3 questions to … Jürgen Tschierske, Stibo Systems

Customers today no longer think in terms of channels, but expect the same service from retailers, regardless of how they make contact. This is why retailers should also no longer think in terms of individual channels, but focus on seamless integration instead. Jürgen Tschierske, Key Account Manager Retail for Stibo Systems, explains how to have a positive effect on the shopping experience.

Stibo Systems provides master data management solutions for the retail market. What channels are being linked here?

Omnichannel retail only works when all channels are being supported on the Internet, on mobile end devices and in the store. This is why there are no limits in linking channels with Stibo Systems solutions. The store, the online store, mobile end devices, customer services or advertising material production are provided with quality data from a master platform. Depending on the situation, the customer chooses the channel that is relevant and best suited for him or her while simultaneously getting the chance to utilize the additional benefits of the other channels.

How can this linking capability have a positive effect on the customer’s shopping experience?

During the Christmas season in 2014, almost every other online Media-Saturn Group customer picked up his or her merchandise at the actual store. Customers want cross-channel and omnichannel retailing, but the shopping experience knows no limits when the channels are linked and data quality is ensured and identical at the store, the online store, on the Smartphone and in the catalog. In this case, personal service and browsing at the store are being supported by the Internet and the Smartphone and channels are not cannibalizing each other’s sales.

You are an exhibitor at the EuroCIS 2015. What products will you introduce at the trade fair and whom would you like to reach?

If you want to reach your customers through all of the channels (omnichannel), inform them and thus stay ahead of your competition, you should look into master data management. At the EuroCIS, we will introduce the platform that is globally being used by customers such as Target, Rossmann, Marks&Spencer, Colruyt Group and more than 150 other well-known companies.

Interview: Natascha Mörs, EuroCIS-tradefair.com