When your employees are engaged and can communicate more easily, great things can happen. Check out this new whitepaper on how social tools are revolutionizing the retail workspace. For more information, please visit http://www.tibbr.com/

1. How Social is Redefining
Retail—Both Inside and Out

2. Phase 1:
From Brick & Mortar to Online Stores – A Swiftly Changing
Landscape
The retail industry is evolving at a tremendous pace. Within the last few years, there has been an
inexorable growth of e-commerce and mobile shopping. Mobile shopping influenced 5.1% of all
retail sales in the US for 2012 (Deloitte), and e-commerce is predicted to make up 8% of total retail
sales for 2013 (Forrester Research). In many countries, most shoppers still prefer to buy in-store.
But now shoppers use the web to research more than half of all goods they eventually buy (internet
analyst with JMP securities). This means retailers are looking at ways to develop their online pres-
ence while still meeting the needs of in-store consumers.
While some companies are quickly adapting to the changing market, the burgeoning influence of
e-commerce is hurting some retail stores. Amazon’s online store now accounts for a quarter of all
online purchases. This along with the economic crash of 2008 indubitably had an affect on some
retail companies. Stocks fell significantly and some companies had to close storefronts and layoff
employees. Circuit City and Borders were just two of the many casualties.
With the swift change to online and mobile multichannel-selling opportunities, companies have to
adapt quickly. Retailers are looking for ways to improve communication and leverage the knowl-
edge of their employees to deal with the changing circumstances.
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Mobile shopping influenced 5.1% of all retail sales
in the US for 2012 — Deloitte
E-commerce is predicted to make up 8% of total
retail sales for 2013 — Forrester Research

3. Phase 2:
Revving Up Internal Communications
Whether it’s finding new ways to maintain a competitive storefront or strengthening their online
experience, retail companies need to stay abreast of changing technologies and improve internal
communication to maintain a competitive edge. Yet, many retail companies are struggling in both
these areas and complain of lack of communication between stores and corporate headquarters.
Lack of communication between stores has an adverse affect when it comes to meeting demands
of product placement and fulfilling customers’ needs. According to Forrester Research Inc., 39% of
retail stores experience a lack of response to meet demand for promotional products; 18% of retail
stores can’t locate the key parties involved. This makes it much more difficult to meet customer
needs for key products. Retailers need to be flexible and improve communication between stores
to meet consumer demands.
Yet, many retailers have limited store-to-store communication available, oftentimes with no corpo-
rate email or mobile devices issued to the staff. This makes it difficult for store managers and staff
to engage in meaningful conversations around item stock, new item acquisitions, product place-
ment and so forth across stores.
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39% of retail stores experience a lack of response
to meet demand for promotional products; 18%
of retail stores can’t locate the key parties involved
— Forrester Research

4. At the same time consumers are becoming savvier. With the ability to access products, prices, rat-
ings and other key info from their mobile device, shoppers have higher expectations for their shop-
ping experience. In-store customer service needs to be ready for educated buyers.
Lackluster customer service is often a direct result of poor communication from headquarters.
Newsletters and company emails are often not enough to fully engage with employees. In the cur-
rent environment, it’s important for corporate headquarters to understand the issues the staff are
having on the floor so they can make sure their responses, overall brand message, understanding
of product promotions and so forth are effective. Yet even in the 21st century, many retail com-
panies lack this two-way communication. Store employees and corporate employees are discon-
nected.
Some of the most innovative ideas come from the employees that work with customers on a daily
basis, yet these employees often have the least communication with their corporate decision-mak-
ers. Retail companies need a way to leverage the insights of their employees both for increasing
innovation at stores as well as in the e-commerce world.
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5. Bringing 21st Century Collaboration to a Retail World
Just like many shoppers are using the Internet and social media to enhance their buying experi-
ence, retailers are starting to leverage the power of internal social communication to improve cus-
tomer loyalty and their brand. 69% of retail companies are adopting social technology. Retailers are
using private enterprise social networks to collaborate with employees both at headquarters and
their stores.
The social technology enables previously distributed employees, many without corporate email ad-
dresses, to engage with each other. Better store-to-store collaboration allows them to share ideas
for floor layouts, product placement, best practices for dealing with customer issues and so forth.
Store managers can collaborate on out-of stock items and shorten the response time for customer
needs.
In addition, a private social network improves corporate communications. Rather than receive
one-way newsletters, employees receive messages from within their social feed and can respond
with questions in a more transparent manner, reducing the overlap and overload of emails directed
to the corporate communications team. Employees learn about the latest product promotions,
discuss new product lines and view high quality images of upcoming displays (which can also be
enabled through CMS integration).
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“ tibbr enables us to quickly connect people
with the colleagues and information they
need. Being able to subscribe to subjects
within tibbr is a powerful way to stay current
on the topics you care about most.”—Macy’s Chief Information Officer, Larry Lewark

6. Macy’s, a 167,000-employee North American retail chain with 798 locations, uses the tibbr en-
terprise social networking platform to increase collaboration and provide relevant information to
employees. “tibbr enables us to quickly connect people with the colleagues and information they
need,” says Larry Lewark, Macy’s Chief Information Officer. “Being able to subscribe to subjects
within tibbr is a powerful way to stay current on the topics you care about most.”
Along with the development of social media, BYOD is making significant inroads in the retail and
business world. Retail employees can use their mobile devices to access company updates from
their enterprise social mobile app. Plus, they can share pictures and ideas for ways to improve
product displays and more. At a food production company, for example, an employee provided
feedback on a product label to the packaging team, and it was incorporated in time for the next
shipment. Ideation and innovation can occur throughout the organization.
When it comes to reinventing retail, especially in the new digital age, enterprise social networking
works as a central place for brainstorming and sharing ideas as well as connecting employees from
anywhere. By leveraging the collective knowledge of employees, ideas go to market faster, help-
ing companies stay ahead of the competition, discover new ways to satisfy customers and build
deeper brand experiences.
sources
Multichannel Retail Redefined. Gartner. 2010.
http://www.junctionsolutions.com/files/documents/Gartner_MultichannelRetailRedefined.pdf
The Dawn of Mobile Influence – Discovering the Value of Mobile in Retail. Deloitte. 2012.
http://www.deloitte.com/assets/Dcom-UnitedStates/Local%20Assets/Documents/RetailDistribution/us_retail_Mobile-Influence-Factor_062712.pdf
Unified Communication Industry Study. Forrester Research. 2006.
http://www.cisco.com/en/US/prod/collateral/voicesw/ps6882/ps6884/prod_white_paper0900aecd80424544.pdf
Death of a Salesman: Technologies Threat to Retail Jobs. Atlantic Monthly. June 2013.
http://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/2013/06/death-of-the-salesmen/309309/
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