•
Facilitates real-time monitoring of ‘brick-and-mortar’ stores
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Delivers actionable insights enabling adjustments of real-time
promotions and store staff assignments
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Allows retailers to
fully exploit the full value of the Internet of Things
Software AG (Frankfurt TecDAX: SOW) today unveiled Smart
Store Monitoring for the Digital Business Platform. Smart Store Monitoring
provides retailers with real-time and predictive analysis capabilities in their
‘brick and mortar’ stores by enabling them to access, monitor and analyze large
volumes of streaming data from in-store sensors and apps. Retailors can now
gain immediate, actionable insights into how their promotions are performing
and exploit the full value of the Internet of Things.
Oliver Guy, Retail Industry Director, Software AG, said: “These
real-time insights could suggest retail managers should redeploy their staff to
‘hot areas’ in their store to meet high demand or persuade marketing managers
to fine-tune promotions on the fly to better respond to different consumers in
a particular location.”
According to a recent benchmark report from Retail Systems Research
(RSR), underwritten by Software AG, retailers are keen to connect with
consumers via smart devices and see an opportunity to offer new services based
on consumer-driven data from IoT-enabled devices. They view store operations
and customer engagement in stores as two of the top five departments that will
benefit most from IoT (41% and 36%, respectively).
Oliver Guy noted: “The role of the store is expanding from a
historically transaction-only point to an omni-channel hub at the center of all
selling activities. Additionally, retailers are under immense pressure to
provide a seamless, superior shopping experience to stay ahead of the
competition. To benefit from the store’s shifting purpose and growing shopper
expectations, retail managers must be able to track, monitor, analyze and
optimize all in-store activity in real-time.”
Retailers are optimistic about the value of IoT in the store and they
know that this new approach to data capture, analysis and action is needed.
However, respondents to RSR’s report cited three technology barriers for all
IoT projects – combining disparate data sources together, determining the best
response to specific data events or expectations, and dealing with so much data
from so many difference sources in real-time.
To overcome these barriers, Software AG’s Digital Business platform
integrates a number of key technologies that critical to enable Smart Store
Monitoring, including:
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Connectivity to all
IoT-enabled data sources including in-store sensors and feeds, predictive
models, in-store inventory management, point of service, external data or any
other feeds.
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Provide real-time
actionable insight as to what is happening in-store in real time – visible by
both store staff and head-office merchandisers.
•
Ability to
automatically adjust in-store promotional activity, including signage, based on
real-time consumer response.
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Ability to
incorporate predictive models to initiate actions such as deploying additional
staff or replenishing shelves at just the right moment.
•
In-memory data
management and real-time analytics tools ensure that information is readily
accessible and actionable.
•
Connectivity and
process management tools ensure in-store processes can be managed, and
automated where appropriate, to streamline omni-channel processes.
Oliver Guy continued: “With Smart Store Monitoring, retailers now have
the critical data capabilities they need to track and act on all of the sensors
and data feeds in a store – from point of sale data to shelf sensors -
rendering IoT a retail reality.”
The Software AG Digital Business Platform solves the data,
infrastructure and skills challenge for retailers. By bringing existing data
together, in real-time, all key stakeholders in the retail environment can
predict and foresee issues and opportunities within their organization.
Merchandisers and promotion planners can access information streaming from the
store’s sensors and in-store apps, giving them immediate insights into how
promotions and campaigns are performing.
As RSR found, retailers view inventory accuracy (49%) and system-wide
inventory visibility (40%) as two of the top three IoT opportunities. With the
Digital Business Platform, sales managers and floor personnel can receive
relevant details about a customer’s shopping history, store merchandise,
inventory and product shipping information quickly.