Archive for the ‘retail’ Category
Monday, April 9th, 2012
None of the large supermarkets in the UK make much money – if any – with their Internet operation
I had the privilege last month to spend half a day with some really great and prominent figures of the retail, technology, not for profit and academic worlds. What excited me the most was what we covered: the unique pace at which UK retailers are transforming themselves right now to reap the benefits brought by the Internet. The UK is beacon for multi-channel retailing. We may not have created (more…)
Tags: guest blogger, managed broadband, retail, unified communications
Posted in Guest Blog, Innovation, IT Infrastructure, Latest, Network, retail | No Comments »
Thursday, April 5th, 2012
Take a look at the most popular stories on the blog for March.
In a wonderfully high-tech March we saw pole dancing robots and the introduction of Viewpoint’s answer to Johnny 5: the lovely — and impeccably well informed — NIQI.
Viewpoint continues to be an exciting place to be, and as our readership carries on growing we’re as committed as ever to bringing you the latest developments in communications and network technology.
If you missed what’s been going on in the last few weeks take a look at (more…)
Tags: financial services, most popular, network, niqi, retail, technology
Posted in Cloud Computing, Guest Blog, IT Infrastructure, Latest, Network, retail | No Comments »
Wednesday, March 21st, 2012
Carol Popplewell, former Retail Operations Director at Topshop
It’s quite hard for a Board to fully understand the benefits of a new IT initiative whether it be a public or a private limited company.
That may sound bizarre, it’s true though and can make it difficult to gain investment approval for large or small scale new IT initiatives. Initiatives that would undoubtedly help the company progress successfully.
I believe there are two main reasons for this based on my own experiences.
Firstly, most Board members would find the whole area of IT difficult to understand as it is very specialist – how do you know which is the best IT product to use and will it really exploit your (more…)
Tags: bt, guest blogger, it, it management, it. infrastructure, retail
Posted in Guest Blog, IT Infrastructure, Latest, retail | No Comments »
Tuesday, March 20th, 2012
Overall our sample showed that currently volumes of customer engagement through social media are relatively low
This blog explores social media trends within specific sectors.
You can download the full whitepaper here
The research that this paper is based on found some interesting differences between sectors in terms of the type and extent of customer engagement over social media. Retail/fast moving consumer goods (FMCG) and travel were the two top sectors in terms of social activity and finance and local government were the bottom two.
Here are some snippets of insight into what we found…
Where Social is King: Retail and FMCG
Retail and FMCG formed the highest proportion of (more…)
Tags: bt, dr nicola millard, retail, security, social networking
Posted in Guest Blog, Innovation, Inside Technology, Latest, retail, Social Networking | No Comments »
Friday, March 16th, 2012
Retailers face tough challenges in the current economy.
Most people would acknowledge that the British shopping experience – whether it’s through the supermarkets of Sainsburys, boutiques of Brighton or high-end luxury of Harrods – is one of the best in the world. But what a lot of people don’t appreciate is we’re also a global leader in online e-commerce, with a higher online proportion of both shopping and advertising than any other major economy.
But retailers face tough challenges in the current economy. There’s a danger that focussing on short-term profitability could lead to reduced investment in innovation and damage our long-term ability to create the best shopping experience in the world and ensure that we’re still a global leader in 2020.
In February, BT invited me to chair a discussion by a diverse panel of experts to sketch a vision of retailing in 2020 and the strategic implications for retailers. The focus was on practical developments that would significantly improve the shopping experience for consumers. This was not a fanciful, crystal ball-gazing exercise although, of necessity, it entailed a certain amount of educated guesswork. Only a fool would claim to predict with certainty all the repercussions of the rapid and seemingly endless march of technology. (more…)
Tags: bt, innovation, network, retail, technology
Posted in Customer Satisfaction, Guest Blog, Innovation, IT Infrastructure, Latest, retail, Supply Chain | No Comments »
Tuesday, March 13th, 2012
Emer Timmons, President BT Global Services UK
When you look down on the shoppers from nearly 400 feet, Oxford Street looks like the beating heart of British retail. I saw that heart beating as strong as ever earlier today when I joined Professor Patrick Barwise from London Business School at the top of the Centrepoint Tower in London to unveil a vision for British retailing in 2020.
