Amid the tweaking moment of current retail industry, technology advancement and consumer preferences are still viewed to open a door for the e-commerce.
DMNews got a chance of interviewing with the Executive Director of the Global Retail Executive Council with mobile and social shopping as center of the discussion.
Find out what the mobile and social media can do to multi-channel retailers, and why do retailers need to review and consider to these two potential expansion areas.
Read on…
Multi-channel retailers need to incorporate mobile, social
by Nathan Golia
Though the economy has put a squeeze on retailers, advances in technology and consumer preferences have opened doors for e-commerce to take another step forward. James Crawford, executive director of the Global Retail Executive Council, talked to DMNews about two potential expansion areas: mobile and social shopping.
Q How has the economy affected e-commerce so far, and what trends do you see as the holidays near?
A There have been some permanent changes to the way people shop. First of all, every purchase is now a considered purchase. Across all economic strata, people are far more conscious of what they’re buying. I think e-commerce has been somewhat insulated because it’s always been a considered purchase — rarely do you do an impulse buy online. There’s no question this holiday is going to take a hit because of what’s going on in the economy. Credit is much tighter, and the costs of using credit have gone up. Even for people who are a good credit risk, there are more fees and higher interest rates. I think we’re going to see smaller basket sizes. It’s probably going to be a better year for specialty retailers who have unique products that you can’t buy elsewhere. Product assortment will be key. You need to have the right mix to draw the customer in and the right things that ultimately they want to buy.
