IT decision makers must balance a set of diverse requirements when devising IT strategies. Creating innovative solutions that differentiate their offering, all whilst remaining cost efficient and delivering a flawless customer experience, must be achieved in balance – one cannot outweigh the other.
Consumer-facing technologies are great for attracting customers and optimising the online experience. However, innovation can’t come at the expense of flawless experience and IT decision makers must ensure their infrastructure is capable of scaling to manage increasing levels of website traffic – especially considering that just a 100-millisecond delay in load time can impact on conversion rates by up to 7 percent.
It is also important to note that IT strategies can’t silo in-store and online technology plans. Retailers now recognise that their in-store and digital offerings must be delivered to customers as one seamless experience, with nearly half of respondents reported that better aligning online and in-store customer experiences was a key consideration in new IT strategies.