The one million or so bricks-and-mortar retail stores in the U.S. are the world’s largest single sales channel, but they are losing ground. While in-store sales grow each year in single digits, sales via e-Commerce sites and on mobile devices are growing much faster. The impact is being felt throughout the retail industry, from the neighborhood shop to the landmark department store, from the specialty boutique to the big-box outlet.

How Today’s Digital Technologies Are Being Used

To make their stores more competitive in today’s changing marketplace, retailers are increasing their investments in a wide range of technologies to better manage and market their stores, increase inventory efficiencies, improve cash flow and revenues and improve their customer experiences.

• Many retailers are turning to the latest point-of-sale (POS) solutions (replacing traditional cash registers) because they can play a central role not just in ringing up sales but also in marketing, pricing, inventory control and customer service.

• Sales associates equipped with handheld POS systems provide an appealing and high-tech way to engage customers and bust lines.

• Digital signs are replacing old-fashioned printed signs—simplifying production and also delivering almost infinite flexibility in promoting products and responding

to changing conditions (such as the weather).

• New digital security and surveillance systems help prevent theft, but can also provide important business analytics.

• New network-attached storage (NAS) systems can lower costs and simplify information sharing.

• Content management systems (CMS) allow for relevant content to be seen by the right person, at the right time, in the right context.

Value to the Retailer

Here are some of the key ways today’s solutions deliver value to retailers:

Increasing sales: Using digital signage to make people more aware of products and services is a proven way to increase sales1. Update signs in response to changing market conditions, e.g., the weather. Link digital signs with inventory systems—for example, to automatically display updated pricing for products that are reaching their expiration date.

Mobility/customer experience: Mobile POS solutions can drastically reduce the costs associated with a fixed position POS lane. They can also transform a store associate from cashier/stock clerk to a sales person, delivering far more value on your investment in personnel (while also making the job a more rewarding one)—and enhancing the experience provided to customers.

Worldwide retail sector IT

spending will grow 3.06 percent in

2013 according to Gartner.1

Retail Companies At-a-Glance

Intel® Retail Retail Companies At-a-Glance

Managing the business: A POS solution can make it possible to better manage information to help run the business, integrating with other systems for accounting, inventory management, pricing, property management, purchasing and more.

Loyalty: Every business needs repeat customers. That’s why loyalty programs are so critical. Today’s POS systems make this easy, by scanning a card or other document (such as a driver’s license) or a barcode on a smart phone.

Virtual merchandising/extending inventory: Virtual merchandizing via an interactive sign/kiosk makes it possible to give in-store shoppers access to expanded online inventory via touch screens and 3D graphics. This expands access to products in the store, helping to increase sales while not adding to inventory and related costs.

Business analytics: Using optical sensors and anonymous viewer analytics (AVA) software in conjunction with digital signage makes it possible to gather information on customer traffic patterns and breakdowns by age and gender, by time of day. This information can be used to enhance marketing, inventory and staffing.

Centralization: Consolidating or virtualizing servers, the operating system and applications at a single location (the data

center or home office), instead of at each individual store, makes things simpler and less expensive. There are fewer devices and licenses to deploy and maintain across the store chain, plus any application updates can be deployed centrally, thus more quickly and easily. Plus, it enables real-time integration across all channels and touchpoints to offer customers the omni-channel environment they want.

The Market

Worldwide retail sector IT spending will grow 3.06 percent in 2013 according to Gartner.2

Top priorities for retailers in terms of IT spending (according to surveys by Retail Info Systems News3) include: better tools for associates, mobile solutions, advanced CRM/loyalty, inventory visibility, speed through checkout and PCI compliance.

Close behind mobility was advanced CRM/loyalty programs, which is the only priority that retailers have placed in the top five each of the last seven years.

Other key findings in the 2013 RIS News survey include:

• POS shipments are showing steady but slower growth than in 2012. Sales of mobile POS on tablets or non-rugged are impacting sales of traditional POS systems.

• More retailers are enabling scanning a coupon off a mobile device as well as daily deals/flash sales via mobiles.

• Retailers are taking a wait-and-see approach to mobile payment options, seeing how things play out between Google* Wallet*, PayPal*, Amazon* Payments*, ISIS*, Square* and Apple* Passbook*.

