Despite a growing demand from consumers for an increased use of technology in stores, retailers are still lagging far behind in technology adoption, according to research from tablet-based point-of-sale (POS) solution provider Talech.
The study, entitled 'The Retail Technology Report: Consumer Attitudes and Retailer Response', examined consumer attitudes to the technologies used in stores and compared them with actual retail adoption of new technologies and tools.
It appears that retailers have been slow to adopt new technology, despite the growing demand. The study showed that 67% of retailers have no plans to update or adopt new technology in their stores.
"The consumer demand for up-to-date technology is clear, and now it's up to retailers to take notice and develop a strategy for keeping up with the demand," said Irv Henderson, CEO for Talech. "The study suggests that businesses that adopt new in-store technology such as tablets are seen as more trustworthy, up-to-date and customer-focused."
Consumers are increasingly expecting retailers to offer tablet-based checkouts, loyalty programmes and store-branded smartphone apps. The research showed that despite nearly half of consumers saying they want to see tablets in store, only 22% of retailers think that customers want them to have tablets in store for payments.
Among the study's other key findings:
- Consumers think stores or restaurants that use tablets are more up to date (73%), efficient (60%), and customer-focused (40%).
- Some 42% of retailers haven't updated their POS in over three years.
- Despite 87% of consumers wanting a customer loyalty programme, only 11% of retailers plan to adopt one.
- Despite 46% of consumers wanting a store-branded smartphone app, only seven percent of retailers plan to use one.
- 67% of retailers do not have plans to adopt any new technology in their store.
- 52% of 18-29 year olds want tablet-based checkouts, compared to 34% of those over age 60.
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