Shopping gets smart

I am a bit old school when it comes to shopping. While I realise I can get everything I need with a click of a button, I still prefer buying things from an actual, real-life shop. Browsing through the aisles, window-shopping, trying on clothes and people watching make the crowds and queues totally worth it.

Apart from the mall rats who frequent shopping centres, there are also the sceptics out there who just don't trust sending their credit card details into a faceless, soulless cyber void. (Yes, I am quoting my mother.)

But even for those who shy away from online shopping, there can still be a digital element to your retail therapy, thanks to the modern-day integration of technology and shopping.

Technology is increasingly being used to improve customers' shopping trips and gives retailers a behind-the-scenes view of what consumers really want.

Social media already has a firm place in shopping centres. A recent study by the SA Council of Shopping Centres (SACSC) shows that, along with airports, shopping centres are the most checked-in venues for South African Facebook users. In addition, 59% of social media users actively follow brands, and 27% have actually discovered unknown brands via social media.

Not surprisingly, retailers are cashing in on the digital trend. Of the 100 malls surveyed, 65% have an active Facebook presence, 45% are on Twitter, and 43% use e-mail newsletters to communicate with their customers.

According to SACSC, Canal Walk reigns supreme on Facebook, with 76 586 likes, followed by Montecasino, Melrose Arch, Galleria Mall in Amanzimtoti, and V&A Waterfront. Sandton City is winning the Twitter race with more than 13 000 followers.

Technology is taking shopping to a whole new level.

Technology is taking shopping to a whole new level.

Many shopping centres already offer a customised app, allowing shoppers to find whatever they are looking for, including stores, specific products, specials or events. You no longer have to rely on the information boards at shopping centre entrances (which usually make no sense anyway). An app using indoor mapping will navigate you all the way from your current location to right where you want to be.

Shoppers can use their mobile devices to take part in a treasure hunt, using digital wayfinders to find clues and win prizes.

If you have no idea what to buy for dad's birthday, some shopping centres offer an app that allows you to input certain criteria, such as age, gender and price range. The app will deliver a list *of possible gift ideas available in that particular centre.

Even the use of coupons can now be delivered digitally, specifically tailored according to the individual's preferences. Shoppers register on a system via mobile app or touch-screen, and voila, a discount at your fingertips!

Woodlands Boulevards shopping centre, in Pretoria, even has an app that allows you to scan anything you like at shops within the centre, so creating a gift registry that you can then share with your friends online.

Researchers are working on designing digital dressing rooms that will allow you to try on clothes without actually having to try them on! Shoppers may soon be able to activate an augmented reality body double on their personal device, which they can then use to try on and match clothes.

This cuts out long queues at fitting rooms, the time wasted by dressing and undressing, and of course, saves us all from awful fitting room mirrors that I am still convinced are designed to make us look at least one size bigger.

This is the part where the sceptics get suspicious. Are we giving up our privacy to help boost retail revenue? Yes, in a way.

WiFi is being used in many overseas shopping malls to track customers' movements to learn more about their shopping habits. However, during a Cisco Mobile Executive Briefing in Johannesburg earlier this month, it was noted that this trend is now moving into SA as well.

Tracking customers through the WiFi on their mobile phones allows retailers to pool customer data, enabling them to provide personalised targeting for future visits. Personal activities mean more time spent in the store, which of course allows a greater opportunity for impulse buys.

Retailers can also use the data to optimise store layout and even enhance the effectiveness of window displays. Floor managers are easily able to determine when they need to put more salespeople on the floor to handle a surge in traffic, and when there is likely to be a lull in potential buyers.

Whether you are looking forward to everything technology could add to your future shopping expeditions, or feeling apprehensive about being tracked like a lab rat, it seems technology-driven shopping is the way of the future.

Don't tell mom.