Seamless omnichannel shopping experience.

Decoding the Smart Store: Is In-Store Tech Actually Enhancing Your Retail Experience?

Theo Raines in Tech & Innovation September 2025 • 4 min read.

"Uncover the reality of in-store technology and its impact on creating genuine omnichannel retail experiences, separating the hype from what truly benefits customers."

The buzz around “smart retail” promises a seamless, tech-enhanced shopping experience, merging the convenience of online with the tangible aspects of in-store shopping. Consultants and innovators alike tout in-store technology as the golden ticket to omnichannel success, benefiting both retailers and their customers. But, does all this technology truly translate into a better shopping experience? Or are we getting caught up in the hype?

This article cuts through the noise to explore the reality of smart retail. It examines whether retailers can effectively control a customer’s omnichannel journey by influencing the in-store environment. Based on an analysis of 107 academic sources in marketing, innovation, and information systems, this synthesis uncovers four distinct types of omnichannel experiences. The key differentiator lies in who's in control – the customer or the retailer – and how well these experiences integrate marketing and technology.

Ultimately, the goal is to help retailers understand the nuances of creating a truly integrated omnichannel experience, one that avoids the pitfalls of over-control and instead focuses on empowering the customer.

The Omnichannel Promise: More Than Just Multiple Channels?

Seamless omnichannel shopping experience.

The retail landscape has rapidly evolved, moving from traditional brick-and-mortar stores to a multichannel approach, then cross-channel, and now omnichannel. Multichannel retailing involved creating new, separate channels without connecting them – imagine a store with a website operating under a different brand, with no shared customer data. The primary aim was to boost profitability and customer loyalty by maximizing each channel’s direct earnings.

The cross-channel strategy emerged to intentionally connect these channels, encouraging customers to move seamlessly between them. This meant integrating information and purchasing stages to create a more fluid experience, capitalizing on the natural synergies between different channels.

Customer-Centric: Omnichannel focuses on customers and their data, while multichannel and cross-channel strategies are centered on retailers and their specific channels.
Micro-Experiences: Omnichannel journeys comprise many successive or simultaneous micro-experiences, both virtual and real, that combine into a complete meta-shopping experience.
Comprehensive Understanding: Ethnographic methods provide more accurate insights into customer omnichannel journeys because they capture immediate experiences that declarative techniques often miss.

Lemon and Verhoef (2016) define customer experience as the customer’s journey with a firm over time during the purchase cycle across multiple touchpoints, a definition that emphasizes the need to deeply understand and optimize each customer interaction. This extended understanding is critical for tailoring the omnichannel experience to meet individual customer needs and expectations.

The Future of Retail: Balancing Control and Customer Empowerment

Ultimately, the connected store reveals what the omnichannel experience can – and cannot – be. When retailers prioritize customer empowerment and seamless integration, they create truly valuable omnichannel experiences. Over-controlling the experience or focusing too heavily on technology can lead to a disjointed, less effective result. The key is finding the right balance between guiding the customer journey and allowing them the freedom to explore and engage on their own terms.

About this Article -

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Everything You Need To Know

What is the difference between multichannel, cross-channel, and omnichannel retail strategies?

Multichannel retailing involves creating separate channels, like a website and a physical store, without connecting them. The primary goal is boosting profits from each channel individually. Cross-channel strategies intentionally connect these channels, integrating information to allow customers to move seamlessly between them. Omnichannel, however, focuses on the customer and their data, aiming to provide a unified experience across all channels, understanding that customer journeys involve numerous micro-experiences. This contrasts with multichannel and cross-channel strategies, which are more focused on the retailer and channel-specific earnings and integrations, respectively.

How does in-store technology contribute to a better omnichannel retail experience?

The contribution of in-store technology to a better omnichannel retail experience depends on its implementation. The analysis of 107 academic sources suggests that in-store tech can enhance the experience if it empowers the customer and integrates seamlessly with other channels. However, if technology is implemented to over-control the customer journey or focuses too heavily on technological aspects without considering customer needs, it can lead to a disjointed and less effective shopping experience. A customer-centric approach, as outlined in the discussion, is critical.

What is the role of customer data in creating an effective omnichannel experience?

Customer data is central to an effective omnichannel experience. Omnichannel strategies prioritize customers and their data to understand their journey across all touchpoints. This comprehensive understanding, as highlighted by Lemon and Verhoef's definition of customer experience, is critical. The use of customer data allows retailers to tailor the experience to meet individual needs and expectations, creating a more personalized and engaging shopping journey. Ethnographic methods are particularly useful to capture immediate experiences that declarative techniques often miss, enhancing the depth of data.

What is the key difference between a customer-centric and a retailer-centric approach in retail strategies?

The main difference lies in the focus. Customer-centric strategies, as exemplified by omnichannel, prioritize the customer and their data. The goal is to understand and optimize each customer interaction across all touchpoints, allowing for a personalized and seamless experience. Retailer-centric approaches, like multichannel and, to some extent, cross-channel strategies, focus on the retailer's channels and maximizing their individual performance. The customer's overall experience and data integration across channels are less of a priority in these approaches.

How can retailers balance control and customer empowerment to create a successful omnichannel experience?

Retailers can balance control and customer empowerment by focusing on seamless integration and prioritizing the customer's needs. The article suggests that over-controlling the experience or focusing too heavily on technology can be counterproductive. Instead, retailers should aim to guide the customer journey while allowing them freedom to explore and engage on their own terms. This means leveraging technology in ways that enhance customer experience, such as providing personalized recommendations or facilitating easy navigation between channels, rather than using it to restrict or frustrate the customer. Ethnographic methods can provide a deeper understanding of these preferences.