Migrating To The Cloud

January 2014 Integrated Solutions For Retailers

By Cindy Dubin, contributing editor

Cloud computing gives retailers the boost they need to increase sales, satisfy customers, and make better business decisions.

Retailers need to have strategies in place to satisfy their customers and influence buying behavior. Cloud-based analytical systems can help retailers keep track of inventory both online and in stores, optimize labor and product placement, and better understand customer demographics. Despite the benefits, retailers are fearful of selecting the wrong solution, so they tend to stick their toe in the water to test the temperature.

Jed Alpert, vice president of marketing for 1010data, a provider of cloud-based analytics for Big Data, has seen this scenario play out. He says retailers will often deploy cloud analytics for a specific department rather than at the enterprise level. When they get the answers they seek, then they expand cloud deployment and replace legacy systems with cloud-based options.

Here, Alpert describes the retail industry’s adoption of cloudbased analytics, the benefits of migrating to a cloud solution, and how to do so successfully.