Can High Street Retailers compete with E-Retailers? Data Analytics may just be the key!

Big data in retail offers quick and measurable benefits to retailers. It is helping retailers in mining volumes of data, generating actionable insights and helping them better understand customer’s mind to influence their purchasing decisions and provide personalized experiences. Here are 4 ways you as a retailer can benefit by adopting big data and compete with your online counterparts

1. In-store Management

Gone are the days when retailers will organize their store in a set pattern- groceries close to entry, books in row 3 and apparel close to billing etc. Today it’s all about aligning with the customers demand on that day. Processing your customer’s in-store behavior and other related data can help you give practical insights on managing your store. Some retailers are also listening into online views of their target audience or even impact of weather on shopping habits and then leveraging the insights to improve their product forecasting, stock placement, shelves positioning and even pricing. Studies show that a significant number of shoppers make decisions on brands to buy in-store. So make your products visible to shoppers and push your sales.

2. Supply Chain & Logistics

‘Out of stock’ items don’t just lose you business but also customers. There is no gain in having products in the inventory but unavailable in the shelves. Big data application in retail supply chain can help you bridge the gap between inventory and shelves by providing you real-time data on shelves occupancy so that you can refill it in time. Moreover data gained from social media and other online avenues can help you forecast product demand accurately to plan your supply chain operations accordingly.

3. Personalized Shopping Experiences

Big data retail can help high street retailers personalize shoppers’ experience by providing them with important data and insights on customers interest, past buying history, purchasing patterns etc. Online retailers have pampered your audience by leveraging data. Now it’s your turn to make use of big data analytics to precisely understand your shoppers’ persona and then create experiences around it.

4. Promotions and Advertising

Big data retail analytics helps you granularly segment your audience, target him with relevant messaging, offer him attractive deals and up sell/cross sell. Picture this: A customer steps into your store. An alert is generated in your shop representative’s system providing him information on his/her buying history, product interests etc. Your representative meets the shopper and tells him about offers available on the products of his interest along with recommendations for other products and brands. Big Data can help you create such and similar memorable experiences which can be a great pull for your target audience.

Retailers who have adopted big data retail have gained new customers, improved efficiencies in supply chain and big boost in sales. However, these are all low lying fruits of big data adoption in retail. As things evolve, we will see more ambitious and innovative applications of data and analytics in the retail industry.