Presentation on UK retailers' innovation plans given at multichannel strategy consultancy Practicology's 2016 client conference in London on July 6th 2016.

1. How UK retailers plan to move their
customer experience & propositions
forward in the next three years
Joanna Perry - Head of Marketing - Practicology
joanna@practicology.com
Multichannel Innovation Report Headline Findings

2. About the report
▶ We’ve interviewed senior retail decision-makers in
ecommerce, marketing and IT roles
▶ Questions focused on innovation in the next 1-3 years
▶ Here’s some of the trends we’ve identified
▶ We’ll be publishing the full report later this summer,
and it will be available for free download
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3. Pace of change and agility
The pace of change that retailers have
witnessed in the past five years is driving
a desire for greater agility
Multichannel Innovation Report Headline Findings

4. Pace of change and agility
▶ Many commented on the pace of change and a desire to
keep up with their competitors
▶ Continuous improvement was mentioned as a necessity
as it is dangerous to fall behind key competitors
▶ Agility is necessary to respond to challenges and trends
which may not be predicted: wearable tech, smart TVs
▶ Greater agility will be achieved through technology
infrastructure, 3rd party suppliers and partnerships
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5. Pace of change and agility
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“We’ve got a continuous
process of looking at
customer journey,
identifying best practice
and then implementing
the changes that we think
will have the biggest
impact”
CEO of a large etail business

6. Customer data and insight
Customer data, insight and single view of
the customer were the most mentioned
Multichannel Innovation Report Headline Findings

7. Customer data and insight
▶ All cited the growing importance of customer data
▶ Single customer view is a key project that will underpin
many other developments they would like to deliver
▶ There is a desire to better understand customers, their
behaviour and what they want in order to sell more
▶ Several retailers spoke of better data also directly
benefiting customers
▶ Store data collection techniques need to improve
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8. Customer data and insight
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“Getting better at
customer data has to start
with making it more
useful for customers…
because until you provide
utility for the customer
you won’t get uptake”
Head of Ecommerce for a
multichannel fashion retailer

9. Customer data and insight
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Multichannel Innovation Report Headline Findings
“Brands need to grow
their data capabilities to
offer: “relevant
intentional data which
tells you how you can be
the most helpful to that
customer depending on
what you’ve seen them
trying to do with you”
Director of a top 10 retailer

10. Core systems and processes
Infrastructure and processes support the
work on customer data in delivering the
desired customer experience
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11. Core systems and processes
▶ Ecommerce platforms are seen as enablers of change
▶ Requirement for some from platform provider
innovation to help deliver a joined-up web and store
experience
▶ Recognition that technical capability is only half the
battle – processes and people just as crucial
▶ Front-end customer-facing aspect of technology must
be simpler to use/intuitive and support the
requirements of millennials
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12. Core systems and processes
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“I think the person who
nails the real – not just
the single view of
customer – but the ‘single
way of interacting with
the customer’ from a
platform point of view,
will shake up retail
massively”
Head of Ecommerce for a
menswear retailer

13. Core systems and processes
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Multichannel Innovation Report Headline Findings
“We’re doing a complete
review of the capability
we need to win in the
market.. from getting our
data structures right, to
making sure our
processes are as simple as
possible and as
automated as they can be”
CEO of a large etailer

14. Seamless customer experience
Seamless customer experience across all
channels is the aspiration for most
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15. Seamless customer experience
▶ There is a clear desire to achieve a seamless experience
across all transactional and interaction channels
▶ This will drive investment in platforms, data
integration, SCV, the store experience and staff
▶ Personalisation was mentioned by many - but it means
different things to different people
▶ Investment in the right customer experience should pay
off in reduced discounting and increased loyalty
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16. Seamless customer experience
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“We’re
replatforming… it
will allow us to
join up store and
online more easily
to deliver that
omnichannel or
seamless retail
experience”
“The technology
that helps to
deliver
personalisation
will give more
focused
conversation”
“If the brand
continues to grow as
we see it growing,
then the types of
engagements we have
with people will
change”
Digital Director
of a global
retail brand

17. Mobile as a starting point
Mobile is an opportunity and a challenge
– mobile’s importance is increasing as
its role in the customer journey is better
understood
Multichannel Innovation Report Headline Findings

18. Mobile as a starting point
▶ Mobile will become increasingly important as it’s the
starting point for many customer journeys – through
mobile search, mobile sites, email viewed on mobile etc
▶ Those serving younger demographics want to be
industry-leading on mobile – so a mobile-first attitude
▶ In-store mobile EPoS not a vanity project
▶ Mobile will also support the change in role for store
staff to a value-adding one
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19. Mobile as a starting point
Multichannel Innovation Report Headline Findings
“Our mobile
payments device
is certainly going
to be rolled out
more, and is a
great success.
That’s a real
advantage for a
consumer, it’s not
a vanity project”
“We’ve had really
good growth in
mobile conversion
and continue to
look at how we
can improve that
with user research
and data to
inform where we
should be
improving ”
“People have less
patience in mobile
for browsing… You
want to get to your
product more easily
so the longer tail is
more important on
mobile”
Head of Ecommerce
for a young fashion
retailer

