The serious economic downturn which gripped not just the UK but most of the western world now seems to be over. The UK government is confident that the nation is no longer in recession, and the general upbeat behaviour of most of the country’s larger business organisations seems to back that confidence up. However, a debilitating financial crisis can have a long-term effect on the spending habits of the general public, with many people remaining steadfast in their newly found cautious approach when it comes to finances. No other business sector has felt the impact of this change in consumer habits more than retail.

The financial climate of recent years has aided the rise of the value retailer, particularly in the grocery sector, with the likes of Aldi and Lidl enjoying a huge increase in popularity. German discount chain Lidl has recently announced that they expect their sales to grow this year by 20%, taking their total past the £4 billion mark. The chain is also looking to double in size within the UK over the course of the nest decade

It is not just the digital age that we live in today. In recent years, what began as a by-product of the internet-centric society has snowballed into a colossal force that has changed the way people communicate and even, in some cases, how they live their lives. This phenomenon is social media. Sites such as Facebook and Twitter not only rule the online world but, in many ways, exert immense power over the physical one. Many people often feel more comfortable communicating with each other via a social media message than they do by face-to-face conversation.

There is little doubt that today’s society is very data-centric, with seemingly endless amounts of information available to anyone who has the desire or the patience to look for it. This deluge of information has given birth to the term 'big data', encapsulating all manner of analytics which, just a few years ago, would not have been possible to capture fully. One industry sector which is perfectly primed to take full advantage of this growth in data is retail. The fast-paced nature of today’s retail marketplace, operating on a multi-channel basis, means that important marketing decisions have to be made quickly in order to respond to fluctuating market trends. However, some national retail organisations are a little reluctant to delve too deep into the world of big data, perhaps unsure of how they can capture it or indeed make best use of the information provided. There are a number of reasons why these retailers are in danger of falling behind in the marketplace.

It is an undeniable fact that the continual advances in modern-day technology are changing the way that many business sectors operate. From manufacturing industries to service sectors such as retail and real estate, there is a new revolution in progress. The traditional way of doing things is in danger of becoming extinct.

Over the last few years the retail industry has evolved rapidly, with advances in technology ensuring the marketplace is a very different thing to that of days gone by. The global domination of the internet has undoubtedly played a major role in this evolution. Online shopping now accounts for a substantial percentage of retail profits, with research revealing that consumers in the United Kingdom are due to spend in excess of 100 billion pounds online in 2014. The number of people who purchase goods on the internet has more than doubled over the past decade, with this figure no doubt boosted in recent times by the creation of smart technology. Because of smartphones and tablets, the internet can now be accessed anywhere at any time. This has led to the birth of the omni-channel retail marketplace.

Effective retail merchandising and the adoption of perceptive commercial marketing strategies are becoming ever-more important in today’s fiercely competitive retail environment. With so many brands and retailers competing for custom across the multi-channel commercial platform that defines modern day retailing, directors and planners are increasingly reliant upon the provision of accurate data and analytics to ascertain the true effectiveness of their current retail marketing charter. However, it is how that final data is actually used and implemented into the overall business plan that will determine its true effectiveness in the long term.

In today’s technologically advanced world, information is king. Not only is there perhaps a greater amount of information available than at any time previously, but the actual quality and accuracy of that data is incredibly consistent. In terms of the retail sector, big data is utilised mainly in the planning and subsequent implementation of promotions, campaigns and the distribution of new product lines. Retail software is used to report on exactly what is selling at any given time and to forecast what the next trends will be during the new season. While it is, of course, highly advantageous to have this kind of data to hand in today’s ultra-competitive multi-channel retail environment, it seems that many retailers may be missing out on an equally important reporting mechanism – InSite.

For many years, the world’s largest online retailer, Amazon, has led the way in terms of capturing big data and adapting its business according to its findings. Utilising the latest in collaborative filtering technology, Amazon can present automatic purchase recommendations to individual customers based upon purchase history, browser history and even recent activity on social media.

Continual advances in technology are changing the face of the retail industry forever. The ability to be able to produce detailed analytics of sales and stock reports from across an entire estate in the blink of an eye means that retailers are much better placed to implement effective retail marketing strategies.