I helped create the ‘Retailtopia’ vision last month by joining a panel of retail, payment and consumer experts to look beyond the short-term challenges facing the sector towards a positive future for British shopping in an increasingly internet-connected and mobile society.
The outputs from our discussion were published today in a Vision Paper which outlines ten aspects likely to shape UK retailing in 2020, makes some recommendations for retailers and reveals striking new images of what the experience might look like for British shoppers.
The Retailtopia vision focuses on the potential benefits for both customers and retailers. It describes a far more personalised, interactive and seamless experience for customers who will use technology to shop across virtual and physical boundaries (more…)
Tags: bt, guest blogger, it, it. infrastructure, retail, technology
Posted in Broadband, Cloud Computing, Guest Blog, IT Infrastructure, Latest, Network, retail, Supply Chain | No Comments »
Friday, March 9th, 2012
What will customers and retailers want from the shopping experience in the future?
What will customers and retailers want from the shopping experience in the future? Who knows exactly, but what we do know is that from click and collect to mobile payment, we’re increasingly using networked technology to perfect and personalise our shopping experience. To thrive and grow, every retailer needs to keep up with these demands.We’ve recently done some research that shows 68 per cent of consumers think online shopping has been the most valuable retail innovation over the past 10 years.[1"]
Even more – 70 per cent – believe online is the channel they’ll use most in the future.[2] This underscores the demand for seamless multi-channel shopping experiences that employ the most trusted technologies to give customers exactly what they want. For me, the future store will be anytime, anywhere, anyplace. Its format will flex to every customer so it can be 100 per cent personalised. In a sector where we already lead the world, this brings huge opportunities for UK retailers. But it also means they need strategies for investment and training to stay at the forefront of innovation.Future stores was just one of many topics covered earlier in February at a panel discussion we convened to look at the trends likely to shape British retailing over the next decade and the role technology will play. (more…)
Tags: bt, infrastructure, innovation, mobile communications, networks, retail, technology
Posted in Customer Relationship Management, Customer Satisfaction, Guest Blog, Innovation, IT Infrastructure, Latest, Mobile, Network, retail | No Comments »
Monday, February 13th, 2012
Tags: business, cloud services, conferencing services, customer service, flexible working, infrastructure, networks, olympics, public sector, security, technology
Posted in Cloud Computing, Conferencing, Contact Centres, Customer Satisfaction, Cutting Costs, Data Centres, Flexible Working, IT Infrastructure, Latest, london 2012, Public Sector, retail, Spending Cuts, Supply Chain, Unified Communications, Virtual Data Centres | No Comments »
Monday, January 23rd, 2012
Looking to expand into Asia? As far as retailers are concerned China ticks all the right boxes.
Right now, China is the world’s fifth largest consumer market1, the world’s second largest luxury goods market 2 and the world’s second largest apparel market 3. And its growth projections are staggering; by 2020 China will have the world’s largest economy4.
As far as retailers are concerned, China ticks all the boxes. (more…)
Tags: bt connect, emerging markets, improve efficiency, retail
Posted in Cutting Costs, Latest, Network, retail, Supply Chain | 1 Comment »
Friday, January 6th, 2012
Welcome to the smartphone, welcome to the age of the smartphone shopper.
It’s becoming hard to remember life before smartphones. What about the days when we enjoyed the dubious pleasures of talking to complete strangers on buses and gazing out of windows while on trains home?
Today’s commuters are more likely to be filtering scores of emails, browsing the web, or flicking between hundreds of songs. Not to mention updating their friends on Facebook, posting pithy remarks on Twitter, or watching the latest viral video on YouTube.
Who doesn’t want a computer, organiser, online terminal, app player, music player and high end phone, all in one pocket shaped device? (more…)
Tags: bt showcase, infrastructure, innovation, retail, smartphones, social networking, technology
Posted in Innovation, IT Infrastructure, Latest, retail | 1 Comment »
Thursday, December 15th, 2011
Google's 2011 Zeitgeist saw the royal wedding top the charts. So what were readers of Viewpoint searching for this year?
