Tag Archives: google

2012.12 | The End of Money?

April 3, 2012 by Tim Dickey 0 Comments

Having finished The End of Money last week, I can recommend it as a useful overview of all of the issues concerning a move to a cashless (or cash “less”) society.   I was particularly taken with the concept that all of us perceive and hold true the “value” of paper money, though effectively it is our faith in monetary instruments like cash that gives us that perception of value and nothing more.

We are so close to our money and monetary system, that we rarely stop to think about it.  The book underscored that point for me more than any other.  Money and gold are really just proxies of value that we perceive as instruments that can ‘hold’ value for us over time and make value transferable.  Taking the time to think about it, it’s quite incredible that we have somehow all agreed to this arrangement as a society; but we have.

I was also deeply affected by reading ‘Digital wallet’ will transform smartphone and how we spend in the Globe and Mail last week.  While the article revealed nothing new and was sketchy on details, the vitriole in the 335 comments was somewhat disconcerting.  Many of the comments from unsurprisingly anonymous accounts expressed outright hostility towards the idea.

While I have been enthusiastically anticipating and already using digital alternatives to cash, there are many individuals who are vehemently against a digital wallet.  As described in “The End of Money”, there are massive and pervasive concerns around this technology in the general public.

Some concerns outlined in the 335 Globe and Mail comments included:

  • being forced to use a particular payment network
  • transactions being tracked by banks, government, network owners and others
  • no privacy for transactions
  • account numbers and value being stolen
  • being forced to have and use a mobile device
  • being forced to use a mobile network like Rogers, Bell or Telus and paying them a cut of transactions
  • providing no additional value to citizens
  • ‘hackers’ taking over the system (by the way, the terms hackers and cyber anything have to be removed from the common lexicon – this is not the age of the information superhighway)
  • criminals stealing account information just from proximity the owner (NFC)
  • what to do when there is no electricity or your mobile device has no power
  • corporate organizations usurping or becoming a crucial transport to the sovereign responsibility of government for currency
There are many rational arguments in this list.  Almost all of them are issues today based on debit and credit payments.  Replace mobile device with card or mobile carrier with bank or processor, and the concerns are almost identical, be it a mobile wallet or a debit or credit card.
And yet, as I also found in The Future of Money, cash is not a panacea.  While cash can potentially provide anonymous, electricity free portability and ease of transaction in a way that no current widely used electronic format can, there are many issues around the complexity of cash – though they are more apparent to retailers to consumers.
In Canada we have had numerous reminders of the complexity of cash, but most consumers don’t think about them as complexities.
  • On March 26, a new $50 note was released to reduce counterfeiting of large denominations and increase acceptance of these notes.
  • Last week it was announced that pennies will be no longer be minted, and will be removed from circulation in Canada to save the cost of producing them – which has exceeded their value for some time.
  • The Royal Canadian Mint is in the midst of releasing new versions of the $1 and $2 coin (okay, loonies and toonies) which replace nickel composition with steel – once again, to reduce the cost of minting.

For most, these are news items for discussion with friends and colleagues.   For retailers and other consumer facing organizations, these are logistical issues that have to be carefully considered and dealt with.  Vending machines, self-checkouts, self service kiosks, cash drawers, cash counting equipment, counterfeiting measures, store associate training, taxes on purchases, rounding to five cents on cash purchases, end of day balancing procedures, and more all have to be considered.  All of them require time, effort, and more cost.

While the average consumer may consider these issues irrelevant to them, these are costs that are passed on to them one way or another.  If a retailer can find a way to deal with transacting more cheaply in a way that suits a target market, they should do so, tradition or no, and use that competitive advantage to win business.

So, what is the answer?  The answer is choice.

The issue I had with the comments on the Globe and Mail article was that people were basically responding as though they are being told cash is being eliminated and they have to use an electronic wallet.  That is not the case.  There will be cash, there will be debit and there will be credit for the foreseeable future.  There will also be electronic wallets.  These digital modes of transaction are currently options; not requirements.

There are all sorts of people and transactions in the world, and they should all be able to transact in the manner that they wish.  Cash, Debit, Credit and eWallets can all play a role.  [Don't believe the eWallet hype? - check out mPesa.]

Electronic wallets are imperfect for many reasons.  It’s absolutely true.  So are debit and credit cards.   There is fraud, there is theft, there are many inconveniences associated with using cards.  And yet 65-70% and more of many Canadian retailers’ transactions are made via debit and credit.

