Retail is evolving rapidly, blending online and offline experiences into a seamless commerce ecosystem. Shopify's recent shift from e-commerce to all-encompassing commerce reflects this trend. With 75% of US consumers researching and purchasing both in-store and online, understanding customer behavior across all touchpoints is crucial for success.
While online data provides valuable insights, in-store customer information has been harder to capture. This gap limits personalization, targeted marketing, and relationship building.
This blog explores the latest retail checkout innovations, focusing on how Shopify's Summer Editions 2024 updates are revolutionizing the in-store experience and helping businesses thrive in this new omnichannel reality.
Why Integrate Online and Offline Sales Data?
There is a need for data to be the main driver for bringing together online and offline retail channels. In-store sales are valuable but offer little insight into consumer behavior. On the other hand, e-commerce integration provides a more complete scope:
- Customer Profiling: Combining offline purchases with online profiles identifies customers’ profiles as well as their purchasing patterns.
- Purchase Insights: It is important to know why and when consumers make particular purchases as this will enhance targeting and inventory management.
- Replicability: This way, you can better reproduce successful deals by using integrated data that will eventually lead to discovering new opportunities.
- Holistic View: By merging online and offline metrics, one can have an in-depth understanding of your business process and customer interaction.
- Personalization: Data integration allows customization of shopping experiences across all media.
- Inventory Optimization: Make out stock necessities by analyzing both supply within stores and ordering on the internet.
- Strategic Decision-Making: Comprehensive data leads to more informed business strategies and marketing decisions.
How Shopify Helps Bridge the Gap Between Retail and Online Sales: Shopify Summer Editions ‘24 Updates
Today, modern POS systems are entirely digital, which means you can check out a customer wherever you are. All you need is a POS app and an internet-enabled device, such as a tablet or phone.
Shopify aims to make the Shopify POS the world’s most unified retail system.
To achieve this, Shopify POS now allows:
1. Effortlessly Gather Customer Information
This feature bridges the gap between online and offline sales, enhancing the customer experience and providing valuable data for retailers. It works seamlessly with Shopify POS hardware like POS Terminal and POS Go.
Let’s discuss the usefulness of Shopify's new email capture function during point-of-sale (POS) checkouts. It is also aimed at making data collection as smooth as possible so that customers and staff do not suffer any friction between them.
The following are some of the key benefits:
- Automated Matching: This connects any in-store purchases to Shop Pay accounts.
- Quick Information Retrieval: Checkout automatically shows the customer's email address and phone number.
- One-Tap Digital Receipts: Customers can get their receipts through the Shop app, email, or text message.
- Easy Marketing Opt-in: Customers can sign up for marketing with one touch.
- New Customer Onboarding: For those who have never used Shop, you can simply ask for your email address and add them.
- Data Privacy: Compliance with local laws and allows consumers to manage their information.
2. Set in-store return rules
Shopify POS has incorporated automated eligibility checks, which makes returns easier in-store.
For example, the system can instantly confirm if a product is returnable and it gives reasons for this to the seller. This allows merchants to make personalized return policies that permit non-manual confirmation of “returnability” by the employees. With more visibility into why an item might or might not be allowed back, customers are better informed.
To minimize conflicts and enforce a consistent policy at all branches simultaneously, the new system reduces complications associated with returns making it easier for both staff members and buyers generally visiting actual markets.
3. Unique catalogs for each retail store
Retailers can now customize the prices and products for each location. This enables them to adapt their pricing strategy on a store-by-store basis and also make appropriate selections of items to stock.
The update incorporates localized checkout flows that can be customized according to regional preferences and regulations. Moreover, they may translate product catalogs into other languages to meet the demands of diverse linguistic markets. This feature gives businesses the ability to optimize their offering based on local demand, price sensitivity, cultural subtleties, etc.
With such a degree of detail, control is enabled via Shopify thus allowing retailers to achieve maximum relevance and competitiveness in every individual market they serve and potentially increase sales volume as well as customer satisfaction across different regions.
4. Retail customers can Buy X Get Y
This update takes popular online marketing strategies to offline stores. Retailers can now generate in-store use Buy X Get Y coupon codes.
They are accessible through the POS smart grid, making them easily applicable during checkout by employees. It has the capability of enabling shops to make offers of “buy one get one free” as well as “buy two and get 50% discount on the third item” among others.
Merchants can now drive larger sales volumes, clear specific inventory or introduce new products to the market by implementing these focused promotions.
5. Stack discounts in-store
Retailers can now apply multiple discounts during a single transaction at the point of sale. Stores can now combine different types of discounts, such as product-specific offers with overall order discounts.
For example, a customer could receive a discount on a particular item while also benefiting from a storewide sale.
This feature enables more complex and appealing promotional strategies, potentially increasing basket sizes and customer satisfaction. It gives retailers the tools to create more nuanced pricing strategies, clear inventory more effectively, and offer more competitive deals.
The ability to stack discounts in-store aligns the physical retail experience more closely with online shopping, where such layered promotions are common.
6. Fully hardwired Android POS setup
This update helps retailers to have more stable and connected point-of-sale systems by making use of Android devices. The most common connectivity issues that are experienced in busy retail environments are addressed by Shopify by enabling the hardwiring of Android tablets, POS Terminals, barcode scanners, and other peripherals among others.
7. Shopify POS hardware available in more countries
POS Terminal and POS Go, Shopify's advanced point-of-sale devices, are now accessible in nine additional countries: Belgium, Denmark, Germany, Ireland, Italy, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Spain, and the UK. This expansion brings Shopify's robust retail hardware solutions to a wider global market. Retailers in these countries can now leverage the same high-quality, integrated POS systems used by businesses in other regions.
Also read: Split Shipping in Shopify Checkout - Everything You Need To Know
Need Professional Help In Leveraging Shopify Retail In Your Shopify Store?
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