2863: Retail Reinvented: Customer Experience and Technology Trends

[00:00:00] How can retailers harness the power of digital transformation to redefine customer acquisition,

[00:00:08] retention and customer experience here in 2024? With the global expenditure on digital initiatives

[00:00:16] projected to reach 3.4 trillion by 2026, the pressure is on for businesses to adapt swiftly

[00:00:25] and effectively. And today I'm going to sit down with Rachel Valentine, a forward thinker in the

[00:00:31] realm of digital innovation at VINCIT to delve into the trends shaping the retail industry.

[00:00:38] And Rachel brings a wealth of knowledge of how personalised experiences driven by analytics

[00:00:44] and AI are becoming the cornerstone of customer engagement. From the integration of omnichannel

[00:00:50] approaches to the deployment of progressive web apps, I want to explore the strategies that are

[00:00:56] setting businesses apart in a crowded marketplace. And this conversation also promises to be a deep

[00:01:02] dive in how technology is not just changing the game but how it's setting new standards for

[00:01:07] customer interaction, satisfaction and loyalty. So I invite you to join me as I unravel the

[00:01:13] future of retail in a digital age and also discover how empowering employees and fostering

[00:01:19] culture of innovation can lead to unprecedented growth and customer happiness.

[00:01:26] Win-win all round, right? But before we get today's guest on, I need to pay the bills.

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[00:02:24] So buckle up and hold on tight as I beam your ears all the way to California

[00:02:28] when Rachel's going to join us today. So a massive warm welcome to the show.

[00:02:34] Can you tell everyone listening a little about who you are and what you do?

[00:02:39] Yes. Hello, everyone. And thanks for having me, Neil. I am Rachel Valentine. I am a general manager

[00:02:46] for Vincent USA. And Vincent is a leading international software development and design

[00:02:54] company currently here in the US. We operate out of Orange County, California and Scottsdale,

[00:03:00] Arizona. But we are a company that was founded in Finland. So we have global operations in

[00:03:06] Finland, Sweden, Poland, Portugal and of course the US. And really what we specialise in is

[00:03:13] digital and commercial transformations and the execution of custom software and design

[00:03:20] implementations for clients of ours. So we're never building our own products and software,

[00:03:25] we're always supporting clients of ours to help them turn their business problems around with

[00:03:33] technology solutions. And so my specific role as general manager is to oversee our

[00:03:39] general operations here in the US, as well as oversee and support the HR people operations.

[00:03:46] And I've got to ask with offices in some beautiful parts of the world,

[00:03:50] with Sweden and Finland, do you ever get a chance to go over for any events or

[00:03:55] team building or anything? Have you been to those offices?

[00:03:58] Yes. I've been fortunate enough to visit the Finnish office or our Finnish offices. We have

[00:04:04] a couple within Finland, Helsinki, Tampere and Turku. Been over there typically about once a

[00:04:12] year, albeit the last time I was there was for our 2022 Christmas party. So I'm due for a

[00:04:18] trip soon and hopefully in that next visit can tack on Sweden, Poland or Portugal as well.

[00:04:26] Sounds like a plan. So much I wanted to talk with you about today, especially around digital

[00:04:31] transformation investment. I was reading initiatives projected to reach staggering numbers by 2026.

[00:04:39] You might have some of these numbers to hand, but I'm curious how do you see this year being

[00:04:44] seen as a pivotal year for retailers, especially in terms of acquisition and retention because

[00:04:50] huge talking point right now, isn't it? Yeah, definitely. I think 2024 retailers face that

[00:04:59] critical juncture in navigating our evolving landscape with technology specifically around how

[00:05:08] they face customer acquisition and retention amongst the rapid growth of digital transformation

[00:05:16] initiatives. So we're seeing global spending rise and businesses need to be smart in how

[00:05:22] they're leveraging that momentum to redefine what their strategies are for engaging and retaining.

