Emerging Trends Dramatically Changing the Retail Space

Commercial retail is being confronted by a host of issues that are demanding new approaches for attracting and retaining customers.

A study by The Control Group reveals new details about the evolution of retail technology. As agbeat.com reported, retail technology "will drive significant change in the retail experience by providing more immersive, personalized and cohesive brand experiences as well as new mechanisms for capturing, measuring, and understanding consumer behavior."

Retailers also face the following megatrends brought on increasingly sophisticated online and mobile technologies.

E-commerce is replacing physical stores. The way of the future is clearly to commit fewer resources towards opening brick-and-mortar stores and instead, cultivating virtual ones. More and more companies are acknowledging that this is where the real opportunity lies.

Smartphones are prompting retailers to keep their prices low and websites active. A study by Pew Internet revealed that 50% of adult cell phone owners use their mobile device to aid in purchasing decisions while already in store. Smart phones provide real-time access to information on nearly every retail product, which in turn makes them keep their prices as low as possible and their web presence updated. If they do not, they will invariably lose sales to more aggressive online competitors.
Some analysts predict that many major retail sites will evolve into “touch-and-feel” locations, from where people can browse options before getting the actual merchandise shipped to them at their homes.

Social Media is redefining shopping as a social event. According to Margaret Case Little, the National Retail Federation’s Senior Director of Communications, “Shopping really has become a social experience these days. One of the most impactful ways we’ve seen social affect the buying process is by increased word-of-mouth marketing. Shoppers are becoming brand advocates by sharing their favorite products through Facebook, Twitter, YouTube and more, opening up the level of reach and engagement for brands that cultivate their social customer relationships.”

Property management companies that understand the challenges facing their retail tenants will be much better positioned to accommodate their changing needs and to be proactive and supportive. As a technology company, Lightpath can be your partner in helping define a strategy for the special needs of your retail tenants.

See how Amazon continues to lead the pack for retail innovation:
http://wallstreetmess.blogspot.com/2013/01/amazon-continues-changing-retail.html

Also in This Issue

• Managed Backup: A Reliable and Inexpensive Way to Safeguard Critical Data
• The Workplace Transformed
• Leasing Strategies: Staying Ahead of the Curve
• Checklist for Successful Property Management
• Summer In The City