The pandemic continues to shape our lives – as do innovations in technology and forward-thinking solutions to everyday challenges. Global headlines and world-changing events combine with our ordinary and mundane habits – to a dizzying effect.
In these times of upheaval and also perfectly-ordinary moments, it is important to invest in and understand the systems and practices that will improve the way we work and the way we transfer goods from one place to another, from one person to another.
What Is Click and Collect?
“Click and collect” is an industry term that quickly describes customers’ ability to order items online and then pick up the items in the store or in an affiliate location. For retail and delivery professionals, making the “click and collect” process as simple and straightforward as possible is a big boon for business and customer satisfaction.
A similar term often used in conjunction with “click and collect” is “BOPIS” which stands for “buy-online-pickup-in-store”. For many of us, these terms are new to our vocabulary. However, as the world economies and supply chains churn, these sorts of customer experiences and setups are here to stay. Undoubtedly, they will continue to grow in reach and impact.
Smart Lockers In Click And Collect
Brick and mortar businesses have been in a long battle to sustain their customers as the eCommerce industry expands with each passing moment. Oddly enough, “click and collect” is essentially a merging of the two. It’s a process that local businesses can utilize to meet the needs of their customers in an efficient manner. Ecommerce transactions also arrive in community and business smart locker locations.
As more customers learn to rely upon and prefer click and collect of “BOPIS” options, smart lockers will continue to be a valuable element of business operations. Smart lockers provide safe, easy, and efficient means of delivering items to their destinations.
As more and more of us familiarize ourselves with this process, certain steps might take a bit of explaining. This may be particularly obvious especially with generational differences in technological fluency. Luckily “click and collect” and “buy online pick up in-store” are accessible concepts for all of us to use.
How It Looks In The World
These sorts of technological shifts in behavior and expectations can lead to more sustainable, efficient procedures for society at large. On an individual level, we see that people are able to click their smart screens and collect their items. This makes the process quick and convenient. A busy mom can swing by while pushing a stroller. A student can quickly retrieve a book on their way to the library.
On a macrocosmic scale, with things like “click and collect” and smart lockers, we have increased efficiency in supply chains. We have an extremely secure location for items at the final stage of hand-off, countering massive amounts of theft. There is also the potential for this sort of industry addition to vastly improve all sorts of aspects of our community lives broader than just one purchase at a time: items such as prescriptions, tech rental, grocery delivery, countering food waste, office efficiency, library books and more can move quickly and safely. With a simple “click and collect”, the systems upon which we depend are that much better.
Ultimately, as we continue to explore and experiment with how things like smart lockers will shift industry standards for the better, human curiosity and ingenuity is the only limit. Humanitarian prizes around health care and smart lockers have already taken place. As this technology becomes more accessible to more people, diverse ideas and implementations of how to use lockers will continue to surface as well.
