By Ron Bowers, Senior Vice President of Business Development, Frank Mayer and Associates, Inc.

Many readers are undoubtedly focused on what it takes to keep a retail business viable in the years to come. The perilous nature of this undertaking was highlighted by a chart in arecent article by McKinsey and Company. We realize that retailers compete within individual categories, but only four of the top ten retailers overall in 1990 make that list today.

As a company devoted to improving physical store environments and customer experience we embrace the authors' point that "stores can't simply be places where products happen to be sold." Future store configurations will have to be places that promote customer learning and experimentation.

In our view technology and in-store merchandising work hand in hand to fully engage customers. Interactivity drives engagement, and shoppers who engage with a product are more likely to buy a product, connect with the brand or service, and enter into a loyalty relationship.

We are intrigued with the notion that retailers who approach interactive in-store merchandising with a "have it your way" strategy just might be onto something when it comes to charting a course for longevity.

In-store merchandising is facilitating a retail model that is shifting from homogeneous delivery to individual and self-directed experiences. We are beginning to see the melding of online and in-store capabilities. Those who successfully make this shift will be intentional about providing novel, flexible and personal experiences that differentiate in the minds of consumers. Below are some examples where retailers are striving to do just that:

Novelty

Retailers need to investigate all the tools that deliver fresh experiences and incent shoppers to linger over products. At a recent Digital Screenmedia Association symposium, I moderated a panel that included Jared Schiffman, Founder and CEO of Perch Interactive, a start-up whose interactive table-top displays combine the benefits of online shopping with hands-on product exploration.

Perch has offered Nordstrom an innovative experiential way to engage customers.

Perch's solution encourages shoppers to touch and pick up products on display. When they do so, they get rewarded with information, animations and media right on the table top that connects them more closely to the brand.

Flexibility

Lindsay Wadelton of AT&T Mobility was on the same DSA panel with Jared Schiffman to introduce ATT&T's flagship store on Michigan Avenue in Chicago. It is a shining example of a format designed for maximum flexibility when it comes to product exploration.

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