[00:05:30] So some key aspects that I think are shaping this year are emphasis on personalized experiences

[00:05:40] as consumers are becoming increasingly accustomed to tailored interactions, especially across

[00:05:47] different digital platforms. Retailers must be smart in how they're prioritizing as well as

[00:05:54] leveraging data-driven insights to deliver that relevant and meaningful experience to

[00:06:01] their current base as well as prospective users. So looking at analytics, leveraging artificial

[00:06:10] intelligence, I think retailers can better anticipate then customer preferences, look at

[00:06:16] optimizing product recommendations, streamlining the purchasing process because users want things

[00:06:24] quick and if there's a hassle or issue, they leave. So all of these aspects to consider I think help

[00:06:33] to foster stronger connections and boost those retention rates and even thinking about it and

[00:06:41] kind of taking one step further, especially in the realm of retail, thinking the convergence of

[00:06:49] online and offline channels kind of blurs the boundaries of traditional retail. So this year

[00:06:56] as retailers look to embrace an omnichannel approach, how can they best integrate physical

[00:07:04] stores with those e-commerce platforms and mobile apps and having that interconnected ecosystem that

[00:07:11] only helps to enhance that shopping experience? And speaking of experiences there, one of the

[00:07:17] things that's getting more and more apparent is we're living in this world of very quick,

[00:07:22] straight to the point 30 second videos. Everyone just expects everything to work no matter what it

[00:07:27] is and if it doesn't, hey you just jump on to the next big thing. There's always something

[00:07:31] vying for our attention and distracting us so considering the low attention spans of consumers

[00:07:37] now combined with that demand for error-free experiences, how crucial is process-driven

[00:07:44] technology and streamlining e-commerce operations from everything from browsing to shipping? Anything

[00:07:50] you're saying here? Yeah, definitely. I mean it's crucial across all industries because as we're

[00:07:58] saying the attention spans are much more limited and if the interactions aren't seamless then

[00:08:05] the customers disappear and might not even ever return. So making sure that companies are

[00:08:14] leveraging technologies to ensure that seamless transaction like order processing and

[00:08:20] accurate deliveries really helps to enhance the customer satisfaction. But beyond that,

[00:08:27] it's also imperative for our business's operational efficiency to help reduce errors

[00:08:33] and enable businesses to adapt more quickly to changing demands in their e-commerce landscape.

[00:08:40] So I think by embracing process-driven technologies, e-commerce businesses can stay

[00:08:49] much more competitive in this evolving marketplace and meet the growing expectations of today's

[00:08:58] customers. So for us as a company, being an agency where we do help develop software

[00:09:05] and systems designed to automate and optimize processes, this is really where we will kind of

[00:09:12] strategically look at the interactions that our clients are having or their users are having from

[00:09:19] kind of front end to back end operations. So things to be thinking about from the customer journey

[00:09:28] and browsing products to that post purchase support, you could be talking about how your

[00:09:35] inventory is managed, how that order processing is happening, automated tools to streamline

[00:09:41] that processing workflow where it captures orders with pre-existing information or verifying that

[00:09:49] payment information and updating order statuses in real time. All of these elements help to

[00:09:56] support keeping that customer happy and recognizing that they want things happening and happening

[00:10:04] fast. And extension of that too is personalized recommendations where algorithms can also help

[00:10:12] to analyze customer data or purchasing behaviors to provide more specific product recommendations to

[00:10:22] make that purchase faster because that attention span is limited.

[00:10:28] It really is and I think consumers are so tech savvy now. There's a significant number

[00:10:33] of consumers that just abandon their carts if they have a poor mobile experience. There are others

[00:10:39] that will put things in their shopping cart and leave it in their purposely for a day or a week

[00:10:45] or so to see if they're emailed a follow up, you've left things in your cart, here's a discount

[00:10:52] code. So people are so savvy around that stuff now. So how should companies prioritize

[00:10:58] progressive web apps in 2024 to ultimately enhance that user experience across different devices because

[00:11:06] ultimately that has become the standard expectation now, hasn't it?

[00:11:10] Yeah, definitely. I think companies should be, if they haven't already, they should be

[00:11:16] considering progressive web apps because they do offer a compelling solution that

[00:11:23] combines the best of both worlds, right? The best features of web as well as mobile applications.

