The End of the Cashier
Today’s Wall Street Journal has an article about a new device that looks like a smartphone, and is perched on the handle of the shopping cart, it scans grocery items as the customer adds them to the cart.
With the system called Scan It—in use at about half of Ahold USA’s Stop & Shop and Giant supermarkets in the Northeast—shoppers scan and bag their own groceries as they navigate the aisles, while a screen keeps a running total of their purchases. About a dozen times per shopping trip, the device lets out a “Ka-ching” as an electronic coupon appears on the screen. “Last week, right after I scanned coffee, I got a coupon for coffee creamer, which I needed,” says Patty Emery, a Caldwell, N.J., dental assistant, who estimates she shaves 20 minutes off her weekly grocery shopping trip at Stop & Shop. “It is really cool.”
Scan-as-you-go mobile devices are a logical next step after the self-checkout lanes that are now common in big food and drug chain stores. When finished selecting items, Scan It shoppers either go to a self-checkout station to upload their bill and pay, or hand the device over to a cashier.
Beyond just eliminating the cashier, this device (or its soon-to-be follower: the smart phone) poses unlimited potential for retailers and marketers. First though, we need to move beyond coupons. Limiting this device to an electronic coupon dispenser would not do it justice. Here are a couple thoughts on where I think the technology will be heading.
1) Electronic Payments – Why do I need to hand the device to a cashier? If it had a card reader I could swipe the card myself and be on my merry way. The Apple Store has already done this by attaching card readers to their associates’ mobile devices, and I think more retailers will be moving to that model or a customer swipe model.
2) Store Navigation – A typical grocery store is not set up in the most customer friendly way. Customers shop for solutions and day parts, while the grocery store is set up by category for easy restocking. The device could act as a virtual recipe checklist. It would remind the user if they want to make certain recipe they need to get a specific item in a specific aisle. The device could help customers find solutions instead of just products by downloading recipes.
3) Suggestions – How about the famous Amazon suggestion model applied to this device (ie. 60% of people who purchased Corn Flakes also purchased Chiquita bananas).
4) Send to Email – Not ready to buy this moment. How about a function that scans the code and sends all the product info to your email or smart phone so you can purchase online later or learn more.
5) Send to a Friend/Facebook/Twitter- Found something new a friend would enjoy. How about a function that allows you to share with friends to make your shopping experience more social?
Those are 5 I came up with off-the-bat. What ideas do you have to make this device more effective for consumers?
