OREANDA-NEWS. July 08, 2016. Retail isn’t what it used to be — in a good way.

Sure, we still visit stores to fill our bags and see what’s new. But today’s shopping experiences are colored by mobile and location-based messaging, 1-to-1 email-based offers, and even virtual reality.

Making a retail purchase can be simple or complex. Increasingly, shopping is a multichannel, hyperpersonalized experience where customers expect to have service and offers tailored to them when they walk through the door or create an online account.

At Connections, we heard about the changing retail industry firsthand in the session “Reimagining Retail in the Age of the Shopper” led by Salesforce Senior Vice President, Retail Industry, Shelley Bransten. Check out these seven trends changing retail from the session.

1. Omnichannel fulfillment. 

In the old days, fulfillment happened in one place: a store. Now, shoppers order online to pick up in store; order in-store to have items shipped to their homes; and digital marketplaces even have real-life storefronts. 

Not a believer in the need to offer omnichannel fulfillment? Consider Amazon’s growing family of brick and mortar bookstores.

2. Mobile opt-ins overtake email.

Albertsons (now part of Safeway) is the country’s second largest grocer. At Connections, Albertsons Director of Digital Marketing Kate Duggan shared that the company’s mobile opt-ins for push messaging are accumulating at a much higher rate than email.

Email is a crucial tool in the retailer’s arsenal, but if you’re not yet going big with a mobile app, know that this is the next battleground.

3. Personalization.

Duggan also recognized that many retailers still have anxiety about personalization and how customers will receive it. At Albertsons, Duggan and team ran a bold test to prove personalized pricing was a better move than one-size-fits-all coupons. They withheld personalized pricing for a while to see how it affected customer retention — and garnered negative results. 

That data proved the value of the personalized pricing strategy, proving the value of testing for both internal leverage and customer success.

4. Back to the basics of CRM.

Ian Richards is Vice President of CRM and Analytics at Aldo, one of the world’s foremost retailers in the specialty shoe space. At Aldo, Ian’s challenge was a lack of access to data. Before he could truly improve the shopper experience, he shared that he spent more than 50% of his time building a robust CRM database.

If you don’t have strong customer data, Ian argued, you won’t have a strong CRM program — and you won’t be able to do the targeted marketing you want. Now Aldo updates customer data from website browsing in real time so that in-store associates have access to customer preferences when making in-person recommendations.

5. Predictive intelligence.

Online recommendations based on browsing activity are fantastic. So are in-person recommendations based on what customers are loving in the moment. But predictive intelligence across all touchpoints is even better. 

Aldo is now empowering associates and its digital marketing message with predictive intelligence so that customers are known as individuals on every channel and in every interaction type. The end result is richer data and more powerful conversations with customers, which is what every retailer wants.

6. Mobile transactions.

Retailers used to talk a lot about mobile as it related to email open rates and website browsing. Now, thanks to advancements in mobile web design and the proliferation of smartphones and tablets, a growing number of purchases happen on mobile, too.

Crissy Delaney is Director of Email and Mobile Marketing at HSN, the Home Shopping Network. Delaney shared that HSN’s marketing strategy now follows the mobile migration, with 22% of sales now coming through mobile channels, and over half of web traffic. 

7. Innovating responsibly.

Innovation is necessary, and disruption is great. But the retailers from Aldo, HSN, and Albertsons each stressed the importance of innovating responsibly. You don’t want to disrupt a consumer’s positive experience with your brand.

Duggan specifically emphasized that many Albertsons customers are regulars, and no matter what new strategies they test, nothing should break a loyal customer’s rhythm. Working with product and IT is critical to keep communications and transactions smooth.

Want to see how brands like Nestlé Waters, Fanatics, and Weight Watchers are improving the customer experience in the midst of changing customer expectations? Download the new e-book Salesforce for Marketers: Welcome to the Age of the Customer.