The success of your physical grocery store may depend on your self-checkout options and availability. According to a consumer survey, the majority of grocery customers form their shopping habits around the self-checkout experience. This is no surprise to grocers, as shoppers tend to choose their preferred stores based on convenience and efficiency.
To help boost store capabilities and meet consumer demands, technology companies are developing advancements that are beneficial to shoppers and retailers alike. Here are two ways grocers can level up their self-checkout technology.
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According to the National Retail Federation (NRF), stores lose more than $60 billion in sales annually due to retail shrink. To combat this, grocers are investing in loss prevention solutions at checkout that catches potential shoplifters.
Computer vision cameras at checkout can detect when a shopper “skip scans” while displaying a video of the occurrence. If the person doesn’t scan the item, a message will ask them to try again. And if the person fails to scan a second time, the technology will discreetly alert a store associate to intervene. Sometimes a shopper may accidentally skip an item in their cart, so this technology can help alleviate self-scanning mistakes as well. Overall, this innovation is successful in helping retailers prevent shrink with minimal in-person intervention.
Three in 10 shoppers avoid self-checkout when purchasing fresh produce. And while self-checkout technology has evolved over the years to make scanning produce easier, consumers are looking for even faster ways to buy fresh items in their local stores.
To streamline the produce checkout process, technology companies are beginning to incorporate produce recognition solutions into their current self-checkout systems. The technology uses deep learning and artificial intelligence to detect fruits and vegetables while also giving shoppers the option to self-identify the item if they prefer.
While this advancement is still in development, it’s already proving to be an accurate and convenient solution for stores eager to cater to their shoppers’ needs. Currently, the technology shows a 92% accuracy rate, and will only increase as the solution becomes more widely available to grocers.
Since self-checkout is still an important option for shoppers, grocers will need to keep up with technological advancements like produce recognition and computer vision technology to meet consumer demands. Industry professionals can look to STCR’s omnichannel solutions to help put your store on the map for frictionless checkout. Learn how STCR can help optimize your store today.
