10 Terms Defining Digital Transformation in the Consumer Goods Industry

There has been a lot of discussion about the digital transformation of retail, and yet the concept is so all-encompassing that it can be a challenge to keep track of what it really means, where you are in the journey and how it directly applies to your business.

Aperion and EnsembleIQ have partnered to research how digital transformation is shaping retail and how we as an industry can form a common lexicon to identify best practices and share our successes. The full Retail Digital Transformation Glossary is available for download; however, these are the top 10 terms defining the future of c-stores:

AUGMENTED REALITY (AR) IN-STORE

Real-world interactive experience that augments real-world objects across various sensory platforms including auditory, visual, somatosensory, haptic and olfactory through computer-generated perceptual information.

CUSTOMER DATA MANAGEMENT (CDM)

Software or cloud computing applications designed to give large organizations rapid, efficient access to customer data so they can keep track of customer information and survey the customer base.

ENDLESS AISLE

Interactive kiosk, touchscreen or other mobile device in a brick-and-mortar store that enables customers to browse and shop the retailer's entire catalog of products.

HYPER-CONVERGED TECHNOLOGY

Software-defined IT infrastructure that virtualizes all the elements of conventional hardware-defined systems, including virtualized computing, a virtualized SAN and virtualized networking at a minimum.

NATURAL LANGUAGE PROCESSING (NLP)

Application of computational techniques for analysis and synthesis of natural language and speech.

ROBOTIC PROCESS AUTOMATION (RPA)

Business process automation technology based on AI and software robots that helps in data analytics, product scanning, inventory management and administrative tasks.

SMART PACKAGING

Packaging systems that help extend shelf life, monitor freshness, display information on quality, improve safety and increase convenience.

UNIFIED RETAIL

Business design that leverages a harmonious integration of retail processes/systems to provide full transparency of consumers on the back end and seamless customer experiences on the front end.

VOICE COMMERCE (V-COMMERCE)

User interaction with a commercial website that incorporates voice recognition technology.

WEARABLE TECHNOLOGY

Sensor-embedded wearable device used to track various types of data points including smart watches, fitness trackers, smart apparel, virtual reality goggles and GPS trackers.