Somewhere, somehow, somebody is going to evaluate the list of bullets in this post and see opportunity; see a missed chance to do things better.  With emerging technologies, and changing consumer attitudes to mobile and electronic transactions, it’s only a matter of time until mobile digital wallet options become a bigger proportion of the payments people make.

As retail technology professionals, we should ensure that all of the infrastructure we put into place provides the flexibility to accommodate future payment modalities – whatever they may be.  Reading “The End of Money” provides a great background on why we should be ready for these new payment models.  Understanding the history helps to drive us into the future.

From my perspective, the Government of Canada is responsible for the money supply including the Bank of Canada and the Royal Canadian Mint.   They should be considering how Canada can move from a cash based society to a cashless society.  They should remember that they are not printers or minters – they represent monetary value in Canada and should continue to play that role electronically if it suits their constinuents.   They have already made a jump moving to polymer from paper.  Perhaps their next move should be silicon.

All of the national banks around the world should be considering this or find a way to harness private enterprises in this effort – before Apple-Square-Google-Paypal-Starbucks-BumpPay-GeodeWallet or others do it for them.

Update:  The Royal Canadian Mint has obviously been thinking the same way.

dining & qsr, food & drug, general merchandise, retail
, , , ,

2011.49 | December Retail Tech Links

December 21, 2011 by Tim Dickey 0 Comments

Queuing  – This is always topical in discussions with retail clients, and something on which everyone has an opinion.  Check out this WSJ article on queuing and the various strategies retailers are using during the 2011 Christmas season to make the consumers’ wait more entertaining, faster, and productive – or at least enhance that perception.   I prefer a single to multiple queue myself.

Google Store – I was slow catching this one, but apparently Google opened up a Chromezone store in the UK; confusing the masses who thought their apps were free.  Apparently they are using it to push Chromebooks.   I guess they didn’t want to leave Apple and Microsoft to go it alone.  Can’t wait until Facebook starts opening stores – it’s the only natural progression.

Wantful – If you’re having a hard time picking Christmas gifts this year, here’s a tool to help you out.  Visit Wantful, answer a few questions about your giftee, and the site will provide 16 curated options.  They will deliver a custom printed book to deliver to your gift target.   They can then pick their favourite from the list and it will be shipped to them.

Boo.ly – While you’re finishing up your Christmas shopping, or searching for New Year’s deals, you can price check by using an add-on from Boo.ly with your browser. Boo.ly will provide information on competitive pricing, coupons and deals based on only your searches; whatever engine you may prefer.  One more challenge for retailers to navigate in the time of increasing price transparency.

Window Shopping Online – People like to window shop.  Amazon’s longtime Windowshop beta provides a slightly different online shopping experience, but TurnHills.com provides a more literal online window shopping experience, with actual photos of storefront windows of major brands.  In the same vein, Google has been talking about their Business Photos and integrating them with Google Streetview for some time.

food & drug, general merchandise, retail
, ,

2011.35 | MasterCard Mobile Paypass: Not Mobile Payment

September 14, 2011 by Tim Dickey 0 Comments

BMO Mastercard announced yesterday that they are offering the BMO Mastercard Mobile Paypass –  a mobile payment solution using NFC and specifically the Mastercard Paypass solution.

I find it perplexing, though not particularly surprising that Mobile Paypass  is receiving a relatively loud fanfare in the press here in Canada – 27 articles as of the writing of this post on Sep 13.  The headline “First Big Bank to Launch Mobile Payment” is somewhat misleading.   The solution that BMO are offering is not remotely new, and it is not what I would consider a true mobile payment solution.

This solution is a sticker with an NFC tag that can be used to pay at NFC payment terminals at the POS in the same way that MasterCard Paypass Cards are currently used.  Customers tap the Paypass Tag on the back of the mobile device on the payment terminal and the card details are passed to the terminal for payment.

The MasterCard Mobile Paypass can adhere to the back of a mobile device, but it can be just as easily stuck to your iPod, your leather wallet or your keychain if you so wish.  Effectively one can also do the same thing today with a BMO MasterCard plastic card.  It fits in the cover on the back of an iPhone, and nothing stops anyone from doing that and leveraging a ‘mobile payment solution’.

If MasterCard Mobile Paypass is considered a mobile payment solution, Esso Canada SpeedPass and Shell Canada’s EasyPay should be as well.  These solutions are wireless key fobs connected to an account with a credit card number that effectively do the same thing, and have been on the market and available for consumers for many years. While not ‘offered’ by a big bank and only usable at a specific retailer, they have certainly been in the mainstream for many years.

