| Do you remember when there were phone booths | | | | capability, music player, 3D surround sound and text |
| everywhere? When PCs had 30 Meg hard drives, | | | | messaging. By the way they can still make old |
| 512K of memory and PC communication were 2400 | | | | fashion voice calls. |
| bps? When phone messages came on little slips of | | | | If we want to see how communications will change |
| paper? When Automated Teller Machines were still | | | | our lives in the short term, we should look to Japan |
| new technology? News and weather were only on | | | | and Korea. They are years ahead of North America |
| TV at 6 pm and 10 pm. We were angry about gas | | | | in telecom. In Japan you can scan a product in a retail |
| prices going above $1.00. It was 1985 and there was | | | | store with your cell phone and find out who else is |
| no commercial Internet, no Web, and those UPC | | | | selling the same product and for how much. You can |
| codes were not yet everywhere. Retailing had not | | | | then buy it in the store or order it over the Web on |
| changed much in the previous twenty years. | | | | the phone. |
| Wal-Mart only had 882 stores mostly in the South | | | | Forbes Magazine's May 23rd issue has a great article |
| and few thought that they would be a threat to the | | | | on the entertainment future of these new phones |
| big five. There were no supercenter stores. | | | | but I think the retailer benefit will come from the |
| Just twenty years ago our lives were very different. | | | | short range communications. This won't make things |
| We have changed how we work, how we play, how | | | | easier for IT, but, it has the capability to make the |
| we shop. Much of the change has been due to | | | | shopping experience more compelling for the |
| technology developed during that same twenty | | | | consumer. The issue for the retail marketing folks is, |
| years. Now most of us can't imagine living without | | | | what will you say to the consumer when they are |
| the Web or Cable TV. We can't imagine going out | | | | standing in the store in front of merchandise, trying |
| without our cell phone. As workers and consumers, | | | | to make a decision. Think of the increased |
| we have become dependent on technology that was | | | | complexity of promotions and merchandising for this |
| a dream only twenty years ago. We have raised our | | | | interaction. |
| expectations of the companies we work for and the | | | | So how will we understand the customer well enough |
| stores we shop in. We have become very | | | | to create the compelling shopping experience that will |
| technologically sophisticated. | | | | cause them to travel past the competitor's store to |
| For about five years, the graduates of colleges and | | | | shop your store? We will have to use technology to |
| universities have entered the workforce more | | | | create and deliver knowledge. Then we will have to |
| technically savvy than most of the companies that | | | | build an environment that can evolve into the next |
| hired them. They got their assignments from their | | | | generation store without having to throw away |
| professors on the Intranet and turned in their work | | | | systems along the way. |
| on the Intranet. When they worked on projects with | | | | Blogs have become commonplace and retailers are |
| other students, they were doing Web collaboration. | | | | using them to create buzz and surfing them to see |
| They were using Portals. Most of them are more | | | | how their promotions and new store formats are |
| comfortable dealing with a video screen such as a | | | | being received by the consumer. But Blogs are old |
| kiosk or digital merchandising than they are dealing | | | | hat now, you should check out the newest form of |
| with a human. I think it is safe to say that they are | | | | information paradigm called a Wiki - a Wiki is like an |
| all comfortable on the Web. | | | | open source Blog on steroids. Wikipedia is an open |
| I am predicting that we will see more change in the | | | | source encyclopedia that allows anyone in the world |
| next five to eight years than we have seen in the | | | | to contribute their content. Everyone is an expert on |
| last twenty years. This change will be brought about | | | | something. Now anyone can write their own chapter |
| by technology that is just now emerging from | | | | in the global encyclopedia or at least correct |
| research and development labs. The biggest changes | | | | someone else's entry. A retailer has many experts in |
| will be in how we communicate. These changes will | | | | the stores and headquarters who no longer have |
| be enabled by the Semantic Web, the Next | | | | time to think or to share. A Wiki is an example of a |
| Generation Internet and Bluetooth. The Web will | | | | new technology that can allow the sharing of key |
| know what you want. It will be a thousand times | | | | items of information as easily as writing a note or an |
| faster that the current Web and you will have a | | | | instant message. When the information is viewed as |
| wireless, Personal Area Network surrounding you. | | | | a whole - it can enable wisdom. |
| Every time we accept a new technology like | | | | I am working to create a retail insight Wiki so that |
| scanning or self checkout, we are quicker to accept | | | | IBM's retail domain experts around the world can |
| the next technology. It took a long time for ATMs | | | | contribute thoughts, observances, happenings, ideas, |
| and scanning to be widely accepted but self | | | | and epiphanies. This would then become a living, |
| checkout has now become widespread. I regularly | | | | evolving domain of knowledge that will allow us to |
| see people waiting in the self checkout line where I | | | | better understand what we see happening around us. |
| shop while there is a human lane open. The Intelligent | | | | This is the new world of knowledge management. |
| Shopping Cart such as the Stop & Shop | | | | The Next Generation Store |
| Shopping Buddy has been quickly accepted by it's | | | | Many of the retail projects to build the Next |
| users. Communications devices seem to be the most | | | | Generation Store that I am aware of are working to |
| accepted of the newer technologies. | | | | make the store a delight to shop in. However, most |
| Interpersonal communications | | | | of these projects are not even building the current |
| There are about 1.5 Billion cell phones on the planet | | | | state of the art store. If they start with the |
| this year and they are selling at over 600 Million per | | | | technology available now, and then take two years |
| year. Most of these new model phones have | | | | to roll it out, they will have a two year-old store |
| Bluetooth and Internet access. This means that within | | | | format and may have to throw some of it away to |
| three years there will be a critical mass of customers | | | | put in the then latest technology. The best of the |
| carrying a device into the store that the retailer will | | | | next generation store projects that I have seen are |
| be able to communicate with. It will change the | | | | examining the evolution of the consumer attitudes |
| relationship between the consumer and the retailer. | | | | toward shopping. If you understand how the |
| The new cell phones have amazing features on | | | | consumer got to where they are now, you can |
| them; Web connections, TV shows, Lottery games, | | | | better predict where they will be in five to ten years. |
| text messaging, MP3 players, Bluetooth, GPS, digital | | | | The consumer will have more and different touch |
| cameras, video cameras. In Japan with the 3G, | | | | points than they have now. They will be much more |
| DoCoMo phone you can have your cell phone surf | | | | sophisticated. They will demand more from their |
| the crowd nearby and decide if there is anyone you | | | | shopping experience. |
| want to talk to. Data transmission is at 11Mbps, it has | | | | I would like to recommend that you obtain the |
| an RFID reader, the phone is a mobile electronic | | | | executive brief from the IBM Institute for Business |
| wallet with about 20,000 stores in Japan able to talk | | | | Value entitled; The Customer Centric Store, delivering |
| to it, it's your credit card, smart card, house key, it | | | | the total experience. |
| has an Adobe .pdf reader, it has videophone | | | | Copyright © Daniel Hopping. |