Delivering an exceptional customer experience has never been more important than it is today. With such a dynamic market, driven by endless digital capabilities, there is no doubt that your long-term business presence depends on how well you meet your client's online needs. For most companies, the buying behaviour of their target group has constantly altered over the last years. But in the past months, all changes underwent a drastic acceleration.

According to the PwC CFO Pulse Survey from June 2020, companies were forced to cut costs and jobs to survive the first wave of the pandemic. But with the reopening, they now must adapt their business models, listen to their clients and adjust offerings. Up until June 2020, 56% of the interviewed CFOs stated that they consider technology investments as a means of ensuring long-term growth.

Regardless of the size and market share, retailers must connect the dots and strategize to address the digital demand while keeping the experience personalized and attractive for the shoppers.

Here are 3 client-centric IT investments for offering your client a better experience when shopping with your business:

1. Client-centric software modernization

Technological advancements, digital experiences, innovative devices, user-centric development of products and services, these are all ways on how companies can forge their business growth.

Investing in software modernization is a key driver to innovation and evolution. Benefits of modernizing software are:

• Agility to constantly changing technology and requirements

• Improved user experience

• Reliable, reproducible, scalable products

• Improved data security management and control

• Improved operational efficiency

• Faster time‐to‐market

The main aim of any application modernization project is to help retailers create new business value from existing applications and, thus, increase revenues, competitiveness and improve market positioning. The high gains of software modernization are, among other, faster store acquisitions and organic growth.

A modernized software-defined store process allows retailers to create an IT ecosystem and deploy it across new stores with minimal intervention. So, they can sustain new stores fast - without replacing the hardware - thus significantly reducing costs.

2. Integrated analytics for client-focused products

Increasing technological advances and the need for better analytics for retailers have led to investments like real-time analytics that make your client-centric retail strategy dynamic and efficient.

Retailers need a reliable and easily accessible source of truth to make decisions that impact the health of their business and to assess customer needs. Retail analytics platforms provide a 360-degree view of client needs and data to develop more client-centric products and services.

Integrating analytics will help you:

• Leverage data to optimize CX

• Have an overview of client needs

• Deliver client-centric products

• Anticipate demand and trends

• Improve and optimize in-store operations

Successful retail companies use the insights they gain from retail analysis tools about their customers, products, and operations to make better marketing, sales and operational decisions. With retail analytics, you get a single source of truth about your clients, their buying preferences, and their online and offline commitment to your brand. Retail analytics is especially important for e-commerce retailers who want to increase brand awareness and improve digital advertising results.

3. Digital communication solutions

Retailers need to engage with clients successfully across multiple digital channels. Email marketing campaigns, triggered notifications, and secure confidential documents have become key drivers to your organization's digital transformation.

By leveraging integrated digital communication solutions, retail businesses can create engaging and personalized experiences for clients across the entire buyer journey. Furthermore, they can attract new shoppers by integrating marketing and sales tactics for prospects.

Digital communication solutions can:

• Ensure consistent product messaging across all external communication platforms

• Ensure an interactive and personalized experience for clients

• Attract prospects with implemented marketing tactics

• Increase sales by engaging cross-sales strategies

• Reduce costs and overhead for prints

• Integrate with third-party systems such as POS or CRM

• Provide real-time data on client and shop activity

Conclusion

Today's consumers want seamless services and are only loyal to companies that meet their growing demands for fast and relevant experiences. By investing in customer-centric solutions, your business can deliver tailored experiences which will increase client satisfaction and ensure a higher revenue lift.

TL;DR:

• Delivering highly connected experiences = higher revenue lift

• Continuously tailoring the shopping experience by using data = increased loyalty and client satisfaction

• Focus on the human touch = brand equity, client loyalty