The retail sector is facing, after a long time, the need to modernize its fleet application to fit the new requirements of the cabinet. IT solutions for e-commerce, based on the traditional use of smartphones for comparing products and prices, have already been thoroughly tested, but in the meantime the business model has evolved significantly

Consumers are more and more inclined to use their devices as “mobile wallet” and IDC predicts that their dissemination will boost the volume of purchases through Mobile up to a billion dollars by 2017: retail trade, aware of this trend, is preparing to adopt the most appropriate technologies to facilitate this phenomenon. With the increasing popularity of mobile payments, the challenge becomes one of the technological integration, and CIOs need to evolve their existing systems to make compatible infrastructures and adapted to the new access from mobile that can put them to the test.

System Compatibility

Mobile-walletsLe companies, particularly in the increasingly competitive scenario of retail, they must rely on computer systems reliable and 100% compatible. The approach of “on-demand” to handle various requirements, such as initiatives to points or loyalty cards, IT systems has created “silos” that, with the gradual increase in transactions from mobile will no longer be functional . It will therefore be essential to centralize applications related to different marketing initiatives, for them to interact and adapt well to mobile use.

Currently the computer systems often reside in the cloud and are typically transverse to the mainframe; CIOs must then manage IT infrastructure that more closely resemble a spider web application, which in a coordinated and functional.

The increasing complexity of the infrastructure requires careful management of IT systems, to make them to serve new needs, and a holistic view, in order to address different applications, adopting an approach “requirements” are able to plan, implement, and take the necessary actions to identify and track users and ensuring the compatibility of the system in the face of new challenges presented by the mobile wallet.

There are approximately 90 types of NFC devices (the main technology used for mobile wallet) and manage system slowdowns will thus become crucial in the future. The electronic payment systems allow you to exploit the wealth of information and interact with customers, creating more business opportunities for retailers, marketers and advertisers, such as loyalty programs, coupons or customized services. Using an NFC-enabled mobile phone, or a QR code application, a customer may require, for example, further information or promotions, simply send the picture or the label of the product, thus increasing the possibilities of cross-selling opportunities the seller.

A complex scenario, in which CIOs will need to ensure information systems able to withstand peak traffic and to the diverse needs of clients connecting to the mobile device. At the technological level, the systems must keep pace with the needs of the business, developing the best solutions promptly, will also be crucial to respond appropriately in terms of performance, even during periods of heavy traffic.

The cloud-based performance testing significantly reduces the investment required – without compromising the rigorous procedures and ensuring adequate responses even in the most extreme scenarios – because it allows dedicated teams to develop test scripts directly on cloud-based generators, loading systems in pre -configured. In this way it reduces the amount and cost of the extension of the on-premise test infrastructure, which becomes necessary only in cases higher load.

These cloud-based services are also able to diagnose any problem related to prior performance, providing a detailed description of the dedicated team that, in this way, they can identify the nature and prevent the possible consequences. These activities, together with an on-premise monitoring, become fundamental to interpret the needs of infrastructure and data center servers, providing a transparent view and end-to-end.

An agile and efficient IT infrastructure, able to communicate with consumers and to meet their new needs, will become one of the focus for the retail industry. In an increasingly difficult economic environment, the ability to innovate and meet the growing expectations of consumers will be essential for anyone involved in the retail trade, to maintain a competitive advantage in a market 24/7 increasingly globalized.

Adapt to new technologies, such as mobile wallet or mobile payment systems, not just to be one step ahead of the competition, but also be aware of the potential risks that the brand and sales results can run, due to errors or incompatibilities system: everything must work, always and in any situation, not to lose business.