IoT Boost For Traditional Retailers

While Large Retailers are making dramatic progress in customer experiences, smaller retail chains are joining the bandwagon. IoT has led to a whole new world of shopping and the overall retail experience possibilities. Fundamentally there are 4 key benefits for IOT-enabled Retailers

1. Omni Channel Fulfilment

There are a lot of retailers either experimenting with RFID or standardising it, not for efficiency in the supply chain, but to track on-hand inventory in stores. And apparel companies are making giant strides here, where RFID seems to work well as a compatible technology. This is allowing them to implement online visibility into in-store inventory and ship from the store.

2. Customer Intelligence

There are a host of IoT products which silently monitor the customer behaviour, latching on to their smartphones providing valuable customer behavioural insights and the store engagement experience. At the same time push notifications connect them with the larger digital experiences for a variety of promotions.

3. Personalised Customer Experience

We have witnessed a lot of high-end retailers providing an engaging experience to their customers. For instance, they are using facial recognition technique using powerful cameras to recognise their customers the moment they walk inside the shopping centre and give a personalised experience. Virtual reality can also enter dressing rooms as you will be able to try on limitless varieties of clothes in any colour. By just wearing VR glasses, you can be transported to a new world of shopping from a small retail store.

4. Streamlining Retail Operations

The evolution of point of sale systems, barcode scanners, digital modes of payment, etc., at shopping centres, has changed the face of the retail sector. With advanced technologies, retailers also brought in computing systems and software for inventory management. These systems are in due for massive AI intervention and they might get bigger and better over time.

Get ready for Local Edge

All these are just the tip of the iceberg. New and advanced technology is all set to give customers an unbelievable experience and it’s possible with efficient data collection. Combining the Internet of Things transmitters, sensors, cameras, and beacons connected to a data center on-site at each of these retail locations can revolutionise one’s shopping experience. These on-site data centers are usually a part of a larger cloud computing architecture and located at the store on the network edge.

Retailers need to assess a massive amount of data quickly which can be done if the information is attainable at the edge. So what does edge mean? It refers to the computing infrastructure that exists close to the sources of data. With edge computing, the data produced by IoT devices can be processed faster and at the point of sale instead of sending it across long routes to data centers or cloud. Edge computing can deliver the best performance without any latency and lag and makes working easier. This, in turn, refines shopping activities and even goes over the board.

“Investing in a local Edge Computing solution will help any business unleash the power of IoT,” says Venkatraman Swaminathan, Vice President & Country General Manager India & SAARC, IT Division at Schneider Electric.

Through IoT, VR and another advanced tech that day is not far when customers could start shopping with Oculus gears or use a tablet or smartphone to see coupons or discounts applied on merchandise as they navigate through a store.

With APC by Schneider Electric, you will be able to provide an enduring experience to your customers while fuelling your growth. They help you convert your server room into the IoT-ready on-premise data center. APC by Schneider Electric provides all components for the local edge IT Infrastructure.

APC by Schneider Electric is the leading brand in providing an uninterrupted power supply (UPS) and IT Infrastructure and all components for the Local Edge IT Infrastructure, which makes easy for the customer to choose and benefit from a single window for all the needs.

All components of APC by Schneider Electric Local Edge solution are IoT ready i.e. they can communicate with other devices and can be monitored by a user over IP from any remote location. And that’s not all. APC by Schneider Electric is also awarding a 75%* cashback to SMB retailers and organisations to complete the remaining IT Infrastructure.

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*Conditions Apply