As digital transformation progresses within the retail industry, retailers are seeking new opportunities to set themselves apart from their competitors. The chief ways to distinguish your retail business within the industry are to optimize your operations—to reduce costs and streamline service—or to deliver exceptional customer experiences. Ideally, retailers aim to pursue both.
The Internet of Things (IoT), a network of connected devices that interact with and collect information about the physical world, offers retailers the tools they need to set themselves apart. Cisco Meraki IoT deployments encompass a robust network infrastructure, interconnected smart devices and sensors, and AI-enhanced analytics. With an expert IoT implementation, retailers can collect in-depth operational and customer information which they can evaluate for deeper insights and reinvest into their business.
This article explores the immediate and longer-term advantages of a Cisco Meraki IoT deployment for retail, backed by the industry and technology expertise of CBTS.
Design and implementation
With so many connected devices available, the possibilities for an IoT implementation are virtually endless. Partnering with a solutions provider that has experience in the retail industry offers valuable assistance in understanding the available options, narrowing down your choices, and selecting the best design for your budget and business purposes.
Versatile as they are, Meraki IoT devices have been incorporated across a wide range of retail industry use cases. Meraki smart cameras offer a lightweight, quick way to add visibility to any physical space, enabling instant inventory checks, crowd monitoring, physical security, and more. Video storage and processing occurs on the camera itself, requiring minimal additional infrastructure and software—making the equipment flexible to redeploy at a moment’s notice and swift to set up. Local processing without the need to transmit to a data center also enables real-time video intelligence for asset management, person identification, product quality control, and smart searching.
Additionally, Cisco partners with Meraki-compatible IoT providers to expand their range of device types, enabling IoT deployments that monitor:
- Occupancy and traffic flow.
- Air quality, humidity, and temperature.
- Customer interactions with products and marketing activations.
- Warehouse and shelf stock levels.
- Customer location.
- Asset location.
- Store signage.
- Door, light, thermostat, and other facility statuses.
Connected IoT devices can also display messaging or QR codes, dynamically update prices, provide real-time wayfinding, and dozens of additional functions which can be implemented in innovative combinations to customize your desired data streams.
Device and network management
Meraki IoT implementations for the retail industry are managed, like Meraki network deployments, through a centralized Meraki dashboard in the Cloud. The streamlined interface simplifies deployment, tracking, removal, and transfer of devices, significantly reducing the time and effort required to set up mission-critical IoT technology in new retail storefronts or warehouses.
Meraki management functions are designed to scale easily along with your organization, so your network can adapt as your retail business grows. The dashboard monitors the health of your network and identifies missing or disconnected devices, as well as outages and service degradation. Remote management functions reduce the need for on-site visits to troubleshoot or deploy new equipment, saving your technology team’s valuable hours and reducing maintenance costs.
In addition, AI-driven dashboard functionality can make basic troubleshooting and configuration recommendations, suggesting straightforward fixes. However, for more in-depth monitoring and management, Network-as-a-Service (NaaS) offerings from an expert solutions provider like CBTS ensure an optimized initial configuration and personalized support for your retail organization’s unique needs.
Learn more: Why businesses win by choosing a Cisco Meraki Partner
Retail industry business intelligence and customer insight from IoT devices
An IoT deployment collects valuable data on retail business operations that retailers can use to optimize logistics and deliver outstanding customer experiences. While real-time data can enable efficiency increases in the moment, analyzing IoT data over time pinpoints process bottlenecks and opportunities, and helps to construct a 360-degree picture of customer behaviors which can drive increased personalization.
With insights derived from customer foot traffic, purchase history, and engagement, retailers can identify preferences and trends in individual consumers and market segments. Armed with this information, retailers can craft messaging targeted to individuals, geofenced areas, and even times of day to increase sales of in-demand products or bundles. Traffic patterns can also help to gauge the effectiveness of a marketing activation or select an ideal location for a pop-up store.
IoT data can also streamline retail industry operations. Smart tags track the flow of product through your facility, from warehouses to shelves, and can notify you when perishable product is nearing its end of life, providing an opportunity to place it more prominently or discount it. The same tools which monitor customer foot traffic can also highlight staff activity and busy hours, allowing retailers to optimize staff schedules, and can identify store congestion or long checkout lines, prompting the deployment of mobile point-of-sale or self-checkout options.
The retail industry is highly competitive, with retailers looking to technology to grant them an edge. The end-to-end visibility made possible by a well-designed IoT deployment offers deep operational insights and helps retailers precisely target their optimization and improvement efforts. The result is a maximized return on technology investment.
AI in retail IoT analytics
As the retail industry grows increasingly data driven, AI becomes a necessity in order to analyze and extract insights from the volumes of data which IoT can generate. Meraki’s cloud-native networking enables powerful integration with other cloud platforms and supports the processing needs of AI analytics, via both Meraki partners who provide extended IoT capabilities and retailers’ own business intelligence systems.
CBTS delivers tailored IoT solutions with Cisco Meraki
Developing a cloud-based network infrastructure for retail requires specialized expertise in both technology and the retail industry, as does designing an efficient and effective retail IoT solution. CBTS is a proud technology partner of leading retail brands and an industry expert with a track record of over 40 years of successful solutions.
With CBTS, you can build a tailored roadmap to network modernization and IoT-powered efficiency. Contact CBTS today to explore how Cisco Meraki IoT can enhance your retail business.
