Now that retail companies have shown their ability to build credible online storefronts, they are looking to add technology to their existing brick-and-mortar stores. Doing so, however, is not easy.

The following white paper [PDF, 454KB] describes one solution in which a retailer can extend its point-of-sale system with a wireless, handheld personal sales assistant (PSA). Among other things, such a device can:

• Improve revenue per square foot by reducing the Point of Purchase (POP) merchandising placements and offering product information and promotional content on the device.
• Increase revenue per transaction by detecting and promoting cross-selling and up-selling opportunities.
• Target promotions as the PSA learns more about a customer's shopping habits and past purchases.
• Promote customer loyalty based on an innovative customer experience.
• Reduce product returns by providing customers with a complete understanding of the products he/she is purchasing.

An open architecture is essential to creating the infrastructure necessary for a PSA application, which encompasses the store floor, the business systems, and the back-end databases.

Please read about the solution in detail in the white paper [PDF, 454KB], "Realizing Business Value Through the Personal Sales Assistant: Bringing Online Technology to the Physical Storefront."