[00:11:29] They can often deliver fast reliable and engaging experiences across various devices

[00:11:36] and network conditions. So something that companies can address with challenges associated to

[00:11:45] traditional mobile websites where loading times could be slower or there could be limited

[00:11:50] functionality or performance. PWAs or progressive web apps really help to leverage more modern

[00:11:58] technologies to be able to kind of work faster and also look at incorporating some of the aspects

[00:12:09] of what you might see in a native mobile app where there's that enhanced user engagement.

[00:12:16] So now PWAs even have features like push notifications or home screen installation just to really reengage

[00:12:24] users to drive repeat visits and also help to better deliver timely and relevant notifications.

[00:12:32] And this can help businesses also keep users much more informed about new products,

[00:12:39] promotions, updates and all in all foster stronger relationships that help to increase

[00:12:45] brand loyalty. So I think progressive web apps at the end of the day just really represent

[00:12:52] a valuable opportunity for companies to address challenges that some users might experience

[00:12:59] with poor mobile experiences and use that to improve user engagement across different devices.

[00:13:05] So PWAs are a great thought for future digital strategy as companies are evaluating their budgets

[00:13:12] and figuring out what's going to be best for their businesses and users. I think

[00:13:16] capitalizing on the benefits of fast performance, enhanced user engagement, cross device

[00:13:23] compatibility and cost efficiency really are things that can help businesses grow and be

[00:13:29] successful 2024 and beyond. And we've talked today about the importance of keeping customers

[00:13:36] happy, improving user engagement. But if we were to look under the hood of what makes that possible,

[00:13:42] of course it's people, it's internal employees. And the reason I bring that up is

[00:13:46] before you came on the podcast today, I was reading how at Vinsit you strongly emphasize

[00:13:51] happiness and development for your employees. So can you tell me a bit more about this

[00:13:56] approach and ultimately how that approach has contributed to the company's growth, customer

[00:14:00] satisfaction and employee retention because we don't talk about this stuff enough.

[00:14:05] Yeah. Yeah. As a company, I think Vincent has always discussed that happy employees

[00:14:14] ultimately lead to happy customers. And it makes sense, right? Naturally, happy employees

[00:14:20] are probably feeling more supported in their work and are willing or capable to then do

[00:14:27] better work for clients. And so we really work to try and foster that type of environment. And

[00:14:33] some of that comes with allowing for more autonomy and encouraging employees to really

[00:14:40] speak up and use their voice and help us to shape the culture and environment that we have.

[00:14:49] And just speaking from the experiences we've had in the US, I mean when we opened up our

[00:14:54] operations here, we were able to grow from a team of three employees to over 50 in just shy of four

[00:15:01] years and go from zero in revenue to over 10 million in revenue with less than 15% turnover

[00:15:10] just by focusing on happy employees and the culture that we were creating. So

[00:15:15] allowing an environment that really supports the team has our individuals showing up kind

[00:15:25] of more engaged, caring more to deliver better products for our clients as well. So

[00:15:33] yeah, it's been an exciting journey and being a part of it because it's great to come to work

[00:15:38] when the emphasis is making Mondays better, right? Not having a dread on Sunday that you've

[00:15:46] got to go to work. So I've always really appreciated that.

[00:15:50] Absolutely love that. And Vincent has also been recognized as a top workforce for innovators.

[00:15:57] Some of the companies trying to do innovation right at the moment. So I've got to ask,

[00:16:01] on behalf of other business leaders listening, what innovative practices are

[00:16:05] Vincent, do you believe have led to that global recognition? Are there any stores you can share

[00:16:10] around that? Yeah, I think where we've been able to stay innovative is also recognizing that we're

[00:16:17] always an evolving company. So innovative practices that our company demonstrated 10

[00:16:23] years ago are also different from what we allow or experiment with our team currently.

