Software Engineering Insights

Gen Z’s shopping habits are driving a major shift in retail, and for tech leaders, the focus is on how to meet their expectations for speed and personalization. AI in visual search is quickly becoming the preferred tool with the majority of Gen Z favoring it over text-based searches. They want quick results, where a single photo can lead them directly to the products they’re after. AI-powered styling takes it a step further by analyzing personal preferences and delivering real-time suggestions that align with each shopper’s unique taste. These tools don’t just cater to Gen Z’s desire for instant gratification - they create new opportunities for brands to understand and engage with their audience more deeply. 

Modern-day users are incredibly demanding. They expect seamless, fast and highly personalized interactions at every touchpoint. On the other hand, brands are striving to meet these demands by creating experiences that are not only engaging and customized but also cost-effective. 

Algorithmic websites have become the driving force behind immersive and personalized shopping experiences. Imagine your last online shopping spree: the tailored recommendations, targeted ads, and seamless search results that you saw, weren’t just coincidences—they were the products of sophisticated algorithms at work. These algorithms are the brain behind how algorithmic websites work.

Wondering what are algorithmic websites? Simply put, these are websites that use complex algorithms to deliver personalized recommendations and content to users. 

The increasing business complexity and demand for highly scalable applications have brought a paradigm shift in how software applications are engineered. In the past few years, different software architectures are adopted by developers to reduce code complexity, improve fault isolation, and minimize time-to-market.

At various stages of the buying journey, retail customers today switch between devices quite frequently, sometimes in the middle of a single session. Retail companies must align their digital platforms as well as physical outlets in a way that allows this kind of switching without losing details about any of the saved cart items or billing information. Omnichannel commerce that unifies disparate points of interaction is not just a feature but a default requirement to operate in the e-commerce arena.

In the vast landscape of e-commerce, where industry giants dominate and small businesses often struggle to find their footing, a beacon of hope has emerged—the Open Network for Digital Commerce (ONDC). Endorsed by the Indian government, ONDC aims to level the playing field by providing small merchants and mom-and-pop stores with the technological capabilities typically reserved for their larger counterparts such as Amazon.

The heightening investment in the retail industry has been increasing the size of the convenience stores market in recent years. Leading the growth spurt is the 7-Eleven chain of 70,000 convenience stores spread across 17 countries in the Asia Pacific and Atlantic markets. The convenience store giant has been leveraging data analytics through a variety of approaches that ensure steady growth and proper convenience for its customers.

With evolving technology, almost every business is making efforts to expand, improve the customer experience, and ensure that these customers keep coming back. Retail business is one of them. 

Where there is a necessity, there is an invention. When the F&B (food and beverages) industry saw a downfall, it looked out for ways to rise above the COVID-19 pandemic. Some of the innovative concepts such as contactless dining, DIY meal kits, cloud kitchen, etc. have been enabling F&B players to sustain their business & recover losses. 

Industry experts frequently speak about agility,  as it has become the most popular buzzword nowadays. Agility, in simple terms, is the ability to use the fastest way to get new products to the market. This is the definition of agility in normal times, whereas the definition of agility for today’s environment when the world is fighting a global pandemic situation is quite different. Businesses today need to mobilize resources efficiently and effectively to ensure their survival.