Gartner predicts tablet sales will be the major source of growth in the mobile devices category, increasing by 54 percent. Businesses are no longer using tablets as just display devices or fancy eReaders. They are being used to streamline processes and educate and interact with consumers. The following are just some of the ways businesses are embracing tablet technology in unique ways:
Tablets in Retail
Tablets are becoming a practical tool for retail companies and employees on the floor, notes Venture Beat. Tablets make it easy to show customers merchandise, check on inventory, and order products that are out of stock. This can all be done by the employee standing next to the customer, without having to backtrack to a POS terminal. A survey by Retail Pro shows that 57 percent of the shoppers responding thought that companies that use tablets are more innovative. Another 64 percent of the companies thought the employees were more helpful using a tablet.
Some examples of major retailers engaging tablets in their business include:
- Urban Outfitters and Disney Stores – employees use tablets to check out customers and email them their receipts
- Macy’s and Bloomingdale’s – tablets are available on the floor for customers to check on products and styles
- Converse, Puma, Sears, Gucci and JC Penney – all are experimenting with tablet use in their stores
The option to put tablets on the retail floor in small retail shops has become more feasible due to price reductions and the availability of various models. A review of T-mobile deals on tablets shows how the iPad Air fits the budget of most small businesses.
Tablets in the Sales Force
Tablets can provide sales forces with a standard set of marketing materials that can be customized for their particular customers, says Salesforce.com. Multi-media sales tools on the tablet support the sales force in their presentations and closing. A survey by Corporate Visions shows the primary uses of a tablet by sales forces are:
- doing live presentations in front of customers
- doing solution demonstrations
- doing customer and lead management
Off The Spool says tablets are a natural tool for sales people to use at trade shows. They are used for presentations, capturing customer leads and doing market surveys. When connected with a business’s customer relationship management software, leads and prospects are communicated with throughout the sales force in real time.
Tablets in Marketing Campaigns
Mobile devices are a benefit to marketing campaigns, especially across social media channels where things happen quickly. Staff track marketing campaigns in real time to determine the customer response. Mobile apps that consolidate views of multiple social media platforms in one place, such as Hootsuite, let staff watch their campaigns across all of their channels to refine the right outlet for specific company messages.
Real time access to customer questions and feedback means the marketing team responds quickly to customers and can tailor the campaign on-the-fly. This creates a connection with current and future customers, generating a reputation of responsiveness.
Tablets to Manage the Back-end Processing
Tablets running order processing, inventory control or warehouse management systems are being used on the shop floor and in the warehouse. The tablets guide staff to the right areas to pick products for delivery. Inventory is updated when the item leaves the shelf, reducing the risk of it being forgotten. Tablets read bar codes to reduce data entry errors. Genco reports that Markley Enterprises makes use of tablets to communicate with forklift operators. This keeps them out on the floor, reducing the time they have to come back to a central location for order picking information.
