Compact Catalyst C-Series could help create new shopping experiences in retail stores
Cisco’s new compact Catalyst switches are targeted at virtually every vertical market that has locations or floor plans far away from wiring closets. But in the retail market it will especially appeal to consumers and retailers employing “mashops” – buying and marketing opportunities that combine physical and virtual resources.
Cisco’s Internet Business Solutions Group (IBSG) conducted a study of retail shopping behaviors and discovered that consumers in the US and UK need retailers to combine Web-like and in-store shopping experiences to create “mashops” in order to drive growth and build brand awareness. The word mashop is derived from “mashup” – a staple in Web 2.0 lexicon – and shopping.
Cisco’s survey found that 67% of its 1,000 respondents use the Web to make informed buying decisions and find the lowest possible price. An example mashop opportunity for retailers might include interactive digital displays, video assistants, social networking technologies and Wi-Fi networks that enable shoppers to remain connected while they are in the store.
Indeed, the Cisco survey found that more than half of these buyers wanted a mashop-type service within the store, and then 73% of these shoppers want it to be in the form of a touch screen at the edge of the inventory shelf.
Cisco says mashops might encourage shoppers to upgrade their purchases and increase their shopping cart size when factors other than price influence their buying decisions. To create mashops, Cisco hopes retailers fill their own shopping carts with the new C-Series Catalyst switches, which feature a compact form factor targeted specifically at wiring closet-challenged spaces, like retail floors.
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