Everest Software Reports Trends In Growing Multi-Chanel Retail Vertical And Provides Insights To Support SMB Growth

Everest Software, the leading provider of business operating systems for small and medium-sized businesses (SMBs), recently announced the latest multi-channel retail trends and the software technology necessary to drive a seamless shopping experience tailored to the SMB market.

Hincapie Sportswear (www.hincapiesportswear.com), a new customer for Everest Software, is focused on improving inventory availability and increasing trust in the retailer through superior customer service programs. "Our strategy requires intelligent retail software that can respond quickly at the tactical level and that is one reason we selected Everest Software to drive our retail operation," said Rich Hincapie, President at Hincapie Sportswear. "Everest is the only integrated solution available for the SMB market that delivers leading-edge e-Commerce functionality and enables us to provide an unparalleled shopping experience for our customers. An example of this is Everest's unique para-metric filtering functionality, which will let shoppers view and select specific products using attributes they care most about and watch the list of possible products filter quickly to show them just what they need. Ease of shopping for our customers' is essential to driving growth and profitability."

As business models converge for retailers, the pains often begin. For example, most point-of-sale systems have no inherent understanding of Web sales and vice versa. Integration offers the ideal approach – combining both functionality and data to meet consumer expectations of a seamless purchase and delivery process. Some of the emerging trends specific to the SMB multi-channel retail space include:

• Selecting one integrated operating system that lets multi-channel retailers achieve operational efficiencies. Integrated systems allow retailers to globally schedule and source orders based on configurable business rules and accurate inventory data. Using this solution approach, retailers are able to manage and monitor fulfillment across all stocking and fulfillment locations including brick and mortar storefronts, Internet storefronts, warehouses, suppliers, etc. But best-in-class retailers take it further and implement:
• Multi-variant testing – lets retailers understand shopping behaviors and provides a tool to measure effectiveness of different variations of their Web site content.
• Taxonomy – built-in intelligence that scientifically examines and classifies shopper behaviors, e.g. product attribute combinations consumers are viewing, impact of price, etc. The system will then use the intelligence to personalize and suggest available products of interest.
• Search Analytics – analytics identify trends and detail what consumers are searching for most or perhaps cannot find, all of which pull data together in ways that unintegrated collections of software cannot.

• Providing visibility and control over product content is key to building customer loyalty and repeat business. Retailers who manage their own product content can provide added educational value to their customers. This requires that retailers employ an integrated system that contains rich, up-to-date product information that is available both on the Web store and to sales personnel on the retail floor. For example, content designed to showcase product brands and categories adds marketing brand value.
• Increasing workforce productivity and cutting non-revenue generating expenses are typically addressed through automation with an integrated system and allow retailers to mitigate expenses. Integrated systems can eliminate duplication of effort, resolve inconsistent data issues and ultimately increase employee productivity and improve decision making. Another expense mitigation activity is Cost-Avoidance. One example of Cost-Avoidance is:
• Advanced Fraud Protection – An automated technology that calculates a fraud score based on a series of facts associated with the shopper. Examples include matching of shoppers' telephone area code with the billing/shipping address and reviewing the shoppers' IP address and identification of its facility to customers billing/shipping address.

Everest has experienced significant growth in the retail market space in the last quarter alone. "While the mediums for selling goods and services continue to expand, so too do the consumers' expectations," explains Edwin Miller, CEO for Everest Software. "Consumers are more sophisticated and selective, which is driving the SMB retailers to invest in technology previously only used by enterprise retailers."

About Everest Software
Everest Software empowers companies to manage every function of their business more effectively. The company's fully-integrated business management software application, Everest, addresses the unique needs of growing small to medium-sized businesses (SMBs) in the wholesale/distribution and retail industries by allowing them to quickly manage and track their business operations online and offline -- from storefront to the front and back-office.

Everest Software is committed to providing customers with the service, support and expertise they require to increase efficiency and profitability with a solution that provides an unmatched rapid return on investment. Everest Software was a finalist for a 2006 American Business Award in the category "Best New Computer Software Product" and is the proud winner of numerous awards including the SIIA Codie Award for "Best Business Software Product." For more information, please visit www.everestsoftwareinc.com

SOURCE: Everest Software