Intelligent CIO Middle East Issue 50 | Page 26

INFOGRAPHIC INFOGRAPHIC Retailers must leverage technology to provide personalised services and build smarter operations Z ebra Technologies, an innovator at the edge of the enterprise with solutions and partners that enable businesses to gain a performance edge, has revealed the results of its 12th annual Global Shopper Study. necessary with new technology that automates the process. Nearly nine-in-10 retail executives (87%) believe self-checkout frees up store associates to better serve customers and 81% reported they’re starting to see a return on their investment. “Our study shows that while better services will help retain current shoppers and attract new ones, retailers need to make sure they have the basics right when it comes to product availability, ease of finding products, returns and exchanges,” said Anees Haidri, This is the industry’s only market tracker that looks at the attitudinal behaviour of shoppers, retail associates and retail executives and examines the retail and technology trends impacting shoppers’ purchasing behaviour. Three-fourths (75%) of surveyed millennial shoppers and more than half (53%) of Gen X shoppers indicated they shopped in a store and left without a purchase only to end up buying the item online. The main culprit for retailers losing in- store purchases to online shopping is due to issues with inventory management, particularly out-of-stocks. Both shoppers and retail associates expressed dissatisfaction with the number of out-of- stocks as 43% of retail associates cited customer complaints about out-of-stocks as their biggest frustration and 39% of shoppers left a store without a purchase due to this problem. Self-checkout technologies are also gaining traction in retail stores as 40% of shoppers reported using these solutions within the last six months and 86% stated they were comfortable with the technology. Furthermore, most shoppers (58%) – especially millennials (70%) – agree that self-checkout provides an improved customer experience. The majority of store associates (54%) also said staffed checkout areas are less 26 INTELLIGENTCIO www.intelligentcio.com www.intelligentcio.com