Q&A: Can Software Create A Customer Experience?

By Matt Pillar, Integrated Solutions For Retailers magazine

Your customers may not even realize it, but before they even pull into your parking lot they're formulating opinions about their experience with your brand. How easy (or difficult) it is to get to your store, the cleanliness (or dirtiness) of your facade, the faces that greet (or intimidate) upon arrival, the condition (or state of disrepair) of the shopping cart, the lighting, the color, the texture — these and hundreds of other inputs combine in an equation that spits out an assessment that guides your customers.

The most powerful of these inputs are those that actively engage the consumer, seeking to create an opinion rather than passively allowing one to be formed. I recently discussed the role of digital media in the customer experience with Brian Ardinger, CMO of Nanonation. The company markets a technology platform that helps retailers deploy strategic digital communication to their stores.