20. Delivery, collection and returns
Fulfilment is a differentiator for some,
and a hygiene factor for all
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21. Delivery, collection and returns
▶ Delivery proposition is not a differentiator for all, but
no one wants to fall too far behind
▶ Retailers are examining how they deliver against
customer’s desires for hyper convenience and visibility
▶ UK delivery choice runs ahead of the rest of Europe
▶ Returns is a pain point, for both retailers and
consumers – innovation is required in this area
▶ There is room for improvement in click and collect
models and execution to improve customer experience
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22. Delivery, collection and returns
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Multichannel Innovation Report Headline Findings
“I think the convenience
point is going to extend
so, much like we’ve seen
in food, there will be hour
delivery slots… so a
higher level of
convenience. That’s the
biggest thing that’s
coming”
Ecommerce Director of a
fast-fashion retailer

23. International expansion
Internationalisation and localisation are
hard to achieve – retailers are looking
for short cuts
Multichannel Innovation Report Headline Findings

24. International expansion
▶ Internationalisation highlighted as one area that is
particularly complicated and potentially very costly
▶ There’s an increasing willingness to choose online as
the first channel to market in new geographies
▶ Partnerships with suppliers and third parties seen as
crucial to ability to operate internationally online
▶ Retailers don’t want to reinvent the wheel – they want
suppliers to provide innovation and economies of scale
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25. International expansion
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“We’re effectively a
pureplay when it comes to
Australia and the US…
Our challenge from an
ecommerce perspective is
to get those markets large
enough to look at some
physical store retailing”
Head of Ecommerce
for a menswear retailer

26. Product & value-add services
Innovation can come from what’s
delivered, as well as how it’s delivered
Multichannel Innovation Report Headline Findings

27. Product and value-add services
▶ Several mentioned product and product-related
services innovation as part of their plans
▶ Has there been too much focus on product innovation
at the expense of experience and brand innovation?
▶ One has plans for service innovation to extend
engagement and lifetime customer value
▶ Others are considering partnerships to provide new
service propositions
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28. Product and value-add services
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“We’re very product –
centred as a business, so
what we’re looking to do
over the next 2-3 years is
branch out from product
and focus on services. So
the focus is on
experience, brand
engagement, customer
engagement”
Director of a specialist
multichannel retailer

29. The role of the store
Stores are here to stay – but the
emphasis on what they should deliver
will change in the next three years
Multichannel Innovation Report Headline Findings

30. The role of the store
▶ The role of the store is changing for all types of retailer
▶ Stores need to add more value to the omnichannel mix
▶ Most acknowledge two trends: more
experiential/inspiring and information through stores
BUT also stores as mini DCs/fulfilment/service centres
▶ Retailers need to better understand what type of
mission the customer is on when they come into store
▶ Store and online experience must be closely aligned
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31. The role of the store
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Multichannel Innovation Report Headline Findings
“I think that if you have less
stores, you need those stores to
be in the right place for your
customer profile. Then probably
smaller stores, less of them but
they have a different role – part
operational and part customer
experience”CIO of a fashion retailer

32. Changing staff and skills requirements
Retailers will require more skilled and
knowledgeable staff at every level: from
board-level to store
Multichannel Innovation Report Headline Findings

33. Changing staff and skills requirements
▶ The customer data requirement and focus on
omnichannel customer experience surfaces people and
skills requirements at every level of a retail business
▶ Digital growth necessitates IT and Marketing Directors
who understand online/ecommerce/digital
▶ Data manipulation and analysis skills in demand
▶ The changing role of the store will impact on staff
requirements at the local level – may be less roles but
those that remain will be higher value
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34. Changing staff and skills requirements
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“There’s a big staff effect here
which will change their jobs…
and be that advisor rather than
someone who is arranging a lot
of promotional material and
fixing tickets and sticking
them onto shelves”
Director of a top 10 UK retailer

35. The indicators of success
While the top and bottom line still rule
other KPIs are increasingly used to
identify the health of a business
Multichannel Innovation Report Headline Findings

36. The indicators of success
▶ Sales and profit remain the ultimate indicators, but the
underlying indictors are changing as retailer adopt an
omnichannel customer experience focus
▶ NPS and other engagement measures are being looked
at by some on a daily basis to forecast future sales
▶ Single channel KPIs can give a false view
▶ Example: social being redefined as an engagement
channel, so a sales KPI does not indicate its true value
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37. The indicators of success
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“When we have our trading
meetings on a Monday, the
very first number we look at is
our NPS score and what the
top 10 complaints were, and
we’ve got the whole business
focused on fixing those top 10”
CEO of a large etailer

38. Thanks for listening
Look out for our joint report with Arvato
Supply Chain later this summer
You can download our other research at
practicology.com/thinking/reports
Multichannel Innovation Report Headline Findings