Data is probably not the first thing on your mind as a retailer vying for a breakthrough in a pandemic-ridden world. Yet, if you study the industry conditions and current consumer behaviour, it’s easy to see why acquiring and managing data is exactly what you need. In fact, experts attribute it to the exponential growth of the retail industry, which is expected to reach around 31 billion in value come 2023. The takeaway? Decision-making needs to be quick for you to rise to the top, and you can only do that if you have the right data and analytical technology to offer this convenience.
Collecting Data
This gives an entirely new meaning to on-boarding and tracking customer activities on your website. You’re not just saving the information they need to finish their purchase swiftly. Even customers expect that when they click that ‘agree’ button, their next visit will offer a more customized experience. Think items and incentives relevant to previous purchases and new payment methods popular in their region or country.
To support this, you have to let go of old online infrastructures and invest in data centres. Different retailers call for different data centre design services to suit their needs and current capacities. This level of IT solution is exactly what you need to maximize your online presence and e-commerce ventures. The greatest part? Online shopping hasn’t even reached its peak, making this your most valuable investment in 2021. Once you have the infrastructure and support to manage data, you now have to know how exactly it benefits your business.
A New Level of Personalization
Personalization is like entering a shop where every product and service on display is tailored to your preferences. What’s even better is that there are new options hand-picked based on your shopping history. Excessive? Not really. This is the minimum amount of convenience online shoppers expect, and if you can’t provide it, they’ll go straight to your competition for the sake of a better experience.
Imagine how much more engaged your customers will be when your emails address them by name and the incentives you offer to suit their demographic.
Fine-Tune Your Marketing Campaigns
The most successful campaigns know their target audience by heart. Comprehensive data on your existing and target customers allows you to create profiles that will make your marketing more efficient. This profile includes their behaviour online, specifically their social media activities. With this insight at hand, you’ll know how to boost your visibility and which images will compel them to hit ‘like,’ ‘share,’ or ‘save.’ What social issues can you be involved in to improve your reputation? Which platforms do your audience use? The answers all boil down to data and your analysis of them.
Manage Fraud Better
Acquiring data means you’re responsible for keeping every single one of them secure from cybercriminals. The worst-case scenario is that a hacker gets a hold of your customer’s credit card details and makes fraudulent purchases on your website. The least you can expect is a barrage of complaints and some lost patrons. The worst is a lawsuit and a tarnished brand name.
But what if you can prevent these fraudulent activities using the same methods that allow you to personalize their shopping experience? It’s simple: your system records the device through which the purchase is made and the user’s location. When the same user attempts to check out an item on a different device from a foreign country, this activity can be flagged, and you can take measures to confirm this purchase with the user. Apart from preventing a lawsuit, you’re giving your customers more reason to trust your brand.
Enhances Brick-and-Mortar Performance
Yes, it doesn’t apply to e-commerce. The data you acquire will improve your response to consumer needs in various regions and make an inventory much easier. Climate change is a good example if you consider how much it impacts demand for certain clothes, tools, and medicines. When the temperature drops in a region that is usually warm all-year-round, you can meet the increased demand for suitable clothing or flu medicines for that season. The same applies to pricing and how you can effectively adjust them.
Prioritize Data
Data is your new weapon. You can turn it into your competitive edge and outplay your competitors in a shorter amount of time than you anticipate. Managing a data centre and maximizing the insights you glean from all the information stored therein is a challenge, but it’s one that you can’t afford to back down on. Now more than ever, it’s integral for retailers to meet their customers halfway and tailor their experience if they are to succeed.
