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Why Brick-and-Mortar will survive

With all of the advancements that online shopping provides, it still cannot compete with the personalized in-store shopping experience that’s found at brick-and-mortar stores-and that customers crave. Walking up and down the aisles, listening to the music, taking the time to browse and linger; there’s just no way the web can parallel such an immersive experience.

E-commerce is ubiquitous and has forever changed the retail landscape. But growth opportunities exist for brick-and-mortar retailers because they can deliver what consumers can’t get from shopping online: face-to-face human touch, and memorable, unique customer experiences.

It’s this sort of engagement and excitement that continuously attracts shoppers to brick-and-mortar stores. In fact, according to Retail Touch Points, during the 2018 holiday season 96 % of consumers did at least some of their shopping in-store, thanks to the ambience and festive décor found in physical stores.

A big area that retailers should be focusing on is removing friction points within the store.

Additions like mobile checkout, BOPIS options and mobile apps with store maps can simplify the store experience. In the coming year, leading retailers will have mastered both the online and in-store experience, while those that don’t will continue to struggle.

That being said, why do so many retailers make cost-cutting decisions, such as reducing staff hours or closing down lanes, when it’s detrimental to their long-term viability? And why are they allowing automation to replace humans instead of using it to free up employees for other customer-facing duties and becoming active participants in the customer experience? In the short-run, perhaps overhead is reduced. But by eliminating the human touch, many retailers are also doing away with the retail customer experience that in-store shoppers so crave.

Many retailers are already a long way down the road of implementing retail automation; however, they aren’t necessarily using it in a way that improves the customer experience. Instead, they’re implementing technology that puts more of a burden on the customer in order to cut labor costs. But, what if you could do more? What if you could implement intelligent technology that not only helps your cashiers, but also provides a better customer experience?

Automation, when used correctly, improves the customer experience

Cash management technology is used to automate the mundane, time-consuming processes that takes your employees off the shop floor (and away from your customers) – such as manually counting coins or the dual-count method often used at shift changeover time. Cash management technology, such as an intelligent cash drawer, can drive efficiency, drive adherence to process, reduce shrink and cut labor costs while providing a better retail customer experience. How? It provides real-time tracking and data that helps management make decisions to better the customer experience.

An intelligent cash drawer, such as Tellermate’s LiveDrawer®, automates the traditional cash management process, such as reconciling tills or preparing bank deposits. It flags cashier errors, so customers are ensured that they will receive the correct amount of change. And vice versa: It backs up cashiers when customers erroneously claim they were given the wrong change. By increasing efficiency, an intelligent cash drawer allows your employees more time on the shop floor to generate sales, interact with customers and become your brand’s ambassadors. Offering help and creating relationships that lead to a memorable customer experience.

What’s more, it removes the opportunity for theft at the point of sale – whether by customers or employees. Because it knows each and every transaction, which cashier handled cash, and when an overage or shortage occurred. In short, cash management technology is a relatively inexpensive way that retailers can use to focus on the basics of satisfying basic shoppers’ desires while delivering a seamless, engaging in-store experience. It can help your business by allowing employees more time with customers – helping them make selections, upselling and providing that personal exchange that they so want.

To find out how LiveDrawer allowed one European retailer improved the overall customer experience while increasing efficiencies and reallocating labor hours, download the LiveDrawer case study.

LiveDrawer Case Study

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