Wearable technology, such as smart watches and glasses, is expected to become an all-important component of a shopping experience for consumers in the next couple of years. With smart watches and glasses considered some of the hottest gadgets in the consumer market, the adoption of these high-tech solutions rapidly increases. Can retailers successfully include wearable technologies into a multi-channel marketing mix?
According to forecasts, global spending on consumer wearable technology will reach $1.4bn by the end of this year. The development of Google Glass, Apple's rumoured iWatch and the acquisition of virtual reality headset Oculus Rift by Facebook are good indicators of an emerging trend. These new devices have a great potential of transforming retail in the future.

Shopping in post-mobile world

For a great number of shoppers, mobile devices facilitated the transfer of their online shopping experience from the desktop to the hand. Consequently, retail has become more immediate and accessible. It became an integral part of consumer's everyday lives. Wearable devices will further expand on this concept by taking retail from the palm of your hand directly into your eye line. Moreover, they will also enable retail to always be switched on via integration with your individual view of the world. Result? 100-percent real time shopping experience, which will let you buy as you look. The different environments of post-mobile devices will also entail different types of interaction and physical control mechanisms such as voice, hand gestures, movement and eye tracking. Every kind of interaction must be better understood and its connection to retail fully optimized.

Virtual store at your fingertips?

Virtual reality technologies such as Oculus Rift could turn online interfaces into all-encompassing spaces, while a watch or head-mounted device could potentially reduce interfaces to a single line of text. It will up to retailers do decide how they ought to build shopping experiences to snugly fit these interfaces. One of most popular technological promises, the concept of a virtual store will be put to test. Retailers will see whether it can generate real sales. Owing to predictive algorithms and advanced image recognition technology, glass wearers may soon start using a "buy now" button on products they are looking at that very moment. As a result, retail interface will be eliminated. Among some perks of wearable devices is the possibility to collect key data on shoppers, including their browsing and buying patterns. Apart from granular data, retailers may also gain access to such important data as in-store shopping frequency, basket size, dollar value per item and length of stay and dwell times. This information can be then leveraged to optimize in-store operations, such as inventory planning and product placement. According to industry experts, retailers may also turn to more advanced strategies that make use of wearable technology’s capabilities, including location-awareness and proximity communication.

Sources: http://www.theguardian.com; http://www.retailtouchpoints.com

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