during returns with a retailer are less likely to shop with the brand again. 

Implementation of the right technology to make returns as efficient as possible is key to winning consumer trust. Modern platforms allow faster returns and automatically process refunds to consumers regardless of the channel used for purchasing. Brands can also leverage next-gen software to generate pre-approved return codes that allow consumers to return or exchange with minimal efforts. 

Gearing up for the peak

An essential factor for brands to keep in mind is that by utilising the right retail software that provides an all-in-one solution, retailers can simplify their entire operation and create a much more streamlined experience for both the user, and more importantly, the customer.

As we step into the second half of 2022, and begin the countdown to the festive season, retailers can stay prepared to make most of upcoming key dates later this year by implementing advanced technologies that automate and streamline their operations. Furthermore, insights gained now from these technologies can also enable retailers to make effective decisions during shopping days such as Black Friday and Boxing Day to ensure maximum returns for retail’s most opportune time of year.

Read more at: https://internetretailing.net/guest-comment/guest-comment-navigating-changing-consumers-habits-with-order-management/

Retail technology has become a huge part of the industry – especially over the last few years. Heading into 2022’s festive season, Jonathan Mauerer at Teamwork Commerce asks why is it so important for retailers to push the boundaries of innovation with their technology adoption?

Technological adoption isn’t new for retailers. The industry has had to continually evolve and utilise different solutions to engage with an increasing number of digital consumers. However, in today’s environment, where consumers have a profusion of online and offline purchasing options at the touch of a button, retailers must be armed with next-gen technologies to provide consumers with the best possible experience.

Historically, there has always been separate competition both within the high street and between e-commerce retailers. Now, everyone is competing with each other because technology has evolved to the point where if you don’t have both an online sales channel and a brick-and-mortar presence, you are at a significant disadvantage. Consumers are extremely demanding. They know that if one retailer doesn’t provide them with the experience they want, another will. And they will happily change loyalties.

Personalising experiences to each consumer has become the key to retaining consumers and attracting new ones. Technologies such as artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML) have become instrumental in enabling retailers to customise experiences based on consumer habits and preferences.

What technologies do you think can help retailers personalise the experience for consumers?

Solutions powered with AI and ML can help retailers analyse consumer data based on transactions, demographics, product type preferences, purchase history, loyalty programs, as well as purchase behaviours – helping them to provide an increasingly personalised experience. Technology’s role doesn’t stop at analysis, though.

With the right solution, retailers can create an all-encompassing retail solution that begins at the entry of the sales funnel and doesn’t end until the customer leaves the store with their purchase in hand. Yes, retailers have analytics, but they also have access to secure customer relationship management (CRM), order management and the correct utilisation of inventory, clienteling and mobile point of sale (MPOS).

When integrated correctly, retailers can provide their customers with a seamless shopping experience that rewards loyalty. Not only do they thoroughly enjoy their customer journey, but they have an incentive to return.

What role can these technologies play in aiding retailers to make the most of a busy festive period?

Modern retailers need to not only be capable of serving consumers across a mix of offline and online sales channels, but they need to provide an offering tailored to each customer. Consider Black Friday, the traditional curtain raiser of the festive shopping period. Every year it gets bigger and bigger, and the pandemic sent the retail industry into chaos when it realised how much shopping would be completed online that year. Last year saw more in-store sales as Covid-19 recovery continued, but shoppers were still apprehensive about visiting stores.

Now that the pandemic is well and truly behind us, we expect this year to be a complete mix of online and offline. Retailers need an all-encompassing omnichannel solution that caters to both online and offline purchases. By fully integrating all channels, retailers can understand their customers, from the very beginning. They can also be flexible in line with consumer demands, tracking purchasing preferences, allowing customers to jump between sales channels as they wish and providing an uninterrupted experience. The right system will cater to everything.

A key consideration for the festive period is taking into account how busy stores can get. A good sign for retailers but a painful one for customers. Retailers cannot underestimate the power of the in-store experience and the more boots in-store, the more opportunity for sales. But customers get turned off by long queues and busy waiting times. A user-friendly but multifeature, point-of-sale system can be essential to providing customers with a smooth checkout experience completed in seconds. The right mobile POS technology is a crucial line-buster and will allow retailers to maximise revenue while providing an amazing in-store experience during the coming months.

Read more at KDS Europe here: https://kdseurope.com/KDS-Magazine-August-September-2022-Issue/