Mastercard will provide retailers with the same level of analytics in-store that are available in the e-commerce environment

Stores are becoming increasingly more connected. The Internet of Things will allow retailers to transform their brick and mortar locations to offer more contextual and efficient consumer experiences. Consumers can expect more frictionless shopping, which will be as simple as walking into a store, selecting what they want, and then walking away. The payment will happen securely and seamlessly behind the scenes.

Technology helps digitize the physical world, opening the door for retailers to gain unique visibility into data that was historically unavailable or inaccessible. These newly available insights can be instrumental in enhancing customer service and product level decisions. Data is transforming the physical into digital.

That’s why Mastercard and AVA retail are teaming up. „Together we will provide retailers with the same level of analytics in-store that are available in the e-commerce environment, enabling them to know not just what their customers ultimately buy, but also see where they are spending their time and what items they are browsing.”, according to the press release.

All of this can be made available real-time, giving a retailer the ability to offer more dynamic pricing and product selection, and more effectively measure campaigns. In addition, retailers can use this insight to drive greater efficiency within their store operations as well as look to drive increased throughput by better anticipating and serving their customers’ needs. Of course, security and consumer privacy are foundational, which is why we are focused on enabling these types of insights based on aggregated and anonymized data. Building on the leading digital technologies of both Mastercard and AVA retail, together we are enabling the transformation of brick and mortar.

At NRF 2018: Retail’s Big Show, Mastercard will showcase a truly unique frictionless shopping experience, deployed today as a pilot in San Francisco, that will bring the in-store analytics to life for retailers. By leveraging our combined capabilities — Mastercard provides security, analytics, and digital payment assets, along with AVA retail’s deep expertise in computer vision, sensor fusion, digitization, and retail analytics — „we enable retailers to drive innovative shopping experiences with positive bottom line impact”.

„Our shared vision is that the shopping experience can be both better and smarter, for both the consumer and the retailer. Consumers will benefit from personalized, contextualized and seamless shopping experiences, while retailers will create stronger connections with consumers that lead to increased conversions and loyalty to their brand. As data transforms the physical into digital – both consumers and retailers will benefit. We can’t wait to see what happens next.”, the company says.