怎样给予顾客最佳购物体验(pdf 28页)（英文版）

怎样给予顾客最佳购物体验内容提要：
During the past year, a number of high-ßying onlineshopping companies hit hard times. Some, like Toysmart.com and Living.com, have gone bankrupt. Others, likePeapod and CD-NOW, ran out of capital and were acquired. Even Amazon.com, the premier online shopping company,has stumbled in recent months with sales of books and music down 4 percent over the Þrst two quarters.These events bring to mind earlier failures of online shopping initiatives, including interactive television in the1990s and videotex in the 1980s.
Companies also have struggled to Þnd the best applications of technologyin conventional retail stores. While UPCscanning and automated teller machines (ATMs) achieved widespread acceptance, other technologies have notmetretailers expectations. Interactive kiosks, for example, have ßuctuated in popularity over the years, getting a boostevery time a new technology is incorporated (such as videodisk players, touch screens, bar code readers, and Webaccess). But there are disappointments, such as Kmarts SolutionsTM in-store kiosk, Ernst Home Centers specialorder kiosk, and the MicroMall catalog shopping kiosk. In 1993, Ted Turners Checkout Channel, a network of Þveinchcolor monitors positioned by the checkout counters in 840 grocery stores, was discontinued. That same year,VideOcart went bankrupt after installing LCD screens and computers on the handlebars of shopping carts in 220stores.
Before retailers invest more time and money in developing, deploying, and promoting retail technologies, these
questions should be asked:
◗ What role do consumers want technology to play in the shopping process?
◗ Are people overwhelmed by the technical innovations and want simpler rather than more sophisticated shopping
experiences?
◗ Have companies already tapped out the most promising applications of technology?
From the customers perspective, there are costs as well as beneÞts associated with new technologies. They often are confusing, take time to learn, are prone to failure, and can raisethe prices of goods and services. From the retailer
s perspective, technology is expensive to adopt and maintain and can become obsolete quickly. Clearly, it is necessary to understand which technologies and applications create value for speciÞc consumer segments and productcategories in order to optimize the shopping experience.
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