Radio-frequency identification makes shopping a whole new experience

Even though shopping is a routine activity, the ways we make our purchases differ. Some goods are bought on the spot without hesitation, while others require a thorough selection process. Buying clothes is a commonplace activity, but for many people, it’s a tricky process that takes a lot of time and effort.

One of the key principles of retail selling is that one-time sales aren’t enough – you need to convert your potential buyers into returning ones. An excellent customer experience is one of the main things that secures a second visit from a customer, and is usually achieved through providing an attentive consultant to help find or select an item, additional information about a product, convenient ways to pay, and as short a time spent in lines as possible.

Basically, it comes down to two main components: full information about an item (including not only its full description, but also its exact location in a store, availability, variety of sizes/colours, reviews and buyer feedback); and the time spent finding it, trying it and buying it. These objectives are often achieved through cutting-edge technologies that help customers receive maximum value while saving their time and effort.

Radio-frequency identification
To improve profit, retailers work on building customer loyalty, using cross-selling to increase sales, and optimising their existing logistic processes. Radio-frequency identification (RFID) is a widely used technology when it comes to solving logistics issues. Its usage cuts down the time spent on stock inventories and receipt-issuing: what used to consume countless hours for several store employees can now be done by a single person and in much less time. With the process efficiency increased, staff can dedicate more time to helping customers.

But how can retailers use the RFID technology to innovate the shopping experience? By its nature, RFID identifies objects and their location, which allows retrieving context-bound information about a customer’s current interest. For example, when a customer picks an item from a smart shelf, ads and information about this specific item are automatically displayed on the closest screen.

If the RFID label can identify any merchandise in the store, a good idea is to identify returning customers through their discount cards. The card could contain personal information about sizes and history of purchases, which would be a great help in generating advice and suggestions during the next shopping session.

Smart fitting room
A customer wants to justify their choice and eliminate eternal ‘to buy or not to buy’ doubts. E-commerce allows customers to compare products, watch video reviews, read comments from other customers, and share their own feedback. However, a desire to try on an item is always there: will it fit? How would I look in this dress? Should I buy this shirt in blue or black? Today’s technologies provide an opportunity to quickly answer these questions by using e-commerce benefits.

For example, a smart fitting room system could be a place where customers not only try the selected items on, but also browse the related merchandise, receive advice, or create a complete look. What is important about the smart fitting room is it’s directly connected to the customer’s current interests.

Another important benefit is the ability to request certain items without leaving a fitting room. Knowing what else they want to try, a customer may inform a store assistant about their decision to try on another item by simply pressing a ‘try on’ button. A system touch screen located near the mirror would always be in the customer’s sight and waiting to be pressed.

An app allows the customer to browse all the items available in a store without leaving the fitting room. Having selected one of the items, a customer will receive detailed information about it with an option to request the item in different sizes or colours. At the bottom of the screen, there are matching items available at the same store that would complete a look. When a new item is requested, a customer may review the request and either cancel it or go back to the item’s details.

A new item request is immediately sent to the system and the store employees receive a notification on their PDAs. The message provides details on the item requested and the location of the customer’s fitting room. A PDA application can help find the item through an RFID label. When a store employee brings the item requested to the smart fitting room, the RFID will recognise the request as completed and will automatically remove it from the active requests list. The request could be also cancelled by a customer or a store employee, if need be.

A smart fitting room could greatly enhance a customer’s shopping experience. Its key benefits for retailers include presenting merchandise not as a separate item, but as a key to a personal look, which leads to cross-sales. It also increases customer loyalty: a customer feels a store cares about their convenience and helps in the selection of merchandise. The system could also provide the basis for statistical and business analysis to help a retailer better understand their customers’ interests and fine-tune their market and buying strategy.