All of the hype around mobile payments should be around a true mobile wallet versus using a sticker or a key chain to make credit card payments instead of a physical credit card.  While these are wonderful stepping stones that I use and will continue to use, the exciting part is getting to that true mobile wallet.

The following are my criteria for a true mobile payment solution:

1. Integrated Communication to Payment Terminal – The NFC or whatever communication technology that communicates with the mobile payment device is physically ‘built in’ to the mobile device.   As far as I am concerned, a true mobile wallet is not physically separate from the mobile device.  That module could be part of a SIM card perhaps, but it should be integrated to the phone electronically in some way.  NFC is preferred, as it does not require cellular or wi-fi data accessibility for payments to be processed.

2. Mobile Wallet Application Software on the Mobile Device - A mobile wallet requires a mobile application that can leverage the NFC or other communication technology as though it were a peripheral.  It should be possible to see multiple cards from various banks and card issuers and their details at the very least.  A more sophisticated version should also include loyalty cards, gift cards, transaction details, coupons and offers, tickets and even receipts for all purchases made with the card.  While the solution could be browser based, it should have an offline function at the very least for times of no data connectivity.

3. Ability to pay with Multiple Cards – The wallet should support multiple payment cards that can be chosen on the screen with the same NFC interface to the payment terminal.  Could be any credit card (Visa, Mastercard, Amex, etc) or any debit cards from any bank. Should also be able to work with retailer offered gift cards.

4. Card Additions, Removals and Changes - The wallet should have the capability to have cards added or removed in the wallet by the user or bank or card issuer.  The cards would use the same NFC interface on the mobile device to connect to the payment device.  The wallet should have a the capability to be ‘deactivated’ remotely by the user or card issuer.

5. User to User Funds Transfers – Ideally, it would be possible to pass funds from one user to another by tapping the phones together, based on the account of choice by the user.  This could be a release 2.0 feature.

This sort of solution is very different from attaching a tag to a mobile device and calling it mobile payment.  The keys to getting a solution of this kind in place have been covered many times in this blog, but the fundamentals in Canada are a widely available and popular NFC enabled mobile device, and an application backed by a company large enough and trustworthy enough that consumers will be comfortable enough to put their credit card numbers in their hands.  Both are challenges.  I won’t even mention encryption, security, EMV, or PCI.  That it must work within those parameters is a given.

Google Wallet is closer to this reality than anyone else, though there are always rumours of Apple, RIM and Paypal as well.  When the mobile wallet I describe above is offered, we will have arrived.  Until that point, beware the inflammatory mobile payment headline.

Update 9/15/11 – I understand from another article that e-mail receipts are also available with this option.  That is a slight change, but considering it is mainly for purchases under $50, the value of receipts for double-double at Tim’s.  Still, it is a step forward to e-receipts and less paper that I am definitely in line with.

Another consideration is that if a purchase does happen to be over $50, I’m not sure what the process will be.  With my current BMO Paypass card, there is a chip on it, so I insert the card into the pinpad and enter my PIN for more than $50.  I don’t think there can be a chip on this card, so we might be back to signatures.  I expect that they will have to put a signature space on the card so clerks can check it.  Now one has to pass the clerk the mobile device so that they can check the signature (don’t like that), and get a paper receipt which negates the benefit.  I don’t think retailers will love gathering receipt slips again now that EMV is in place.  It’s a good stepping stone, and I’ll be very interested to see how it works out!  I’ll get one if I can.

dining & qsr, food & drug, general merchandise, retail
, , , , ,

2011.31 | Shopping from your Car

August 17, 2011 by Tim Dickey 0 Comments

The rebirth of the American auto business is thanks in part to the efforts of the car companies to integrate two great consumer loves – automobiles and mobile phones. It started out with Bluetooth integration to allow hands free calling, but given the increasing power of smartphones and their usability, auto makers are taking it up a level to provide remote control capability, audio integration and more.

I saw a wonderful demonstration of the potential of these solutions in the demonstration centre at my own place of business some time ago. At the time it seemed a bit fanciful to me, but over time, I’m starting to see the real potential of the idea.

At present the integration of mobile phones and automobiles is mostly linked to telephone calls and audio integration.  Some solutions are going a bit further as mentioned above, but there aren’t any shopping solutions that I have seen yet.

If we take that technology a few steps further you can imagine the incredible change that is coming our way.

Consider a drive home from work a few years hence:

You get in the car, and begin to drive home.  Your phone rings and it is your spouse.  They indicate that you are short on milk and bread, and that you had promised to pick up a jar of olives that day.  This sort of conversation is routine on a car ride home in today’s world.

