PUBLISHED DATE: 2021-06-25 04:29:47

How Retailers Are Adapting to Changing Consumer Behavior

Findings From The Digital Life Index

Earlier this year, the Digital Life Index, Publicis Sapient’s proprietary global research initiative, explored how the COVID-19 pandemic is affecting the way people view technology, their relationship with retailers and how they plan to shop. Based on our findings, we’ve identified five ways retailers can remain competitive, along with some real-life examples of how some of the biggest brands are using data and technology to adapt:
Author Amy Onorato
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Retailers have come a long way to improve the online shopping experience. But our research reveals a more disjointed online customer journey. Though shoppers feel fairly confident in their ability to research and buy products online, many are dissatisfied with the web equivalent of in-store activity – like trying out new items, communicating with customer service or processing returns. As shopping habits evolve, retailers must have the ability to quickly implement improvements in ways that let them innovate.

Innovation in Real Life

Carrefour

How Carrefour achieved the impossible with speed at scale.
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Explore our solutions
At Publicis Sapient, our Rapid Commerce solution lets companies test and implement services into existing e-commerce environments. Using a cloud-based, micro-services infrastructure, retailers can focus on optimizing services and implement new ones without disrupting the entire system – accelerating speed-to-market while reducing overhead cost. Our approach to information-technology modernization and focus on customer service experiences has helped businesses achieve an average revenue increase of 14.7 percent.
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In-store interactions will continue to be defined by social distancing as physical storefronts remain subject to government health regulations. For shoppers, contactless technologies, like self-service checkout, digital signage and mobile pay have become more important alternatives to navigate perceived health and safety risks. Our research shows that 67 percent of shoppers have used some form of contactless payment to pay for a purchase in a physical store, with 39 percent saying they would use contactless payments every time if offered. Contactless technologies offer a way for retailers to not only provide safer environments, but to create more immersive in-store experiences in the future.

Innovation in Real Life

Walmart Canada

Publicis Sapient design and technology helps enable frictionless checkout.
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At Publicis Sapient, our Premise solution works to accelerate in-store contactless experiences by allowing a more connected approach – built to accommodate real-time shopper data that enables deeper personalization right at the checkout kiosk.
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Curbside pickup, or buy-online-pickup-in-store (BOPIS) is another way for retailers to provide safer in-person interaction, while managing uptick in e-commerce demand. According to our research, shoppers cite BOPIS as their most preferred way of fulfillment across categories. Retailers must understand how to scale BOPIS services in a way that meets consumer demand while mitigating operational cost.
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At Publicis Sapient, we have worked with retailers to implement a LEAD (light, ethical, accessible, dataful) approach to implementation that enables quick turnaround with customer experience in mind.
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Throughout the pandemic, grocers and retailers were challenged to act quickly in response to shift in demand, as shoppers focused spending on essential goods and services. Real-time insights can help retailers anticipate demand and optimize offers to deliver competitive prices and promotions when shoppers are ready to purchase. Retailers can make better decisions on how and where to move inventory, reducing propensity of stock-outs across digital and physical channels if they have a better understanding of demand trends. Personalization provided by customer-level data also enables more intelligent recommendations, reducing risk of costly returns due to incorrect orders.

Innovation in Real Life

Global Jewelry Brand

See how Publicis Sapient and IBM accelerated omnichannel growth for one global jewelry brand.
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Explore our solutions
At Publicis Sapient, our cloud-native Identity Applied Platform (IAP) helps retailers understand demand patterns on an enterprise level, enabling more dynamic cost management and better customer experience from online ordering to delivery.
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In an increasingly crowded e-commerce landscape, it’s crucial for retailers to build lasting relationships with customers. According to our research, shoppers are more likely to shop with brands that provide fast shipping, loyalty programs, direct-to-consumer delivery options, and a personalized touch. Creating true one-to-one customer experiences touches every element of the retail organization – from managing demand and discovery, to offering the right recommendations and delivering a package to a customer’s doorstep. With a customer data platform (CDP), retailers can unite customer data to create a singular view of the entire shopping journey – helping retailers make the right decisions on what to promote and where to invest when developing new products and services for their customers.

Innovation in Real Life

Falabella

Falabella needed to develop a scalable consumer data platform to unify shopper data.
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Explore our solutions
At Publicis Sapient, we partner closely with our clients to help them understand capability, set priorities and implement a custom CDP solution. Our CDP Virtual Lab and Walled Garden Cleanroom provide a collaborative, adaptive environment for continuous development, giving our clients reliable access to the data they need alongside evolving data regulations.
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Andy Halliwell
Senior Client Partner
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