[00:16:30] I think fundamentally, we do have a culture that really coaches employees to grow into problem

[00:16:39] solvers and thinkers versus just individuals that have tasks assigned to them. And I think also

[00:16:47] instilling an environment that innovation really comes from being passionate about

[00:16:53] something. So really trying to stay up on the latest in technologies and give our team members

[00:17:01] access to working with the latest tech stacks. It's a pro for being a part of an agency, right?

[00:17:09] Being able to work with the latest and greatest and that I think fuels some of the passion our

[00:17:15] team has and ultimately enables us to then come up with more creative ideas and creative

[00:17:22] solutions and have the ability to pitch those to our perspective or current clients.

[00:17:29] A specific, I think, way in which we've really been able to kind of highlight or emphasize this

[00:17:39] is allowing employees to take ownership of leading themselves and knowing that they have

[00:17:45] support mechanisms from our HR and people ops team. But seeing if there's opportunities to change

[00:17:54] things or open new roles internally, we always I think lean into saying yes before no and seeing

[00:18:02] how things panned out. And as with a lot of companies that ideology of fail fast and learn

[00:18:09] from it. So those kind of aspects of just the culture that we feel field, I think,

[00:18:17] is what really pushes us to be a much more innovative workplace.

[00:18:21] And I'd love to dig a little bit deeper on that. So how does empowering employees with the freedom

[00:18:27] to control their future as you said there? How does that help contribute to Vince's

[00:18:31] overall company growth? Any examples of how that empowerment

[00:18:36] manifests in your daily operations? Again, I appreciate you probably can't share too much.

[00:18:40] Is there anything you can just to offer any business leader that might be listening to that

[00:18:45] takeaway? Yeah, I think giving autonomy to our employees and the ability for them to provide

[00:18:54] feedback on their personal direction and growth has allowed us to shape and how we

[00:19:01] skill up or support them. So versus having this top down belief of you should be focusing on this,

[00:19:08] really turning it around and looking at it from bottom up. What what direction do our employees

[00:19:15] want to be leading into? Or what areas of innovation do they see within the company

[00:19:21] or areas for improvement? A very specific example related to our USA business is that

[00:19:30] we really expanded our operations here when an employee in Finland recognized the potential value

[00:19:39] of our business in the USA market. Maybe also wanted to personally live in the US, but

[00:19:46] put together a business plan presented it to the upper management team and they were willing to

[00:19:55] run with it and sort of gave a six to 12 month leeway time to sort of see how it panned out.

[00:20:03] And now that was man eight years ago, the USA operations is very much a large part of our

[00:20:14] global strategy and how the company and organization wants to grow in future revenue as well as

[00:20:21] profitability. And this actually was somewhat replicated with how our Portugal office came

[00:20:27] to be a business proposal was put forth by more of an individual and small team. And the

[00:20:35] company allowed for the resources to make that happen. So I think those are very tangible

[00:20:40] ways in which empowering our employees to come up with ideas that they think would

[00:20:47] better support the future direction of the company and the support to see it through

[00:20:52] and to check in and make sure that obviously if it's not going according to plan then

[00:20:58] it might be altered, but we've seen great success from really leaning into ideas and

[00:21:04] directions from employees, not just upper management.

[00:21:09] Absolutely love that and for any business leader or tech leader listening to our conversation today

[00:21:14] there could be anywhere in the world wanting to follow in your footsteps or learn from

[00:21:19] the journey that you've been on. Is there any advice or lessons that you learned along the

[00:21:23] way that could help people listening learn from Vince's approach to employee empowerment

[00:21:29] and innovation especially in areas such as software development and in particular in context

[00:21:37] the rapidly evolving retail sector as well. Anything that you could share or leave everyone

[00:21:42] listening with them? Yeah, I guess I would say that I think it's just always really valuable

[00:21:48] to remember that no matter what position you might be in especially one in higher

[00:21:54] upper management is that there's so much value to be learned from one another especially if you're

[00:22:02] approaching much more of a bottom up type leadership versus just top down listening to employees

[00:22:09] really at any industry where they're on the front lines and seeing the experiences of what that

[00:22:17] customer might be experiencing and picking their brain to better understand

[00:22:23] what changes could be implemented. So I always just try to remind myself that no matter

[00:22:30] what the employee's title is I'm sure they know something about the business that could further

[00:22:36] educate me as I stand in more of a management position and I think that's just true across

[00:22:41] any industry or any company of any size so just being willing to ask the questions or

[00:22:47] facilitate dialogue with all employees and really be willing to listen.