The part that will change is that after you hang up the phone, you will then be able to ask your mobile via audio command to check the stores on your route home for three items: bread, milk, and olives.  Your mobile device can take the command given and can identify the stores in order of preference, price, or location.  You can speak the name of the store you would like to buy from, and the purchase will be made instantaneously over the phone.  You stop at the store and pick up the items purchased at a special counter – or even better – you pull up and someone puts them in the trunk of your car.  The receipt is already in your receipts folder in your email.

While it sounds like a bit of a dream, all of the solution components exist to do this today:

Smartphone with Automobile Integration-  The power of any of the smartphone mobile devices available today is well within the realm of reality required for completing these sorts of solutions.  Many new cars have bluetooth integration and that technology should expand and improve.

Audio Input to Mobile – Google has been doing this for some time.  It is getting more accurate, as well.  I use Dragon Dictation and have tested it in loud environments and it works well.  Apple is also rumoured to be building this into next iOS – expect others to do so.  Expect people to abuse it in public to everyone’s embarrassment, as well.

GPS Search along route – It is already possible to identify locations along a route using Google Maps.  While stores need to be identified in some way, sites tags could be used.

Inventory Search – There are already UK based services to price compare specific grocery lists.  While more rare in Canada for grocery, there are some that provide inventory searches in general merchandise already – Chapters Indigo and The Source already provide it.  If there is an API to get the information, it could be brought together for this solution.

Online Purchase – There are many services to purchase online already like Paypal, or a retailer can leverage an existing web store.

Paying without Entering a Credit Card – The purchase could be completed via a one click purchase by keeping a credit card number on file as  is already done by iTunes and Amazon.  The solution would have to be adjusted to a verbal equivalent, but this could be done using a solution like Amazon’s PayPhrase.

While this sort of solution would not be without its complexities, it is certainly within the adjacent possible.  Like the Tesco Korean Subway grocery shopping solution, or like the Starbucks Mobile Payment solution, it is a matter of assembling a number of components that already exist today and cleverly packaging them.   Being the first one to a solution like this could provide a terrific competitive advantage.

The greater challenge for retailers is integrating a monster like this into their operations infrastructure.  To make something like this really take off, execution would need to be flawless.  If the inventory is missing, or the store staff don’t provide a pickup, or the payment process isn’t simple, customers will not use the solution and it will be a wasted idea.

While this is a challenging area – it seems like a true possibility.  Retailers are already struggling with the many channels for sales – web, mobile, store, self service kiosk and more, it will only get more complex over time as these channels snowflake into various subsections – like mobile ordering via an automobile.

Beyond the complexities of all of the items above, there are two things for retailers to consider before being able to leverage a solution like this:

1.  A service oriented architecture of some sort needs to be in place to deal with ongoing requests for new channels. If every solution is custom, this will never happen.

2.  In order to accommodate customers via all of these channels and to understand what channels customers are using and what they want, it will be come increasingly important to implement a back end solution that allows retailers a view of customers across all of these channels as well as a vehicle to interface with them across all of them in the simplest most transparent way possible.  Without this infrastructure, the business will become increasingly fragmented and impossible to operate efficiently.

A solution like this would have been mere fantasy even 3 or 4 years ago.  It is exciting to see the possibilities for consumer convenience, and the potential for retailer differentiation.  Hopefully we will see implementations of this type in the near future.

dining & qsr, food & drug, general merchandise, retail
, , , , , , , ,

2011.21 | Google Wallet Could Work

May 31, 2011 by Tim Dickey 1 Comment

I’ve derided attempts at a mobile wallet for some time.  I want it as badly as anyone, but it has been an elusive dream for years.

If you look through the blog you can see my reasons for this skepticism.  It’s never been about the technology – that capability has existed for years.  It’s about the infrastructure, consumer readiness and not adding fees for the service.  I’ve been thinking about last week’s announcement around Google Wallet, and it could work – in Canada at least.  Let’s discuss just a few reasons why their model could work.

NFC acceptability at POS – While articles I have read about the US and Europe have indicated that they have not adopted NFC strongly, numerous Canadian retailers have built NFC into their infrastructure as they were forced to spend millions on getting EMV in place.  The EMV upgrade caused thousands of pinpads to be replaced, and untold hours of software changes and testing.  It only made sense to include NFC in that process to make best use of the investment.

