Talk about customized shopping without any actual human interaction. This is what the world is coming to. Before online marketing and applications that knows your personal preferences – from clothes to food and groceries – consumers relied on sales signs and sales people to personally pitch to us the promotions and what products suited our needs.

After that, we had stores that tried to integrate a fun, interactive shopping experience to combat the trends towards online shopping. An example of this is what Burberry did for its flagship store in London. It brought in huge screens, speakers and everything digital that knocks your senses out which wow-ed consumers and the luxury apparel industry.

Now, fast-forward to the present day, we have RFID and beacons.  Moreover, just a few weeks ago, Apple launched the Apple Pay platform. Although the Apple Pay system isn’t widely adopted yet, it has huge potential. From first-hand experience, Apple Pay really makes the transaction faster and easier. Just last week, I went to go buy something from the Apple store, and one of the Apple experts taught me how to use the platform in less than 5 minutes, and now in the future, all I need is my phone to make a transaction, which can be finished at the touch of my finger. Not only is the process fast, but it can potentially decrease the need for sales people because the specifications and item details are also all available on the smartphone.

RFID technology

Beacon technology

Now imagine this in-store shopping experience:  From the moment you walk in, your smartphone gives notification about discounts, sales, what is trending and which celebrity is wearing what. Lastly, the completion process is as simple as clicking a button on your phone. This is what MobileROI is hoping to accomplish. To see more regarding this, please visit: For Mobile Marketer MobileROI, Apply Pay is the Missing Link.  In addition to the consumer perspective that I was describing above, the MobileROI platform also has the marketers and business owners in mind.

from Venture Beat Article

They also provide the ability to segment, personalize, predict and most importantly, measure through the use of their platform. Similar to what was talked about in class regarding digital marketing ROI, without measurement (traffic origin, campaign performance, KPIs etc.), it is hard to quantify the success of each objective.

I am eager to see the adoption of these new technology savvy shopping tools. As a consumer that loves my in-store shopping experiences, I am excited to see how businesses will integrate these platforms without losing the satisfaction which is brought through the human interaction.

Eager to see what will happen in the future!

Which way would you choose?

The Xetum Watch

Going digital is undoubtedly part of all companies right now. Most retail companies have a social media platform, such as Twitter and Facebook, or a website in which has eCommerce capabilities in hand with their brick-and-mortar stores. However, there are also many brands that have decided to go with the online-only route. While doing some research about brands like this, I came across an interesting one – Xetum. In a Forbes article called “The Online-only Watch Era“, the writer, Arial Adams, describes how this brand overcame the challenges in launching a completely new luxury watch brand that relies solely on the eCommerce platform. For me personally, deciding to buy a $1000 watch in-store is already a very difficult decision, let alone buying one that I have never touched or seen in person, online. However, Xetum was able to successfully launch its business and some of the strategies that the founder, Jeff Kuo, mentioned which helped his business succeed is directly tied to what was mentioned in class:

• “A buying experience that is as comfortable as possible” (A. Adams, 2012) – have websites and social media channels that is consumer-focused (photos with different views, exchange/returns)!

• “Conveying emotional appeal online” (A. Adams, 2012) – community and communication through social media platforms such as Pinterest and Facebook and constant maintenance of all the platforms!

However, while the digital trend is rainbow coloured and full of potential, what will happen to the traditional retail businesses? Many people has speculated that eCommerce will “drive traditional retail towards extinction“. But maybe not. In a recent article on Brandchannel, American Express Shares Brand’s Clicks to Bricks Stories with Online’s Day Off” advocates a “clicks to bricks movement”. Famous online-exclusive brands, such as Birchbox and Rent the Runway have made a decision to enter the physical retail game. Businesses have begun to realize that omnichannel approaches – bringing both an online and offline strategy into a business – will be the big winner in the future.

Interestingly, these online brands, who are moving towards incorporating an offline presence, are advertising this exclusive “Online’s Day Off” event online. That was a handful right? All I am trying to say is, this proves how important it is to have both elements in a business – they are complementary to each other, and not a substitution for each other. Balancing the right amount is the key!

Find the right balance!