Shopping center developers, owners and managers are using property technology (prop tech) to make sense of a wealth of new, retail-generated data to create an ongoing, positive experience for customers. Sandy Sigal, president and CEO of NewMark Merrill, explains that geofencing and phone data, Wi-Fi data and cameras are the primary tools his company uses to collect information. But amassing this data is just the start on the journey to making the information collected by prop tech actionable.
This feedback must be well implemented to solve retail problems old and new. “The problem is we’ve gone from an environment where we had no data to an environment where you have almost too much data,” says Sigal. Collecting and funneling data into useful analytics means that big challenges in retail can be solved with evidence-based, real-time strategies.
Sigal explains that these data can help paint a better picture of what shopping centers need. Camera-, social media- and survey-based customer feedback can create an ecosystem of trust and satisfaction with shoppers. Meanwhile, data on security and customers’ perceptions of strategic areas can help owners, operators and merchants fill in the gaps in to ensure staff is visible and available even in the midst of labor shortages.
To watch the full interview please visit https://shoppingcenterbusiness.com/retail-insight-2022/?wchannelid=39xeh3bfwt&wmediaid=mia1pwfycr