This investment places Canada in a solid position on the number of POS sites that can accept NFC payments.  Not convinced?  Consider just a few of the major retailers that accept contactless in Canada: Tim Horton’s, McDonald’s, Loblaws, Sobeys, Cineplex and probably many more where I haven’t used my NFC cards yet. (Let me know if you’ve seen it elsewhere in the comments!)  More sites where an NFC tender can be provided means more potential purchasing locations where a Google Wallet can be used, which drives potential use, and therefore more potential adoption.

One PIN to rule them all - Canadians have become accustomed to Chip and Pin over the past few years.  The unforeseen challenge of this new and more secure system is remembering PINs for multiple cards.  I have relatively few cards, but have 3 credit cards and a debit card.  Try keeping 4 pins straight in your head for whichever card you are using.  Using the same PIN for all four?  If you get filmed entering your PIN, you could be scammed on all of your cards.

If you use an NFC credit card, most retailers don’t require a PIN for purchases under a pre-set amount – generally $50 or so – particularly for their own cards.  I like using them for that reason alone.  Not entering a PIN at every transaction is a convenience to users and can speed throughput for retailers.  At the same time, having a single PIN on the Google Wallet means that the card could not be used unless that PIN  has been entered, providing an extra layer of security for an NFC transaction.

Usability – I’ve highlighted that any new payment solution needs to be extremely simple to use.  Your most novice user needs to be able to do this in 5-10 seconds flat in front of a queue of impatient people and a bored cashier.  The Google Wallet with NFC appears to get closer to this nirvana than other solutions.  My technologically challenged mother uses NFC cards regularly and loves it.  You “Tap n Go”.  Consumers can use the current pinpad at the POS just like they have done for years.  It’s comfortable.

Contrast this interface with Square as one example.  Square is an awesome idea and it looks slick, but is my mom going to use it?  Nope.  Too foreign.  It also requires the use of a solid data connection to work every time as transactions are completed via the network.  Anyone want to be held up relying on your local wireless coverage to complete a transaction? NFC gets around that by allowing the use of NFC which just requires the mobile device to be on.

Will my mother use this solution?  Probably not right out of the gate.  But a mobile wallet needs to be this simple to get widespread traction in the marketplace.  For those of you who may deride this need saying that our Gen Y digital natives are more sophisticated, watch your average mobile user at any point of service.

Many citizens (I didn’t say all – and they aren’t the only ones!) of this segment are so busy checking texts, talking on their mobile, or zoned into their own world listening to their iPod that they are often loathe to interrupt to complete a transaction. Mobile wallet usage needs to be so simple that one can open the app while they complete other activities while distracted.

I would also argue that Gen Y, while potentially more comfortable and trusting of technology than older consumers, are still subject to the needs of a simple user interface.  They are not necessarily any better at using technology.

Increasing Mobile Usage – While Canada lags behind the US in mobile technology, we are catching up.   99% of the 18-34 set have a mobile phone.  We are up to almost 25% of mobile phones with a data plan.  A target market of 25% of the population isn’t a bad starting point, and it will only grow.  This increasing use of mobile is also driving increased comfort with downloading apps like the mobile wallet.  Android is also gaining market share – providing a potential foothold.

The Google Factor  - Past attempts at mobile wallets in Canada have been pilots inevitably involving a mobile carrier, a credit card company, and a bank. Sometimes a credit card processor and/or a retailer got into the mix. All parties have been trying to figure out a way to split the profits for years – nobody has made it work.

Neither consumers or retailers will pay a significant fee for the privilege of carrying their phone instead of a piece of plastic. There has been no large monetary benefit to these parties to add additional cost and risk into the mix for the returns they have found or we would already have mobile wallets.  The carriers and handset manufacturers have not included NFC into the mobile handsets as they had no incentive to do so, and importantly – no universal application to leverage NFC if it were there.

Another problem is the issue of consumer acceptance.  Carrying a mobile wallet for every credit card, bank or other institution adds complexity, it doesn’t remove it.  Having a mobile wallet from some Silicon Valley start up you’ve never heard about – not going to do that either.

The difference here versus the past is that Google is looking for an edge over Apple and RIM.  They want and need to provide something the iPhone doesn’t have.  The handset manufacturers also want in on that.  NFC is a viable option they can provide.

To use that hardware, a universal mobile wallet from a trusted source is needed.  Google is a verb now – who doesn’t know Google.  The name Google Wallet doesn’t make you nervous – it makes you want to download the app.  They also provide the corporate clout needed to deal with the major banks and credit cards.

