Business News

GUEST BLOG: Don’t let Black Friday darken your doorstep

By Business & Finance
26 November 2015
busy shopping street Alexander Svensson

By Russell Acton, vice president International at Capriza

Micro-apps can make shop staff’s tasks as quick and simple as possible and help avoid a Black Friday nightmare for retailers, according to Capriza’s Russell Acton.

On November 27th, high street retailers will be bracing themselves for one of the busiest shopping weekends of the year as bargain hunters descend on the high street to grab the best deals with their final pay cheque before Christmas. Irish retail businesses are predicted to be hit by a 31% increase in sales compared to last year as high street spending is set to reach €109m in a single day.

With luck, stock will be running dry and retail teams will be on an all-time high trying to serve every customer efficiently to maximise sales. The American phenomena of Black Friday and Cyber Monday have made their way over to Ireland and are becoming increasingly popular among consumers and retailers.

This year, more than half of Irish people will be looking for a deal on Black Friday, as shoppers rush to the stores to get their hands on must-have products at reduced prices. The big question is: how can retail management teams best prepare for such a sudden influx of shoppers and avoid them once again fighting to get their hands on the latest products and offers?

As stores ready themselves for what could be a weekend of madness, stock levels will be increased, shelves stocked, extra staff recruited and management teams prepared to work overtime. A major problem for many Irish retailers during Black Friday and post-Christmas sales is with the intake of seasonal workers, who will only be working in the store for a short period of time and need to be as productive and proactive as possible.

Retailers have to consider what value these employees bring to the business. Increasingly, retail staff will spend much of their time running around the shop floor, checking stock and responding to shopper enquiries. This can lead to inefficiencies and, if not handled well, frustration on the part of the customer.

The big question is: how can retail management teams best prepare for such a sudden influx of shoppers … ?

ZAP’LL DO NICELY

Current in-store retail systems are often installed on the tills and computers of yesteryear. They are outdated, difficult for new recruits to learn and often-fixed behind counters. Upgrading existing systems would make it easier and quicker for employees on the shop floor to access the store’s systems, e.g. price scanning, stock checking and online catalogues, while at the same time serving customers quicker and with immediacy. For most retailers the thought of moving to a new system can be daunting, as they will worry about the disruption caused, but that doesn’t need to be the case.

Now there is an alternative. Implementing the use of micro-applications via mobile devices, such as smartphones and tablets, is a way to avoid leaving eager customers waiting around or lining up at the till. Micro-apps, or ‘zapps’, as we like to call them, allow for the company’s existing systems to be brought together in one quick and simple-to-use application, without disruption. This ultimately allows staff to concentrate on what they are paid for and hopefully what they do best, delivering great customer service and thereby increasing sales.

THE NEW CHRISTMAS

Deploying micro apps to perform simple single tasks like checking stock and processing payments or returns during such peak periods can save the business valuable time. It helps to not only increase employee productivity and overall sales, but increase customer satisfaction. Shoppers love fast and efficient service.

Even though retailers are increasingly focused on online business, Black Friday sales are quickly becoming the ‘new Christmas’ for most Irish ‘bricks and mortar’ retail businesses. They should not forget, especially at these times, that their most valuable assets are the staff on the shop floor. Making shop staff’s tasks as quick and simple as possible can avoid a Black Friday nightmare.

Photo (above): Alexander Svensson

Russell Acton CaprizaAbout the blogger

Russell Acton is a passionate and dynamic professional with unrivalled experience and a broad range of IT and business disciplines. He covers direct and indirect models, from transactional to high-level consultative sales models, with an obsessive slant on integrity, principles and customer passion.