CPM answers the big question we all want answering... what is the Future of Shopping?
The Future of Shopping, with actions for Brands very firmly in the present, was the focus of a recent event, hosted by CPM UK.
Andy Buck, Chief Development Officer said, ‘We set out to share with Brands the evidenced commercial benefits of fusing our physical and digital worlds - how leaning into that trend now has both immediate benefits and prepares for the Metaverse commercial dynamic that is to come. As the current retail landscape shifts, at pace, our emphasis was on sharing, on informing and suggesting actions for today which support our retail tomorrow.’
Keynote speakers across differing sectors looked at future shopping trends, dynamics, behaviours, and technologies. Read to find out more....
RETAIL 3.0 BY Phil Rowley, Head of Futures at OMG
Phil addressed the big questions we all wanted answering - Is the fusion of physical and digital worlds a solution? What is the impact of virtual worlds on shopping behaviour?
In short, yes, the future of retail will be digitised – and businesses and brands will need to upgrade and upskill to be part of this world.
They will need e-commerce perfection and mastery of technologies that bring more information, more choices. All whilst reducing friction, but....
...that same technological progress should also be used to reinforce human values and satisfy human sensorial needs
People still need other people. They will still feel more comfortable seeing and touching certain products. Technology can facilitate this too.
This is the truth: using innovation to attend to deeper customer’s needs – abundance, access, safety, and value – will always make you futureproof.
Deliver humanised, digitised, and justified retail and you are responding to the three key themes that will be central to the future of shopping.
The questions Phil asked us to consider - Do your retail interactions unite physical and digital? How memorable are your physical experiences? Are you working to reduce harm and suffering?
Establishing authentic responses to these questions, will support brands in defining their approach to the changing retail dynamics that we will be experiencing in the years ahead.
PREPARING FOR THE METAVERSE by Jamie Lyons, Head of Digital Product Development at PHD UK
Jamie was able to guide our audience through the complex metaverse landscape. Demonstrating that is has increasing relevancy to consumers, most notably to Gen Z and Millennials. Jamie made sure we understood how those early adopters are utilising the space and the creative ways brands are executing their experiences to users.
‘There’s a lot of noise about the Metaverse and it’s not all helpful.'
Jamie commented: The event was a wonderful opportunity to share with delegates the facts around what the Metaverse means; how consumer interactions and expectations around access to product and services is helping shape it, plus the implications on customer experience and service. Technologies are just part of the story - how Brands prepare themselves and actively decide where and how to play will be a key differentiator.’
We were left wondering where and when culture and technology will meet to fully realise the metaverse, something that will need to relevant to the masses for it to get the scale to reach full potential.
Delegates came from FMCG, retail and consumer electronics and goods which supplied great networking opportunities. Feedback proved the event to be insightful and brand owners went excited to consider what it means for them...
“Today has been extremely useful because there has been so much change, so really understanding shoppers and how much shopping is changing and the effect on behaviours means it is really important to digest what all this means for our future plans and to consider how we make sure we are talking to the right people in the chain and in the right way” Claire Toyne, Head of Field Sales at Mars
“Great to take time to learn about something that is still quite new and mind boggling and how we can as a brand decide if appropriate to link into it or not, and just because you can, doesn’t mean you should was very thought provoking” Suzie Carlaw, Head of Brand at Borders Biscuits
“Truly inspiration presentations, that will leave us with some truly thought-provoking ways and paths forwards to challenge both us and CPM” Darren Barber, Marketing and Ecommerce Director at Stanley Black and Decker
It was even more clear after the event, that with the advancement in digital technology, it is important to lift our thinking into what’s next, how you actively move towards it and what things to consider. The event delivered on all three thoughts, and we are glad to have been able to provide this stimulus for our contacts in the industry.
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