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The Internet of Things technology implementation has seen the highest proliferation in the past few years. With businesses around the globe trying to capitalize the scalability of technology in their respective operations, the investment on IoT solutions is poised for growth. Among all the sectors, the retail industry has been the front-runner in adapting to the IoT technologies. According to a report by Jupiter Research, retailers across the world are going to spend an estimated $2.5bn on IoT by 2020. This certainly paves the way for a lot of futuristic IoT technology in the retail industry.
Let us check out some of the innovative examples of IoT that has already been implemented in the retail sector:
Radio-Frequency Identification(RFID)
RFID tagging is an ID system that uses small radio frequency identification devices which can be placed on individual products for identification and tracking purposes. The biggest advantage of using RFID for the retailers is that they can now track the inventory and products on the shelf in the real-time without any manual intervention. Also, this has minimized the product losses or thefts as retailers can now track which product left when and through which channel. RFID also enables simultaneous scanning of all the goods in the customer’s shopping cart as compared to the individual scanning in case of the bar-code stickers.
Digital Signage
Cloud controlled content dissemination through the digital signages have empowered the retailers to upload content for display simultaneously at multiple locations with a single click. Imagine a retailer wanting to promote an exclusive offer to customers at 100 stores at a specific peak time? With the help of digital signages, retailers can perform this action and also track the engagement of the customers syncing it with other IoT sensors. Apart from promotions, retailers can drive engaging content to the customers trying to increase their affinity towards their brand.
Personalized Experience
IoT can merge the personalization of online shopping portals with the physical feeling of the product. With relevant tagging, customers can get messages of ‘Item frequently bought together’, ‘Similar Products’ or ‘Same product in different colors’. With WiFi and IoT Software, retailers can track the movement of the customers and try to bundle promotions specific to the customers.
While established companies like Accenture have started IoT consulting and technology implementation solutions specific for the retail sector. Some notable IoT Startups in India too have catered to the above purposes of optimizing operations, increasing the engagements and ultimately revenue of the retail sector and brands. EasyReach with its offices in Mumbai, Pune, and Bangalore have implemented innovative IoT solutions for the retail industry in India.
