5 Retail Trends Moving the Needle This Holiday Season

This holiday season, ongoing and inventory issues are combining to create the perfect storm for retailers: difficulty engaging and retaining loyal customers. But with these challenges come valuable opportunities to deliver tangible savings, build lasting relationships, and thrive long-term.

Here, we explore 5 retail media technology trends that give retailers a competitive edge during one of the busiest shopping seasons of the year. Better yet, leveraging these trends is the gift that keeps giving well into tomorrow. Let’s see how.

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1. Embrace Digital Transformation

Digital transformation is not a want—it’s a need. The retailers that get ahead know how to evolve with their shoppers’ changing preferences, and continue meeting the moment with modern, retail media technology. What does this look like? One example is embracing a mobile-first approach—leveraging retail tools like click-and-collect, in-store product scanning, and scan-and-go—and prioritizing personalization above all else.

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2. Connect Online and In-store

Now more than ever, thriving businesses are meeting their shoppers where they are: in both the physical and digital aisles. A experience guarantees that retailers are reaching shoppers throughout their entire journey, winning trust at multiple touch-points. As shoppers browse through their local grocery store in-person, retailers can strengthen the experience by recommending relevant products, promotions, and discounts on their smartphone—at exactly the right moment.

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3. Leverage a Retail Media Network

Robust retail media technology combined with a seamless omnichannel experience can create a powerful digital retail advertising network. This closed-loop platform targets the shopper along the journey from pre-purchase list-making and browsing, to in-store consideration and buying, and onto post-purchase mobile research and returns—showing highly-personalized content that makes every shopper feel seen and understood as a unique individual. In turn, this lends to long-term loyalty and more margin-rich revenue for retailers.

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4. Launch a Retail Mobile App

Did you know 51% of mobile users check their apps anywhere from 1 to 10 times a day, while 25% of users check them 11–20 times per day? In other words: there are multiple opportunities for a retailer to stay connected and top of mind for consumers through the power of mobile. By adopting a mobile-first strategy and launching a custom mobile app, retailers can ensure that no opportunity is missed by driving traffic to digital channels, and increasing basket size with personalized promotions, deals, and discounts available at shoppers’ fingertips.

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5. Start a Loyalty Program

Today’s shoppers expect rewards and promotions that save them money—and recommendations relevant to their previous spending habits. By launching a robust loyalty program built on valuable first-party data collected through direct customer interactions, retailers can deliver a highly personalized experience that creates customers for life. Think of brands like Kroger, whose loyalty program goes above and beyond in-store savings to personalized digital coupons, fuel points in exchange for dollars spent, coupons for free items on select Fridays, and more.

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Level Up Your Retail Strategy Game with Swiftly

Give the best gift of all this holiday season: a seamless shopping experience that consumers won’t soon forget.

Swiftly has the platform and solutions to help you thrive and grow in today’s digital-first world. As a true technology partner, we provide the retail platform, mobile platform, retail media, insights and analytics in a simple out-of-the-box model to help you get started quickly.

Reach more shoppers this holiday season and in the future with seamless retail media technology. Contact Swiftly today.