The State of the Industry: How Wireless Authorized Retailers Can Quickly Adapt to COVID-19
Does anyone else agree that the last couple of months have felt like the longest year of our lives?
While the impact of the global pandemic felt like a complete shock to us all and had businesses everywhere scrambling to adjust, it feels as though things are beginning to settle. But what does our new normal look like now?
With all of us adjusting, we’re taking a look at the state of the industry as it begins to prepare for the future of wireless with this new normal in mind.
Wireless retail store status
While we initially saw a large number of stores close due to social distancing measures, we’ve now seen that level out as wireless retailers have learned to adapt.
In fact, among our clients, we’ve seen more than a 25% increase in stores re-opening.
This is welcome news considering that the media has remained full of doom and gloom.
As stores open and prepare to welcome their customers, retailers will need to prepare for an increase in sales volume—a recent study indicates that consumers are planning to spend 19% more on telecom in the future.
Trends in retail
In order to stay profitable during this time, it’s important to look at overall trends in retail and how companies are adapting. As retailers do everything they can do keep their doors open to customers, many are starting to think beyond the pandemic; when this is all over, where will will retailers begin to invest?
According to RIS News, the greatest tech investments in the post-COVID environment are:
- Home Delivery (38%)
- Curbside Checkout (22%)
- Contactless Payment (22%)
Trends in wireless authorized retail
What we’ve seen directly in the market is trends that were already more convenient for customers being accelerated. It’s things such as:
- Curbside Pickup using RQmobile
- Buy Online, Pickup In-Store
- Appointments Scheduling on websites or Facebook pages
- Dropshipping accessories right to people’s homes
- More e-Commerce sites being created
As businesses start to open up, your customers will be looking to you, a brand they’ve trusted for so long, to deliver experiences that cater to their new-found needs with empathy and care. How you respond will help them navigate this new world, but will also help you set yourself up for success in a post-COVID world.
Learn more about the state of the industry
Watch part one of our three-part webinar series! We’ll cover the state of the industry and go through trends that our experts are seeing in retail and wireless authorized retail in more detail. We’ll also walk through use cases on how our clients are seeing success in these strange times, as well as what the beginnings for what the future of this new normal could look like.
The second and third webinars in our series will cover what the future of telecommunications holds, and how you as a wireless retailer can prepare for this new normal.