They are providing the hardware we could never get in the past, and a universal app that could allow us to use all of our credit cards in one trustworthy mobile wallet. These two elements, along with the benefits above, may just push Google Wallet into mainstream usage.

This isn’t even remotely a slam dunk.  At present this is going to be used in two test markets.  It only works with one phone.  It’s not offered in Canada yet.  There is no guarantee the credit card companies will get on board.  There will always be security issues.  EMV could force you to pull out your card anyway for a larger purchase.  If your battery is dead you have no wallet.

Many hurdles need to be overcome, but Google is moving us closer to the mobile wallet than ever.  Perhaps they could offer it on other platforms like Blackberry and Apple’s iOS.  Ideally Google’s initiative will drive other organizations to come up with their own wallets.  Paypal – perhaps.  Apple is likely to get in on this as well.  Having organizations like this behind a mobile wallet initiative can only move the ball forward.  After all, what’s left to add to our mobile gadgets?

dining & qsr, food & drug, general merchandise, retail
, , , , ,

2010.23 | Store 2010 and Retail Technology

June 2, 2010 by Tim Dickey 0 Comments

I attended Store 2010 this past week here in Toronto, and was fortunate to hear some engaging speakers.   While I can’t possibly do justice to all of the points covered in the discussions which were just loaded with statistics and information, here are a few highlights and links to sites of interest from a retail technology perspective:

Daniel W. O’Connor of RetailNet – 2015: Next Generation Retailing

Chris O’Neill of Google – Google’s Big Bets in a New Retail Landscape

  • 20% of queries are local – opportunity for retailers to capitalize – Google’s Nearmenow makes it even easier for consumers to find what they are looking for.
  • Search is getting even easier on a mobile platform, as the need to type is removed, as Google Goggles allows for search based on an image from a mobile phone.
  • 87% of consumers research retail purchases online, while only 4% complete the purchase online

Mitch Joel of Twist Image - Social Commerce and Emerging Trends

  • 81% of shoppers read reviews – 1 negative review converts more people than every review being positive – people know what idiots are like
  • Comfort with channel drives commerce – Best Buy allows purchases within Facebook via Best Buy Shop and Share
  • Haul Videos are an example of how consumers are changing the dynamic
  • One day, one deal – Woot uses extreme simplicity, selling one product for one day only.
  • People discuss what they bought on Blippy, connect credit card, and tweets purchases.

There were far too many great examples of retail technology innovation to cover them all, but this gives a flavour. 

To get a first hand idea of what’s going on here in Canada with respect to social media, consider: Canadian Retailers on Twitter and Canadian Restaurants on Twitter.

dining & qsr, food & drug, general merchandise, retail, social networking
, , ,

2010.06 | From Self Service to Make it Yourself

February 7, 2010 by Tim Dickey 0 Comments

After reading the fascinating and highly recommended Why Your World Is About to Get a Whole Lot Smaller by Jeff Rubins, it got me thinking about really big picture environmental and social changes and their impact on retail.   One small outcome of the changes to come according to this very broad and intelligent book is that the increasing cost of oil will drive the cost of transportation so high that a whole lot more manufacturing will take place in North America.  As oil costs rise, the  lower wages for manufacturing in far flung places will be offset by increased transportation costs.  It’s already happened to a certain degree as part of the recent recession.  As chief economist at CIBC for 20 years, Jeff’s ideas have credence.

Another big picture idea that blew me away was in the latest issue of Wired that includes an article about a new generation of affordable technology allowing for incredibly cost effective product development and for crowdsourced projects.  One example is the makerbot open source 3d printer, a kit that anyone can buy for $700 and assemble to “print” 3 dimensional items using ABS plastic from plans that can be made with free tools like Google Sketchup.

The impact of these two items to retail?

