The world of retail sales and operations is continuously evolving, with both internal and external factors impacting the way customers seek out, purchase, and choose to receive items, as well as the way in which retailers market, sell, and fulfil orders. While the digitization of retail and the COVID-19 pandemic certainly helped to accelerate certain customer shopping demands and trends, other internal drivers, including an increased focus on cost reduction, process efficiency, and the use, handling, and protection of data are also impacting retailers and their partners.

However, recent research indicates that consumers are still dissatisfied with both in-store and online retail shopping experiences, according to IBM’s biennial consumer research that was published in January 2024. According to the survey, just 9% of consumers surveyed say they are content with in-store and 14% are content with online shopping. Not surprisingly, 59% of consumers surveyed expressed a desire for AI applications during their shopping journey, and more than half (52%) said they would be interested in receiving information, advertisements, and offerings from stores that are relevant to their specific interests. However, there are conditions attached to this finding: 40% of consumers surveyed said they want more control over how their data is being used by companies, and 44% want to know how their data is being used. Similarly, the research also found that consumers are willing to give AI a try to research products, find better pricing, ask questions, and resolve their issues.

Our latest report, Market Insight Report: Retail-Focused Enterprise Applications, identifies and analyzes the key trends impacting enterprise-grade retail industry-focused applications, reviews the key functions and features that are being integrated or incorporated within these applications, and identifies influential vendors operating within the market. 

This paper provides details about:

• Market Overview and Key Trends
• Key Functions Integrated within Enterprise-Grade Retail-Focused Applications
• Notable Market Participant Offerings
• The Key Component to Realizing ROI Is Data
  

Retailers are trying to leverage the latest technology innovations throughout all facets of retail operations, from product marketing, sales, and merchandising to customer care and management functions and back-end processes, including product ordering, fulfillment, and returns. Most notably, in the past year, retailers are increasingly seeking out ways to leverage both analytics and predictive AI, as well as harness the power of generative AI technology, for both customer-facing and internal use. As such, retail-focused enterprise applications are also evolving, incorporating new functions and features. If you are interested in learning more, download Market Insight Report: Retail-Focused Enterprise Applications today.