Amazon Go is a revolutionary way of providing customers with a “grab and go” experience. Read on to know what else does it have in store.
Amazon has been the top e-commerce retailer of the world for quite some time now. It has launched its newly ideated convenience store Amazon Go, which mixes traditional shopping aspects in conjunction with mobile technology to offer a “grab and go” shopping experience, all without the need of any cashier, cash registers, or payment cards. Amazon Go allows customers to check in the store with the help of Amazon Go mobile app, pick the products from the shelves, and just walk out without standing in line to pay. Payment happens automatically as a customer walks out of the store with the purchased items.
China already has a concept of cashier-less stores for the past couple of years. But those stores mostly take advantage of the mass adoption of mobile payments by the citizens. Amazon Go is different because the customers are tracked throughout their visit to the store with the help of a network of cameras and sensors that keep a close eye on them to provide accurate bills. A number of other retailers are also trying their hands at similar concepts by employing the effectiveness of cameras, RFID sensors, and facial recognition techniques.
What Products Does Amazon Offer in its Amazon Go Stores?
Just like any other convenience store, you can grab your ready-to-eat food items, chips, snacks, cookies, beverages, cereal, bread, milk, cheese, etc., from the Amazon Go store. Amazon has also launched its special meal-kit boxes. In addition, shoppers can also buy wine and beer from the Amazon Go store by showing their valid ID cards to the in-store personnel.
How Does the Amazon Go Store Work?
Buyers need to download the Amazon Go app on their smartphones, create an account, and upload a payment method.
When the customers want to enter the Amazon Go store, they need to open the app and scan at the check-in counters placed near the entry doors.
Next up, they have to roam around the store and pick up their desired items from the shelves, just as they would in any other retail outlet. The cameras and sensors will track the things they take and add those products to a virtual cart.
And that’s it! Buyers don’t need to stand in a queue for billing. When they are done with their shopping, they can walk out of the store with their products, and Amazon Go will charge their payment methods accordingly; no need for debit cards, credit cards, cash, or any other means of payment. They will receive the bill online with the details of the time spent in the store.
What are the Benefits of Amazon Go Store over Other Retail Stores?
Amazon Go offers several facilities to provide a better customer experience, something every customer craves for.
No check-out hassle
With Amazon Go, there is no need for the customers to wait in long lines to get their products checked out and make the payment. The whole process is cut short by using the latest technology that makes it possible for the buyers to grab the items and walk out of the store.
Seamless in-store shopping experience
In the Amazon Go store, customers get the traditional shopping experience while knowing that there is no hassle in the process anywhere. There is also in-store staff to assist them in case of queries or confusions, so the store is not completely technology-run, there is a human touch too.
Time-saving Shopping
When the complete process is automatic and greatly aided by technology, it is but obvious that a lot of time will be saved, both for the retailers and the people who indulge in the shopping experience. It is a perfect set-up for the urban populace that is very time-savvy and wants to get things done in a flash.
Know product prices before even reaching the stores
In case of retail establishments, customers do not know the exact prices and prevailing offers before they set foot in the stores. But with Amazon Go, they can know the prices and all the offers available in the store anytime via the mobile app. They can then compare the products in the same category and across brands to decide the best available options and then go to the store to just pick those up!
The introduction of Amazon Go has revolutionised how customer experience is perceived, with many retailers following suit and planning to launch similar stores that facilitate better in-store and check-out experience, employing bare minimum human effort.
But according to study done by Accenture, customers prefer interacting with a human, rather than a computer to get help with their shopping. This could be a challenge for the retailers, but further innovation in the field and added benefits would surely draw in those customers.
Amazon hasn’t planned to license the concept and thus, more and more companies can work on the technology to further improve on this and provide better services. The retail environment will be an altogether different scene in the years to come.
