Retailers use customer data personalization to reach and engage customers throughout the entire shopping journey. This personalization shows up in a few ways:
Content optimization
All content related to the brand is shared in a way that will reach the largest possible customer base. Content optimization covers everything from highlighting keywords that will resonate with an audience, specific in-app messaging, and SEO practices to rank better online.
Personalized offers and product recommendations
If you have an app on your phone for your favorite store, chances are you receive coupons based on your recent browsing or purchases, or the app may notify you when an item you browsed goes on sale.
All of these incentives speak to your unique shopping preferences and ultimately build your loyalty to the brand.
Heat mapping
Heat mapping allows retailers to see where customers’ strongest interests gravitate. It’s considered one of the most effective tools for understanding how customers utilize space and what that means for their purchasing habits.
It allows retailers to accurately predict customer behavior patterns: where do they linger in the store? What areas do they underutilize? Which spots are overly congested? Which displays attracted the most customers? Which were ignored?
Heat mapping–which can be facilitated via large, reliable 5G networks–recording shoppers’ physical movements and create color-coded visualizations of that data which anyone can quickly grasp.
Retailers analyze traffic data from phone locations to see how customers interact with the store and their surroundings, eventually resulting in a much more robust marketing strategy that can optimize store layouts in a way that wasn’t previously possible, allowing brands to shift away from traditional ‘gut-feeling’ strategic planning toward data-driven precision.
5G and AR/VR technologies
With the internet and 5G on our phones, retailers can create an integrated customer experience not only in-store, but also online, offline, and everywhere in between. Combined with 5G, shopping becomes a virtual, all-encompassing experience.
We see these integrations in a few ways.
Virtual assistants
5G allows virtual assistants and robots to have human-like conversations with customers. They answer questions about products and services in seconds, provide product recommendations according to what the customer browsed, purchased, or liked, and even offer appropriate in-store discounts if the customer is nearby.
Chatbots
Chatbots help customers make purchases online or in-store by providing information on products and services. They tend to be especially helpful with return and exchange policies, warranties, or other relevant policies post-purchase.
Self-checkout
Self-checkout kiosks let customers check themselves out without waiting in line or talking to a cashier. It’s a quick and generally seamless process.
Kiosks can also print coupons for customers after checking out. If the customers had a good experience, they’ll ideally come back to redeem their savings!
Virtual mirrors
Virtual mirrors are another form of 5G advanced technology making shopping easier for customers. Instead of trying on clothes in a dressing room, shoppers skip that step by viewing them virtually and “trying before buying” them. This method uses computer vision, face detection, and tracking technologies.
Trying on clothes and accessories has become possible virtually, in other words, providing in-store convenience to digital shopping.
