Your in store technology day

The value of digital store experiences is said to be worth a staggering £7bn, so it's no wonder that it is becoming one of retail’s fastest growing trends.

GS1 UK and One Connected Community have partnered to produce YOUR in Store Technology Day (June 18, London), to discuss how to integrate digital technology in store to drive sales with personalised and memorable customer experiences.

In the run up to this event we have caught up with George Kiley, from One Connected Community to find out more about the event, and what attendees can expect.

What is YOUR in Store Digital Technology Day?

Right now retailers are searching for new ways to adapt to changing customer behaviour and develop strategies for the digital world. The challenge is to reinvent the store experience and create more meaningful, and relevant, connections with customers.

YOUR in Store Digital Technology Day tackles this challenge head on. The event is designed exclusively for senior retailers in Marketing, Multi-Channel, Digital Store, Innovation and Customer Experience to explore how to “digitise” the store where the customer benefit is clear, including:

• Kash Ghedia, Technologies Manager, Dixons Carphone, on what every executive needs to know about how digital technology positively impacts sales
• Andy Brown, Operations Director, Argos, on how to create a unique value proposition that offers differential advantage 
• Benjy Meyer, Customer Jounrey, M&S, on innovative ways to blend store design and technology for making unique, meaningful connections with customers

This is the digital store event for retails brightest minds to flesh out modern customer expectations within a closed door, intimate and collaborative environment. It’s a great place to catch up with colleagues, partners and friends, and an ideal opportunity to make new connections in a social environment. 

Stand still and you’ll be left behind. Digital technology is disrupting the retail world at a rapid pace. Get prepared.

What can attendees expect from the event?

Attendees will benefit from a comprehensive guide to digital store success, with unbeatable personal service and networking

• Retailer insight - pioneers on the digital store frontier will share exclusive insight on how to integrate digital technology to provide differential advantage, and potential stumbling blocks, including the latest case studies from Dixons Carphone, M&S, Waitrose, Maplin and Argos
• Exclusive attendee list - only senior decision-makers looking to develop strategies to better connect with customers in the digital world
• Guaranteed ROI - the unbeatable personal service ensures that you get the context and 1-2-1 connections you need 

What do you see as the three top of mind issues the retail industry faces today?

1. Staying relevant. We are all “digitised.”  People expect quick, seamless and easy access to information, friends and products. The shopping experience is no different. Customers want to be recognised and known by the brands they love, they want to share information in store with friends and ultimately experience new things that only a physical store can offer. Expect to see more tailored, personalised shopper experiences, enabled by technology.
    
2. The store as a “destination” and content-rich experiences. Today content sells the product as much as look, fit, and feel. Retailers must integrate multimedia content (particularly video, through digital sign-age and interactive walls) to make the shopping experience more engaging. Entertain and inform customers as they browse and make purchase decisions. High end retailers are likely to go one step further, offering increasingly bespoke and exclusive store only events/services aimed at driving store traffic, conversion and loyalty.
    
3. Mobility and beacon technology. This year mobile payments and rewards will finally take hold. Retailers will look to build and deploy apps where the customer benefit is clear, i.e. personalised offers - like Starbucks. And invest more heavily in mobile payment solutions.

Why are One Connected Community partnering with GS1 UK for this event?

GS1 UK is best known for barcode standards, but is beginning to make big waves with detailed insight in the retail, digital and innovation space. As advocates for more meaningful customer connections, a social drive to support the development of the industry and a fantastic presence among the retail community, I saw our partnership as a superb way to bring One Connected Community’s (OOC) ambition to a wider retail audience. 

Through our partnership we hope to:

• Cement OCC’s position as the one-stop-shop for digital store insight, through sharing original, content on staying relevant in the digital world
• And raise awareness around our social efforts to support London’s young adults with learning disabilities 

Can you tell us more about One Connected Community and the role you play supporting the Retail industry now and for the future?

We've all heard of TOMS, a global shoe-giving company, famous for the One for One model. Last year I read Founder Blake Mycoskie’s book “Start Something that Matters,” my friend and I then stitched together everything we knew about retail and events to do just that – we started something that matters!

I wondered: What retailers really need to focus on this year? How we could provide a solution? And, who we could help along the way?

Leading to OCC being formed as a retail news platform with a difference. We give senior retailers focused news and events on making meaningful connections with customers in store, to raise money for a great cause.

Our approach takes TOMS’s One for One model to the next level. For every one Ticket we sell, we donate one Tablet to students at Oak Lodge School (a fantastic London charity for young adults with learning disabilities). In this way, not only do we help to supply important educational equipment, but we empower students with the skills needed to pursue successful careers in the digital economy.

We’ve just started out, so tell all your friends!