CBE featured in ICT in Retail Report in Sunday Business Post

The Sunday Business Post featured CBE in their ICT in Retail report on May 6th 2018. The article can be viewed below.

SBP ICT in Retail Report 06-05-18Increasing efficiency while decreasing error
Consumers have adapted quickly to the contactless, touchscreen, self-service experience that’s become prevalent in the retail sector. Stories of that frustrating ‘unexpected item in the bagging area’ moment are becoming few and far between as self-checkout has become part of the day-today shopping experience. More emphasis is being put on the end-user experience than just businesses hoping that consumers will adjust.

CBE specialises in software solutions for the retail sector in Ireland and Britain, be it supermarket, convenience, forecourt, hospitality, fashion, pharmacy and general merchandise sectors. It always considers two stakeholders when developing a new software solution, the business itself and the end user.

“Ultimately, there are two stakeholders, one is the business operator and two, while they are not directly our customer, is the end user. Our solutions have to provide a benefit to at least one if not both of these parties,” said
Seamus McHugh, International Sales and Marketing Manager.

“If there is no business or consumer-related benefit then it is just change for the sake of change. Whether it’s increased efficiency within the business, whether it’s a faster checkout time in the store or whatever the case may be, we have to make sure that all of the enhancements that we make impact the business, the end user or both.”

“The current focus within the industry is to create a frictionless experience for the customer. Whatever channel
they decide to purchase from –whether it be online, instore or going to an ordering kiosk – that all of those touch points have the same look and feel, and that the experience is consistent at each touch point.

“The aim is to ensure that the customer enjoys their experience in whichever channel they choose to use and they will continue to return as a customer again and again. It’s no longer about getting the till to work, it means that everything, all of the different touch points that the customer will use, has to be set up in a way that they can use easily, that they are happy to use and it provides them with an enjoyable experience.”

One sector that has always been keen to embrace technology quicker than others is hospitality. Kiosk ordering is
gaining a lot of traction, being incorporated into some restaurants and fast food outlets. Cutting down queues and
any unnecessary interaction with staff, this is one way that ICT is creating a better user experience.

Another new solution CBE is delivering to restaurants eliminates user error and increases efficiency. “This new technology is called Pay at Table, where the bill is brought to the table, the customer pays by card, the table number is opened on the credit card terminal so therefore it eliminates the need to be running two different systems. It’s synced to the till and as soon as that transaction is complete it clears that transaction from the till without the need for the waiter or waitress to go back and cash it off,” McHugh said.

“It eliminates the prospect of error. At the end of the night instead of having to balance two systems, the credit card payments will have been processed and cleared off the till automatically. Labour-saving, time-saving, reducing errors cashing up at the end of the night, and a seamless payment experience for the consumer – a huge range of benefits incorporated in just introducing this one new bit of payment technology to your business.”