Point of Sale: the Heart of Retailing
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POINT OF SALE: THE HEART OF RETAILING Analysis and insights on the latest trends in retail: artificial intelligence, Quick Service Restaurants, and more Capgemini has deep expertise in retail and digital transformation. This is a proficiency developed over countless projects, including those centered on a critical element of retail technology: the Point of Sale. Whether it is called Point of Sale, Point of Service, Point of Contact, or some similar name that encompasses both online and offline purchases, the goal is a financial transaction and, regardless of the name, the interaction with the customer is what ultimately matters most. The market for Point of Sale (POS) evaluation of their POS solution Intel has positioned solutions has changed dramatically only once every 10 to 15 years, over the last couple of years. there is limited knowledge and the following Acquisitions, omnichannel strategy, experience available to complete market trends as demand for a lower Total Cost of the evaluation internally. Ownership (TCO), introduction of influencing the need cloud-based POS solutions, and To help retailers accelerate the for innovative POS the need for real-time analytics POS vendor selection process, capabilities have transformed the Capgemini has developed a proven solutions: industry. As a result, retailers are methodology. The Capgemini POS increasingly confused about the tool, supported by Intel, is a crucial • New store experience-focused route to take when selecting a part of this process. Using this tool capabilities in an era of new POS solution. Just taking the and Capgemini’s methodology, omnichannel commerce most recent Forrester Wave: Point retailers are able to reduce the of Service report or Gartner Magic time taken from identifying a long • Customer demand for Quadrant can provide a starting list of potential vendors to making frictionless experiences, point with some insight on leading their final selection. More than including self-service and POS vendors, but do these lists 10 years ago, Capgemini started contact-free payments. identify the solution that fully collecting data about POS solutions. meets the retailer’s requirements? Initially a local initiative with just a The refreshed version of the tool Because of the lack of both time few global POS vendors, over the incorporates artificial intelligence and resources, retailers tend to years Capgemini has expanded (AI) as well as Quick Service select POS vendors recommended this process and incorporated all Restaurant (QSR) considerations by Forrester and/or Gartner. global and select regional vendors. and insights. Even then, comparing solutions An extensive questionnaire is sent against retailer requirements every two years to the market, remains a time-consuming task. and the acquired data is added to Since most retailers perform an Capgemini’s POS tool. 2 Point of Sale: the heart of retailing Retail industry consolidations, omnichannel strategies, demand for lower Total Cost of Ownership (TCO), cloud-based Point of Sale (POS) solutions, and the request for real-time analytics capabilities have transformed the industry. POS: generating targeted data For decades, the role of the cash of registers. Customers now can register didn’t change much. It be served in any part of both the was only in the last 25 years, with physical and the online store using the arrival of the Internet, that mobile technology. POS became capable of doing much more than just registering Looking back in history, we can still transactions and keeping revenue see that the essence of POS hasn’t secure. POS is now at the heart changed. However, the Internet of retailing and connects to all of Things and other technologies downstream and side-stream like AI deliver capabilities that systems. address the growing need for real- time data across POS. This creates Fast forward to today’s retail actionable insights on the spot as environment, new technology conditions change. The targeted has massively changed the look data that is generated will then and feel, as well as the usability, result in happier customers. 3 There are many different vendors with different solutions that target customer and market needs. But what are the diferentiators and which vendor will suit the client’s requirements best? For example, are there unique elements in offering an omnichannel solution and what are the common threads between vendors? This section provides a unique insight into the Capgemini POS tool, its wealth of information, and an analysis of key aspects from 20 different POS vendors. Globalization Given the mature state and slow Global presence demands a growth of domestic retailer markets, worldwide organizational structure global expansion has become one and associated connecting processes of the hottest growth strategies. and IT solutions. If the target market Gaining access to new customers doesn’t differ much from existing and growing markets will boost markets, it can be a good choice sales that strengthen a company’s to deploy a single, multilingual- purchasing power via programmatic ready, POS vendor solution that promotions and access to larger consistently meets varying country- volume discounts. specific requirements across international deployments. We notice that international retailers are struggling with the questions: “Should I deploy one single solution across the globe?” and “Can I use a single template for my global business?” It’s clear that international retailers looking to the future prefer to have a single solution to support their business but are also reserved More than 50% of the vendors because of local differences. included in the Capgemini Point of Sale (POS) tool currently have a clear global presence. 4 Point of Sale: the heart of retailing Leading innovation In response to the changing where store automation is an retail market, being able to important element. The POS quickly adapt to new trends and solution is considered the heart opportunities is increasingly critical of operations and is seen as for retailers. Creating a smart a single point of information retail environment that offers a by both store employees and seamless customer experience customers and should provide a is also becoming key for most consistent picture across all sales businesses. A POS solution must channels. Some of the trends not only adapt to the new trends identified by the Capgemini POS in retail but can also be a real tool are related to actionable change driver. Offering a mobile real-time data insights, customer POS and self-service checkout is loyalty integration, omnichannel 40% of the analyzed vendors no longer a unique differentiator. solutions, and innovations based already offer a solution based To be the leader in the sector, on cloud technology. See the continuous innovation is required cloud section below. on cloud technology. Implementation A new POS implementation can The roll-out period Furthermore, POS vendor upgrade have significant impact on the can vary from four lead time and frequency can business. Business processes to 12 months. hinder solution development and should be evaluated to determine can cause inflexibility. Capgemini, whether they need to adapt to a Capabilities and vendor maturity therefore, strongly believes in a new business model, whether the should also be taken into model with a limited number of POS solution should be tailored to consideration when kicking off a versions throughout a roll-out the existing one, or a combination POS evaluation. Today for example, program while maintaining optimal of both. This contradicts the trend of the number of vendors that can flexibility and striving towards staying with minimal changes using provide a POS cloud solution is standardization. out-of-the-box systems. Regardless, very limited. On the other hand, the implementation may be complex are retailers ready to run their POS It’s key to modern and should not be underestimated. from the cloud? The answer will retail that vendors Most of the reviewed vendors offer differ per type of retailer, location, can respond quickly end-to-end support services during connectivity, and solution design. the roll-out phase. Others rely on to new requirements. the customer’s capabilities, with or Version control without external resources from an experienced system integrator. Upgrades to a POS solution are The lead time is another important essential to keep up with business consideration. Adapting to the and consumer needs. Retailers business needs and the chosen vendor, should ask whether their company the roll-out period can vary from four can take advantage of innovations to 12 months. Capgemini offers over made for other customers by 20 years of implementation experience bringing these into the commonly and often serves as the integration used core version, or whether they partner on behalf of retailers or are better off developing their own vendors, using its standardized solution totally separate from the multi-phased approach. others. 5 Support Support for store automation Furthermore, it’s essential (such as POS) can be organized to manage the support on in different ways. As automation peripherals, e.g. Electronic begins to impact second- and Funds Transfer (EFT) terminals third-line support, it’s crucial to and scanners, in-house. From have access to the right system a store employee point of view, knowledge either in-house or it’s recommended to have a using third-party specialized single point of contact for all service companies. 90% of POS POS-related questions or issues. vendors included in the POS Retailers look increasingly tool offer first, second, and third to reduce support costs by 90% of the vendors do include lines of support. Very few POS enabling remote management. in-house first-line support. vendors outsource their first-line support to third parties. Artificial intelligence While the trend towards self-service used to automatically categorize retailers to look into upgrading their is enabling retailers to deliver better the items in the customer’s basket, POS systems.