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Technology should create better customer interaction

Executives school Summit attendees on how to best incorporate technology.

August 8, 2011

How technology can help empower sales associates was up for discussion Tuesday during a panel at the Retail Customer Experience Executive Summit in Minneapolis.

Mike Wittenstein of Storyminers moderated the panel featuring John Christie, AT&T Mobility's executive director of retail sales operations, Cabela's Tim Williams and NEC's Graeme Spicer.

Each speaker discussed how his company employed various technologies — from the iPad to hand-held POS terminals — to enhance customer experience. Although implementation practices ran the gamut, the men agreed on two things: Technology should better the customer experience and should never replace human interaction. In fact, it should increase one-on-one interaction.

"The thing about technology is that it's cool, so it's neat to have things in your stores, but we're a firm believer that customers are not getting in their cars to go to stores just to interface with technology or walk over to a touchscreen," Christie said. "They want to interact with people. Our technology allows our employees to get out from behind the counter and interact with customers."

That technology includes tablets, kiosks and digital screens to not only simplify the queuing process, but to also assure customers that they'll quickly receive help. Customers either check in with iPad-carrying employees or on kiosks as they enter AT&T stores. Digital screens display customer names, allowing them to easily view who's next in line. On the back-end, Christie said, the system also provides employees with each client's needs and order history.

"We're faced with high volumes of customers coming in, and this allows employees to see who is in line, why they're there and what offers they are eligible for," Christie said. "They can have a very focused, direct conversation, and customers like that."

Like AT&T, Williams said one of Cabela's goals is to communicate to its customers that it understands their needs.

"We're looking to see how we can use mobility to connect with our customers," he said. "Mobility transforms the way that our (employees) can interact with customers. Just being able to put that power in the associates' hands gives them a total connection to the customer."

Spicer, who works with hardware teams to help implement such technologies as digital signage in retail settings, agreed that technology must always help customers, not detract from their shopping experiences.

"A frustration comes when (you're) bringing technology into a retail space for the sake of having a cool technology," he said. "It may not be the sexiest of applications, but we know that digital signage is changing shopping behaviors. We also know that it helps free up time for sales associates to do some higher-value-added stuff."

For example, a Cabela's employee may use the time he'd normally spend on giving price info — now displayed by a digital screen — on chatting to that customer about what he specifically wants in a pair of boots.

"That associate can dedicate that time to really help understand the customer," Spicer said.

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