In a rapidly evolving e-commerce world, retailers are using enterprise social networking to rev up internal communication and gain a competitive edge.
Retail certainly isn’t what it used to be. Online and mobile commerce has fundamentally changed the way we consume. Amazon.com now accounts for a quarter of all online purchases, plus purchases from mobile devices grew by more than 81 percent within the last year.
With the ability to do comparison shopping from anywhere, shoppers are smarter and quite frankly, harder to please. Nearly 50% of shoppers who use their smartphone believe they are more informed than store associates.
The sudden shift to e-commerce along with the economic crash of 2008, has no doubt impacted many retail stores. Stocks fell, employees were laid off, and there were several casualties (Circuit City and Borders to name a few).
Retail executives in the U.S. don’t anticipate a substantial economic recovery until 2014 or beyond (according to a recent report from KPMG.) So how can retailers ramp up their efforts, especially as they enter new territories?
Whether it’s maintaining a competitive storefront or strengthening their multi-channel-selling opportunities, retailers need to adapt quickly, stay on top of new technology and strengthen internal communication.
Collaboration is key, but many retailers lack store-to-store and store-to-headquarters collaboration. Employees at corporate headquarters need to understand the issues the staff are having on the floor, as well as leverage their knowledge to increase innovation. Learn how retailers like Macy’s are using enterprise social networking to connect people with the colleagues and information they need in this whitepaper: How Social is Redefining Retail – Both Inside and Out.