  • There will be an increased demand for labour for manufacturing jobs in coming years if Jeff Rubin is correct.  The result are fewer people to keep the service economy going.  The people that work in the hospitality industry, the grocery stores, the boutiques, movie theatres, and more.  This means more demand for technology solutions to deal with labour scarcity and reduce flexibility.  This was a problem during the oil boom in Western Canada in the 2007-2008 timeframe.  Expect it to happen again, and with deeper impact.  With fewer options available, retailers will need to consider every option available to stretch labour dollars to build flexibility into their systems while minimizing costs.  Self service will grow.
  • With capacity for design resources made available affordably to those who did not have it before, expect to see ever more products available in much shorter runs.  With more differentiated products available to serve the Long Tail, this could mean reduced sales for big box stores, as niche players find a place in the market.  It will probably also drive a number of niche players to work via mail order via the web and skip the retailer altogether.   At the very least, the big players will have to be more selective in their product mix for sale, and either way it makes life more complicated, with smaller segments served by individual products, or with many more SKU’s available and having to be tracked and turned in stores.
  • In the even bigger picture, for very simple products, retailers can expect to see the problems that the music industry and the movie industry have experienced for a few years.  Not only can these printers make a prototype, they can make a product.  The makerbot makes the potential of downloading plans for a model car and building it myself quite real.  With this technology in its infancy, it is not a stretch to build your own mobile phone with the right plans, some plastic, and some kits from my favourite electronics store in the near future.  Retailers and manufacturers will have to consider the potential of tomorrow’s Napster not sharing music, but plans for the latest Nike shoes, or a Google Phone Knockoff.

Social Media today, Social Manufacturing tomorrow.  From More reading:  Makers, Makezine.

retail
, , ,

2009.22 | Traveling

May 25, 2009 by Tim Dickey 0 Comments

I traveled from Toronto to Vancouver to visit a few clients last week, so the technology around travel was certainly on my mind. So many innovations have hit travel in the past decade that it is incredible to think how much things have changed.
 
Check-in Kiosks, Web Check-in, and Mobile Check-in have all streamlined the queuing experience regular travelers know so well. While much improved the area is still ripe for additional innovation. Think about the number of transactions at an airport. Where else do we compact so many transactions into one place in such a short time as a captive audience? What could we do to improve upon an already much improved experience? I had a few thoughts while on the road.
  
Organization - There are various apps that help streamline the travel experience. There are a few basic options for this today, like Tripit, TravelTracker, or Travelocity. Some tradeoffs are made on these solutions. An online offering means being up to date with changes, it also means $3/MB for Canadians traveling to the US. An offline offering means changes may not be shown on your itinerary. In future releases, it would make life simpler to have a mobile check-in button, or even better, a place to store all of the 2d barcodes so they are not accidentally deleted or lost in email or photo areas of the phone.

air_canada_2d Boarding Pass Generation – On my trip, I used web-checkin and had the boarding pass sent to my iPhone as a 2d barcode. While convenient, there is an opportunity to build on this. For one thing, I  don’t know my credit card number or Air Canada Aeroplan Account from memory, and I certainly don’t know my itinerary number. This dissuades me from using mobile check-in in all but the direst situations, and I’m a bleeding edge mobile user. Typing the last 4 digits or letting the program validate the itinerary number on the device would suffice. Even better, using a program like 1Password to pass the information to the airline check-in could also work, much like Google Toolbar Auto fill. The web is fine at home or at the hotel, but when one is only traveling for the day, or the web is unavailable, using mobile checkin should be a simple option.

Security and Boarding - Nothing seems to make security in an airport more uncomfortable than handling a mobile device with their rubber gloves. A barcode scanner that passengers can scan at Security and Boarding so staff don’t have to handle any devices or boarding passes is a better alternative. This provides consistent processes, improved traveler tracking within the airport, less opportunity for a misread boarding pass, and less effort for staff to interpret the information on the miniscule screen of the latest gadget. An intervention may be necessary and staff can deal with the exceptions, providing better throughput. [Update: 5/27/09 While traveling through Montreal (YUL), there was a scanner to scan my own boarding pass. Progress!]

Flight Services - A truly interactive mobile platform with easy access buttons to get feedback on specific issues and a chat function could provide airlines with an incredible customer management tool including the ability to:

  • allow passengers to notify if they are late or unable to make the flight so that the flight can depart, or a seat can be given for standby
  • send text message notifications of flight changes
  • automatically update itineraries if there are cancellations with all preferences automatically applied, and special messages outlined (free airmiles, lounge access, directions to their gate, etc).
  • report lost luggage
  • provide a platform for customers with problems to voice their concerns and opinions and get immediate feedback

With so many millions of happy travelers passing through airports every year, this provides an opportunity to allay the loud concerns of the few major problems, bringing the attention to those who can make a difference quickly. There are tools to do this today, but they are not well advertised or utilized.moverwallet

Car Rental and Hotel Checkin - Hertz’s kiosks and Hyatt certainly go in the right direction. A 2d barcode reader would be ideal so mobile devices can be used instead of a printout. Even better, an NFC credit card used to book the trip could make the transaction wireless and avoid the 2d barcode. I already have an NFC credit card, even if I don’t have an NFC mobile phone, which would be ideal. Why not scan the card for pickup and payment? For hotel, the NFC credit card can potentially be used as the room key as well, so the room could be opened without even removing the card from one’s wallet.

