How Cloud Computing will Redefine the Retail Industry?

Cloud computing, an emerging technology, allows you to use hardware and software based on your need over the internet. This technology offers the pay for what you use billing model, so you are charged for what you use. With this technology you don’t need to invest in IT infrastructure, but can use numerous organized computing assets like networks, servers, applications and services as and when required by your organization. Cloud computing is the future for most industries, and is working towards reshaping most business verticals. It is specifically true for retail industry, where the consumers have already embraced digital technology. It has become important for the retailers to offer seamless and personalized buying experience across the different channels to the end user for enriched user experience. According to a survey conducted by Accenture, it was reported that 74% of the retailers surveyed were underdeveloped in terms of offering seamless customer experience. About 81% were unable to deliver customized assortment and pricing to meet the customer’s expectations. These have been identified as deficiencies which can be best addressed by retailers by moving their business to the cloud. Here are a few things that retailers will benefit in by moving to the cloud.

Improved Channel Operations

What do customers want from the retailer? They want retailers to understand their choices, based on their past deals, and respond based on this knowledge. The retailers should respond in a similar fashion irrespective of the channel user uses to communicate with the retailer. In the traditional IT infrastructure, the different verticals such as inventory, shipping etc. were not integrated, and the operating models did not follow the current operating trends. By adopting cloud computing services, this will change. Retail as a Service (RaaS) will integrate the different verticals thus helping you manage inventory and improving your restocking capabilities. The hardware & software updates are handled by this service. Basically, you don’t need to invest in IT infrastructure. You can choose the things you need for continued operations, and pay for what you are planning to use. This makes expansion easy and cost effective.

Offering Personalized Experience

For long, retailers have been working hard to derive benefits from internal and external data to enhance the user’s in-store experience. By moving to the cloud, retailers will get benefits of context-based services which will help personalize the in-store experience. These services will merge the in-store data with the digital data to offer best solutions.

Enhanced Supply Chain

Are you able to manage your supply chain without experiencing stock-outs? Are you able to expedite deliveries, and match the expectations? By moving to the cloud, you will get top notch inventory processes which will help you in decision making processes, and translating the consumer needs into a well strategized outcome. You can remove the complexities within the processes, and keep a check on the inventory.

Retail industry will gain viable solutions by accepting RaaS. Cloud is indeed going to be the game changer for retail industry. Very few retailers have actually moved to the cloud. By adopting it at this stage, you will be able to leverage the benefits. To get an edge over competition, you need the ideal company to offer cloud computing solutions meeting your retail needs. Semaphore Software a cloud computing application development company, has a team that offers solutions that help you meet your retail goals. You can get in touch with our team to derive best cloud benefits.

Source: Apsense