The Services Opportunity

As you explore sales of solutions, keep in mind that there are numerous opportunities for taking advantage of Intel® technologies to deliver ongoing services in the areas of content development and management via Intel® Retail Client Manager (Intel® RCM), with the ability to gather analytics on customer demographics and business patterns via Intel® Audience Impression Metric Suite (Intel® AIM Suite) and remote management and maintenance via Intel® Active Management Technology (Intel® AMT).

Use-Case Scenarios

No two businesses are ever exactly the same—and that’s as true in retailing as it is in any other industry. Still, there are certain patterns and commonalities you will see over and over in the dynamics of customer engagement, efficiency needs, security, workforce management, etc.

Here are some typical use-case scenarios that may help you prepare for your customer sales meetings:

Entry-Level Users

Profile: Typically getting started with a small system or upgrading an existing system. An entry-level user is likely to be completely new to digital signage and or

Intel® Retail Retail Companies At-a-Glance

Solution Recipes

Are available in The How to Sell Guide and the solution providers for those solutions can be found here: intel.com/rspn.

1http://www.nec-display-solutions.com/p/download/pr/File/cp/Internet/Shared/Content/SeeMoreNew/Whitepapers/Downloads/PDF-Whitepaper-SPARStudy-(english).pdf?fn=Whitepaper-SPARStudy-english.pdf 2http://www.gartner.com/id=2585821

3http://risnews.edgl.com/retail-research TheTCOorothercostreductionscenariosdescribedinthisdocumentareintendedtoenableyoutogetabetterunderstandingofhowthepurchaseofagivenIntelproduct,combinedwithanumberofsituation-specific

variables, might affect your future cost and savings. Circumstances will vary and there may be unaccounted-for costs related to the use and deployment of a given product. Nothing in this document should be interpreted as either a promise of or contract for a given level of costs.

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digital security with a neutral, indifferent or possibly negative perception of its value in their establishment. With this customer, it is important to probe to understand the different ways these solutions can deliver value and educate the customer on the different roles it can play in his/her business.

Approach: POS systems are their entry into technology applications. They may need more education about why to use a POS versus a basic standalone electronic cash register. Mobile POS should be discussed, if for no other reason than mobile POS may offer cost and flexibility advantages.

Driving factors: Simplicity, reliability and cost.

Mainstream Users

Profile: Mainstream users will typically have more familiarity with the value of a POS system and may already be utilizing digital signage/digital security (with content management capabilities) but may be unsure as to how to make it all work together. Here there is a possibility of dissatisfaction with existing DS solutions, perhaps because the customer may not

have achieved the increase in sales or customer engagement that was expected, or is frustrated over ongoing maintenance or content management issues.

Approach: In contrast to an entry-level user, a mainstream sales prospect is likely to get more quickly focused on how to take advantage of specific features and capabilities to streamline processes that are unique to their business, such as inventory management and purchasing. With this customer it is important to probe to understand the underlying cause of the problems as to why the customer is not achieving his/her goals.

Driving factors: Cost-benefit analysis, reliable performance and simplicity.

High-End/Advanced Users

Profile: High-end or advanced users will adopt a more strategic view of the role that today’s digital solutions can play in their store. This business will look beyond the POS and its role in building a business and will want to take a comprehensive look at issues such as back-office integration, multi-location networking, support for enhanced/personalized customer service, integration with advanced systems such

as digital signage and security, and, of course, mobility.

Approach: This customer will likely be looking to expand or evolve their digital signage (with CMS) and digital security and surveillance solutions. This could be the result of a needed upgrade/update, a business change or expansion, or the customer may be interested in some specific feature or capability.

As this is potentially an upsell situation, you will also want to take the opportunity to position the new capabilities that the customer may not be aware of, such as the easy and effective campaign management tools in Intel® RCM with Intel® AIM Suite for audience metrics and analytics as well as out-of-band remote management capabilities via Intel® AMT.

Driving factors: Advanced users will want to know that they are investing in a flexible, scalable solution that can grow as they grow.

For more information on retailing solutions, please visit intel.com/retailsolutions. For Intel® Technology Providers, please visit http://www.intel.com/content/www/us/en/retail/resellers.html.

Intel® Retail Retail Companies At-a-Glance

For more information visit intel.com/retailsolutions