Shopping as we know it has changed monumentally over the last twenty, ten and even five years.
Traditional brick-and-mortar stores have experienced the transition from cash to chip and pin to contactless. We have also seen the emergence of online shopping, which improves its operations year-on-year, with eWallets, multi-currency conversion tools and 3D Secure.
Keeping up with the times, and making sure that everyone is catered for, is an increasingly daunting task for any merchant, no matter how big or small. The question is, how can merchants design their retail business to appeal to traditional shoppers who don't have a clue about eCommerce as well as the tech-savvy Millennials who want instant, virtual purchases facilitated at the touch of a button?
In-store sales and face-to-face shopping
Wise merchants will have both options available - the ability to sell in-store and online. Despite the near-universal influence of eCommerce, brick-and-mortar stores are far from going extinct; they are adapting to the times, with enhanced technologies that create a simpler, more agreeable shopping experience for customers.
Contactless payments, mobile payments and the utopian 'checkout-less' stores of the future are proof of this. The very best merchants will retain their traditional customer base by keeping their traditional shops, maintaining the inter-personal relationships that these shoppers value.
With an excellent ePOS system for speed and efficiency, that place the customer checkout experience at their core, the customer will find it easier to enjoy the entire shopping experience.
Taking it online, ecommerce selling
In addition to a traditional brick-and-mortar store, merchants should offer an online shopping option to really boost their sales.
With greater convenience and choice online, a vast number of shoppers - especially amongst the younger, more technologically literate generations - prefer to do their shopping at home or on-the-go through their mobile devices.
There are a number of key tools that merchants need to consider implementing when they are building their online shop. At the heart of the whole eCommerce strategy must be a promise to the customer to make the online shopping experience as fast, simple and secure as possible.
To appeal to as many customers as possible, it's key for merchants to offer robust, flexible payment options and create shopping environments both online and off-line that are conducive to maximising sales and making customers happy.
Multi-channel retailing made easy
ShopTill-e is the perfect flexible retailing system for retailers. If you want to sell in-store and online, ShopTill-e can help, with it's integrated ePOS system and ecommerce platform - it's the all-in-one retail system that will manage all your sales in one place.
From your customers to inventory management, to promotions, exchanges, returns and more, everything is seamlessly synchronised saving you time and effort when running your in-store and online sales.
With free UK-based support to help you get up and running and also support you every step of the way on your retail journey, we're confident you'll notice a difference immediately when using the ShopTill-e retail system.
Try for free for 14-days or book a demo with one of our retail and ecommerce experts.
