How IoT Is Reshaping Retail

The Internet of Things (IoT) is booming, and it’ll keep expanding as consumers convert more aspects of their lives with digital products. Besides smart homes and smart cars, IoT is coming to retail, and it’s going to change how we shop for things like groceries and clothes forever. Here are a few ways in which IoT is already reshaping the retail landscape.

A New Way to Pay

When the first Amazon Go grocery store opened its doors in Seattle earlier this year, everyone marveled about the lack of cashiers and store employees. Customers could simply walk out of the store with their items, which would be scanned wirelessly and charged silently to their credit card.

Understanding Consumers Better

Technology has improved so much that retailers can now track a customer as soon as they enter the shop. Watching their movements, generating a daily “heat map” of all customer movements, changing product placement and display, and offering timely coupons to customers hovering around certain items are all now viable possibilities for any retailer to implement in their store with the help of an IoT developer.

Enhanced Customer Engagement

Beacons use Bluetooth technology to send push notifications to customers about deals, coupons, and multi-item discounts. These transmitters are small, so they can be placed around many objects without signal collision. Digital signages collect and save this data for future use in advertising to customers interested in certain products and personalize promotions.

Digital signages include iPads, touch screens, and other devices that customers can use while shopping or checking out. This tactic alone is changing how much print advertising retailers are paying for.

Intelligent Inventory Management

Using radio-frequency identification (RFID) tags, inventory tracking is much easier, from the warehouse to the sales floor. Combining store availability with the warehouse and distributor keeps every item accounted for without any errors. When an item needs to be restocked, the warehouse and transportation company are already on it with wireless RFID applications.

Smart Stores Overall

Just like smart homes, smart stores can optimize their security, lighting, and HVAC systems with IoT. You may have already seen motion-detecting sensors in grocery store freezer aisles. If someone wants to look at the frozen pizza, the aisle will light up when the person walks through it. It’s another improvement brought about by technology that can remove a daily burden for employees.

A Great Time to Get Into IoT

It’s a great time for programmers and tech enthusiasts to get into IoT application development. Retail is a huge market for IoT optimization, and since retail was hit hard by the Internet, retailers have become comfortable with the fact that they need to upgrade tech to keep up.

In a report by Global Market Insights, a study found that IoT in retail will pass $30 billion by 2024. What other ways could retailers improve their customer experience by using IoT technology?