I was in the Big Apple last week for the National Retail Federation’s Big Show at the Javits Center. Nearly 20,000 people have something to do with retail from C-level (CEO, CIO, CMO) executives, service providers, media – everyone has been focused on retail and recognizing the holidays are not worse than the previous year. I made my predictions before, so here are some of the trends in retail I picked up on. The big box retailers have abandoned the browsers, consumers are now considered Shoppers Mission. They must be able to “take prompt and exit.” It’s like the Internet has been superimposed on the sales floor. Nowhere could this be more obvious that the new touch-screen interface from Intel. Their Intelligent Digital Signage Concept Proof of Concept provides HD video streams on two separate monitors. This signal acknowledges the sex of clients and height using video analysis and then dive customers in a rich multi-touch. They say that gives retailers “attractive tools that can help create targeted, customer connections, personal and effective.” I wonder if they came up with the idea of Tom Cruise movie, Minority Report This I have of him is a giant storage directory, because you were a man, say, would automatically pop up with sections for men to store and display items for sale. What will they do with people or transgendered men with long hair or women with a haircut Rachel Maddow is not the issue. Information is a good thing – right? The problem with buyers mission is that there is no magic to the experience – you’re just a pre-existing need. merchandising is great to get people to stop and explore your merch, do not see your store like Tron or watch the palm of their hand. Great detail, is to look in the store for you again, to be interrupted by a great display that shows how many products can be mixed. Big Brother is watching you effect. Best Buy boasted how they use cookies on people’s computers to monitor where a customer password when landing on their site. For example, if you look at plasma TVs, clicked off for ESPN or the YES Network and then returned to the site of Best Buy, you would be shown banner ads tailored to sports. If we could HGTV show you an ad for a vacuum cleaner. When a woman asked the marketing representative from Best Buy if there are privacy issues that it faces said, “No.” When the questioner followed by: “How could that be if you are monitoring of sites visited? “She said they used the service providers that was all right. Hmmm. Blog Readers Rock! At the opening reception for longtime blog reader Mike Murray, director of the interactions found me and Caliber thanked me for my blog, “You said the value proposition of the mystery better than I’ve seen anyone do.” I also had the owners, directors and managers Wait me after the sessions to discuss their company who recognized me from this blog. If you have something to say – blogs are a great way to connect with people in your industry! Online learning is only good for product knowledge. buttonhole In various meetings it seemed many have tried online learning, but found that experiential learning, the kind that I present to retailers is the only way to get sales. Otherwise, learning seems simply not “stick.” They can read the text but it is difficult to collect, monitor or duplicate that retailers must create a safe educational learning where they can role play and get immediate feedback. merchandising and sales have deteriorated. On Tuesday, I was having lunch with Gordon Segal, founder of Crate & Barrel and his team. I thought the only way to succeed retailers with so many competitors in the same crowded market is to invest in sales training of the crew. “You’re right,” he said. “We had to sell in the 60s and 70s and has been lost. Winston Weber had said earlier that day, the “Merchandising skills have declined over the past 25 years. We need to relearn the basics. “Amen that! Accidental BusinessesCan Prosper. Life is good shirts started as an antidote to negativity. The Jacobs brothers sold t-shirts for five years without success. When they are came with the design of Jake and the words, “Life is beautiful”, they sold 48 of the new models in 45 minutes in 1994. This may seem a lot, but it was enough to validate them to go with it. Thereafter, everything that Jake celebrated life could do. They have developed their businesses in celebrating the simple things in life – hiking, fishing, ice cream. They found a niche by accident and has increased its sales by $ 87,000 to more than one billion dollars in sales. John Jacobs is an Amiable personality based on his natural inclination to be with people and created a company focused on people and help people. Her story was worth the cost of registration to the convention alone. Online retailers looking to get into the bricks and mortar. With so many stores looking to put their business online (which I will discuss next time), I was fascinated by the CEO of online retail share their expansion plans from the virtual reality displays. I was told, “We can give a better experience of our brand through people.” No name given, but it might be interesting to watch. Social Media continues to receive rave reviews for Stories isolated. There is a certain segment of Feeler personalities who are happy to volunteer their time as “brand ambassadors.” They are the gold rings for many retailers who have scads of fans on Facebook and Twitter followers. S ‘does it get from consumers who boast to connect with brands (did you know Tide laundry detergent has 300,000 fans on Facebook) really boost sales or just a test? Everyone is looking for their ROI (return on investment) when it comes to social media. James Bickers, Sr. Editor of retail customer experience a distressed woman said her wedding dress had not arrived, chirping about it, hyper-reactive responses Bloomingdale’s, and once saved the customer happy. But is this really great customer service? Which brings me to my final point. customer service these days on fixing things or Gone Wrong bring your Way. It’s like a spoiled child to be heard. Is Customer Service? I thinkso but the price of the NRF, which is what has been rewarded. Customer Service is Great experience so tangible, so connected to another human being from the start that the shopping experience with another man’s head is under way and shoulders above all experience the customer had that day at work at home or in the city. If the buyer exceptional felt compelled to tell others how it was remarkable to friends, family and coworkers and then yes, it’s posted on Facebook or Twitter . It is the mark of customer service from a customer perspective. From a commercial standpoint, it is to sell the merch so convincingly that the customer does not even know the interaction follows a process (like my RX Sales: Five Pieces for a successful sale) is based transaction, a cart or check average, while building a dynamic relationship with the seller and the brand or store. That is the trend we need to see where we will see more people grasping at straws because the technology is easy, the basics of retailing which is great to sell merch and that takes training.