The three ‘fastest rising’ search terms this year according to Google’s annual Zeitgeist included the royal wedding, at the number one spot, followed closely by iPhone 5 and FIFA 12.
More amusing were the results that topped the ‘What is…?’ search list of the year; with search terms including ‘what is scampi?’, ‘what are piles?’ and ‘what is iCloud?’.
With this in mind we thought we’d review 2011 and take a look at what Viewpoint readers have been searching for on the blog.
Here is our very own Viewpoint Zeitgeist:
(more…)
Tags: emer timmons, google, health, most popular, steve gillies, year in review
Posted in Cloud Computing, Contact Centres, Customer Relationship Management, Customer Satisfaction, Cutting Costs, Data Centres, Flexible Working, Guest Blog, Health, Innovation, Inside Technology, Latest, News, Outsourcing, Public Sector, retail, security, Social Networking, Spending Cuts, Supply Chain, Unified Communications | No Comments »
Tuesday, November 29th, 2011
E-commerce spending can lead to nearly six times as much spending in the sister high street store within 10 days of the online purchase.
It’s tough out there on the high street. The British Retail Consortium is reporting worryingly weak sales in the lead up to Christmas so far, when many retailers are depending on bumper Christmas sales for survival. Has the old dog of retail had its day?
It’s true our shopping patterns are changing as we switch to online browsing, comparison and purchasing — often by-passing the bricks-and-mortar high street all together. And yes, as stand-alone entities, retail stores are in danger: in some areas one in ten premises are standing empty and reports from shopping centres estimate the number of visitors has fallen. (more…)
Tags: innovation, online shopping, retail
Posted in Latest, retail | 1 Comment »
Monday, November 28th, 2011
Nicknamed ‘cyber’ or ‘mega’ Monday, today the online Christmas shopping rush begins.
You’ve checked your emails, got your head round what’s in your diary for the day and probably had your first coffee; by 10am on a regular Monday you’re about ready to delve into the first work priority of the week.
But today is no regular Monday.
Nicknamed ‘cyber’ or ‘mega’ Monday, today the online Christmas shopping rush begins, with an estimated £300,000 spent per minute online throughout the day. So chances are, around 10am employees with internet access at work will start some sneaky shopping. And it’s predicted that a staggering one in three workers in the UK will use the computer at work for Christmas shopping. (more…)
Tags: online shopping, retail, security, technology
Posted in Latest, retail, security | No Comments »
Friday, November 25th, 2011
In the US, Friday 25 November (the day after Thanksgiving) marks the beginning of the Christmas shopping season and is known as Black Friday because, supposedly, it’s the day retailers move from the red into the black. This is closely followed by Cyber Monday (the first Monday after Thanksgiving) when the online trade ramps up, as shoppers return to work after the Thanksgiving holiday weekend and start spending.
There’s no doubt these bumper days of trading will be extremely welcome to retail in this tough economic environment.
But let’s take it wider: could there be a way to create a more widespread ‘Black Friday’ phenomenon for UK business? Perhaps even an ongoing boost rather than a seasonal burst? (more…)
Tags: cloud services, dealing with seasonal growth, free webinar, retail
Posted in Cloud Computing, Events, Latest, retail | No Comments »
Monday, November 21st, 2011
Frontline, coalface — whatever you want to call it. It’s the plant floor, the distribution centre, the warehouse, the retail space, the customer meeting. How is the iPad living up to its promise of being Steve Jobs’ “next dream”?
On paper, its potential looks good. Sales are phenomenal; two million iPads sold within two months of launch. And its appeal as “a magical and revolutionary device” is making it likely it’ll match the rapid adoption of the iPhone, that went from zero per cent adoption to 80 per cent adoption by Fortune 100 companies in two years.
In fact, the iPad seems to be zooming through the phases of adoption — starting as a killer consumer device, then becoming the plaything of white-collar information workers, and now emerging as the corporate-sanctioned alternative to the laptop. (more…)
Tags: EPOS, expedite, point of sale, POS, retail, technology
Posted in Customer Satisfaction, Innovation, Latest, retail | No Comments »