Further down the road, perhaps wifi could be used as it is used with the recent ‘mover’ iphone application. It looks like a mini version of Microsoft Surface. A wallet would show a number of cards sitting on the screen and a swipe of the finger slides the appropriate card towards the kiosk and a pin or signature could be entered on the kiosk.

With all of these solutions, it comes down to two things that drive every self service solution: utility and simplicity. If a solution is useful and easy to use, it will gain populartity and usage. It will be interesting to see which solutions meet those criteria in travel over the next few years and how much more convenient it will become.

retail, travel
, , , , , , ,

2009.12 | Mobile Marketing | Google Voice | Going Digital

March 13, 2009 by Tim Dickey 0 Comments

Mobile Marketing – I was thinking about this even more than usual this week; being involved in a number of meetings that warranted discussion on the subject. While being able to pass messages to customers on their mobile isn’t particularly new, giving it relevancy by location is still novel.

Acuity Mobile’s Aislecaster allows retailers to target customers with messages within 3 feet. I’m not sure that everyone will be comfortable with this right out of the gate. Businesses need to be careful that they establish rules of engagement with customers, or you wouldn’t be able to walk three feet without being bombarded with messages, which will not fly with consumers. The messages also need to be targeted, relevant, and different from what is on the shelf in front of you.

If this technology goes in the right direction it could be a terrific tool for retailers, and benefit for consumers. Both Omnifocus and GPSToDo are iphone apps that will remind you of tasks when you are near a location. Think about not forgetting the milk when you are driving home from work because when you go by the grocery store, as your phone reminds you based on location. The important issue here is that the solution needs to be voluntary and it needs to add value. If it doesn’t do that, it won’t do much.

Google Voice – I tried to sign up for Grand Central a while back, and it’s been in closed beta for some time. I’ve been looking for a tool where I can have ONE number – whether I’m on the road, on my mobile, on a landline phone or on an IP phone on the internet. Why shouldn’t this exist? Why do we need all of these numbers? Google bought Grand Central a couple of years ago, and are finally starting to push it into general use under the Google Voice name. What an awesome tool. One number for life.

Going Digital Continues – Don’t think all of this digital download hype affects you? Think again. The Itunes Store didn’t exist until 2003, and as of 2009 it sells 70% of all digital music online, as well as videos, applications and more. It became the largest seller of music in the US – bigger than Wal-Mart last April (2008). From 0 to largest retailer in 5 years? Bigger than Wal-Mart? Nobody does that. It is unbelievable. “Record Stores” as we knew them are disappearing or re-inventing themselves to sell other media and products. Now look at Amazon with their Kindle Bookstore. They are looking to do the same as apple with e-books, and they have almost 250,000 titles to back it up. Traditional retailers should take notice, but I’ve not seen any of them cornering the market in the same way. These guys have captured the change in medium/format of their product, and have solved the cost of delivery problem by making it effectively 0. Watch for more.

food & drug, general merchandise, retail
, , , , , ,

2009.09 | Consumer Interaction Complexity

February 20, 2009 by Tim Dickey 0 Comments

We’ve discussed the importance of consistency across multiple channels in today’s consumer facing world. The tools and interfaces available to consumers continues to grow at breakneck speed, and very few of the consumer facing organizations have leveraged them fully, though the rate of change certainly makes that difficult for everyone. I’ve beaten Twitter to death, but here are a few other technologies that could provide additional channels for retailers, and new ways for consumers to leverage technologies.

Microsoft Surface – This table based LCD provides another venue for the internet in the home, and at consumer facing businesses. Using sensors in peripherals and in the table, data is flawlessly passed from surface to devices like phones and cameras – allowing sharing payments and endless possibilities. NCR recently demonstrated a financial solution using Microsoft Surface.

Motorola Sparrow – This new concept is billed as solution to assist store staff in building a better relationship with customers. Part Telxon gun, part loyalty tool, this shows some real innovation in what’s really been a bit of a stale area for some time.

Google Latitude – See where your friends are at any given time on your mobile with this newly released location based social networking tool. Loopt and others have done the same thing, but Google jumping on board will give it additional credibility. People have concerns about privacy, but do we really think we have privacy anyway? Will the younger generations care? If they don’t, this tool provides consumer based organizations a way to market via their consumers.

general merchandise, retail, social networking
, , , , ,

Follow

Get every new post delivered to your Inbox.

Join 27 other followers