APP-DATE: Bridge digital with physical

APP-DATE: Bridge digital with physical

Below we review some of the best apps and software platforms used by retailers and brands to bridge digital with physical customer experiences. The latter is crucial during unprecedented times as this is where all effort must go into optimising the customer journey and putting great emphasis on digital innovations.


STORE OCCUPANCY SOLUTIONS
Solutions that calculate the number of customers in your store are vital in a post-quarantine world. SmartOccupancy by retail tech firm Checkpoint combines the overhead people counting sensor Visiplus 3D with a cloud-based software portal, HALO. Similarly, Prodco, a company that specialises in footfall tracking, utilizes an advanced PC-3DR Stereoscopic camera at each entrance or interior zone, pushing entrance and exit count data (excluding staff and/or security guards) to cloud servers in real time. Suitable for buildings of all sizes, a SafeCount solution delivers live occupancy data with visual warnings and alerts when limits are approached or exceeded. If you are not yet ready for complex solutions but need to keep track of customers entering and exiting your store, there are plenty of simpler counter apps that work on Android, such as Counter Plus (free!), AllCounter or Klickr (under 6 EUR).

checkpointsystems.com/us/SmartOccupancy/
www.prodcotech.com
www.irisys.net

 

HERO
Aiming to make omnichannel easy for retailers as well as end consumers, Hero is a timely solution in an era when a lot of communications with customers need to happen remotely, yet need to feel personal. It allows staff to send photos, product videos and make video calls directly from the shop floor, giving shoppers the confidence they need to buy, and making them less likely to return items. Moreover, it enables the retailer to see what shoppers are browsing in real time as they move around the website and allows them send recommendations for other items straight into the chat. Already used by the likes of Harvey Nichols, Chloe and Diane von Furstenberg, Hero is backed by an impressive team of investors and advisors, including the former EVP, Technology at Macy’s and the Director of Commerce Partnerships at Google.
www.usehero.com

 

SHOEFITTER
The ShoeFitter app designed by German company Formigas aims to bring returns down and boost customer satisfaction. With the help of Apple’s FaceID sensor, a feature of recent iPhone models, customers can scan their feet and use the measurements to check whether the chosen shoe will fit. This technology can be integrated into existing shopping apps or be used as a link connecting users to the ShoeFitter app. The company offers multiple schemes to retailers: Rental for a software development kit option, where brands and online retailers pay royalties to use the ShoeFitter functionality in their own e-commerce channels; an Affiliate scheme where end consumers utilizing the app are forwarded to an online or offline retailer, who pays up to 12% commission on the generated sales; and a Data insights scheme for companies that need access to shoe fitting intelligence to optimize and develop better fits for their footwear.

shoefitter.io