[00:22:52] Well thank you so much for sharing your insights with listeners all around the world today and

[00:22:57] before I let you go I'm going to ask you to leave everyone listening with one final gift.

[00:23:01] We have a bit of a tradition on the show where I asked my guests to leave a book that has inspired

[00:23:06] them or that they would recommend to our Amazon wishlist or a song that we can add to our

[00:23:10] Spotify playlist. All I'll ask you is what would you like to leave everyone listening with and why?

[00:23:15] Yeah I always highly recommend the book by Brene Brown, Dare to Lead. I think it's been

[00:23:24] very pivotal in my own learnings and accepting kind of feelings of vulnerability and leadership

[00:23:32] and I think that really ties into the wanting to have candid dialogue with employees at all

[00:23:39] levels and to be able to ask questions and share stories and be able to be vulnerable with

[00:23:45] one another in knowing that you as an individual are growing or it's contributing to the benefits of

[00:23:51] the company. Also well I love that. I'll get that added straight to our Amazon wishlist and for

[00:23:56] anyone listening wanted to find out more information about anything we talked about here

[00:24:00] today. Find out more information about Vincent, connect with you your team. Where would you like

[00:24:04] to point everyone listening? Yeah I highly recommend heading to the Vincent website www.vincent.com.

[00:24:13] We have a lot of great material around topics trending in the industry as well as free guides

[00:24:23] so I highly recommend checking out the website for more relevant information or if you're

[00:24:29] interested in ever having a position at Vincent as well head over to our LinkedIn page where you

[00:24:36] can check out job opportunities as well as our input on what's trending and what's going on.

[00:24:42] Fantastic we covered so much there I love chatting with you especially about such

[00:24:47] a trending topic right now and that is the low attention spans. There's very little

[00:24:52] room for mistakes and customers do expect smooth sailing everywhere and nothing

[00:24:57] drops customers quite like a poor mobile experience. The role of progressive web apps and also

[00:25:03] the role of looking after your people and innovation and empowering people to do that

[00:25:08] inspiring stuff but more than anything just thank you for sharing your insights today Rachel.

[00:25:13] Awesome thank you so much for having me on Neil. I think it's evident that the landscape

[00:25:17] of retail is undergoing a profound transformation fueled by digital innovation and the key takeaways

[00:25:23] from my conversation today is the importance of creating personalized seamless and error-free

[00:25:30] experiences that meet the high expectations of modern consumers and Rachel's insights into

[00:25:36] the utilisation of everything from analytics and AI and progressive web apps for me it illuminates

[00:25:43] a path forward to for retailers aiming to not only survive but thrive in this digital era

[00:25:49] but of course the journey doesn't end with technology alone and as Rachel

[00:25:54] highlighted today the empowerment of employees the cultivation of a culture that embraces

[00:25:59] passion and innovation and problem solving these are the things that are fundamental

[00:26:04] to sustainable growth and enhancing customer satisfaction so if anyone looking for ROI

[00:26:10] that is it right there but it also raises a crucial question for all of us in tech and

[00:26:15] retail sectors how will we continue to innovate and adapt our strategies and ensure that we're not

[00:26:21] just keeping pace with technological change but we're driving it so as always I invite you to

[00:26:27] share your thoughts join the conversation as we explore this dynamic interplay between technology

[00:26:33] business and the human element in shaping the future of retail and you can do that by

[00:26:38] emailing me techblogwriteroutlook.com twitter linkedin instagram just at neil c hues let's keep

[00:26:45] this conversation going but it's time for me to go now I'll be back bright and early tomorrow morning

[00:26:51] with another guest but thank you for listening today and until next time don't be a stranger

[00:27:08] you