Boston Children's Retailer MAGIC BEANS Pioneers New Technology Platform
CAMBRIDGE, Mass., Aug. 17, 2010 — AisleBuyerTM (http://www.AisleBuyer.com) announced today the launch of the first-ever virtual assistant and mobile self-checkout system. AisleBuyer technology enables consumers to scan products and complete their purchases using only a smartphone, eliminating the need to wait in long lines. In addition to providing PCI compliant self-checkout, the application provides access to product information, reviews/recommendations and behaviorally targeted coupons previously only available to online shoppers.
Anyone with an iPhone who enters a store powered by AisleBuyer simply needs to download the application from the iTunes App store. Once a product barcode is scanned, shoppers can see product information, reviews and offers as they walk through the store. But what really sets the AisleBuyer platform apart is the patent-pending mobile self-checkout and receipt system.
"The goal is to combine the best features from online shopping with the in-store experience," said Andrew Paradise, CEO of AisleBuyer. "In effect, we are turning smartphones into handheld cash registers and information kiosks, dramatically increasing both customer satisfaction and retail checkout efficiencies."
"As a retail company that serves parents, we are always on the lookout for new services and features that make life easier for our busy customers," said Sheri Gurock, Co-owner of Magic Beans, AisleBuyer's Massachusetts-based launch partner. "This technology offers a more personalized shopping experience and allows us to provide our customers with the added convenience of self-checkout."
At the core of the platform is a complete analytics package that reflects how consumers interact with products from scan to checkout. It provides retailers with demographic, geographic and behavioral analytics as well as targeting benefits previously only available to online retailers.
"Our retail partners can use this data to drive foot traffic through targeted, 'location-aware' offers; reduce the number of 'abandoned carts' through behaviorally targeted couponing; and even make better merchandising decisions," said Chuck Ball, EVP, Head of Marketing of AisleBuyer. "One study showed that nearly 70% of shoppers abandoned a purchase last holiday season at an average cost of $109 per shopper to the retailer."
AisleBuyer's end-to-end solution includes 5 modules:
1. Digital CircularTM – Sends timely "location-based" store offers to customers at no "per-message" cost to deliver increased foot traffic.
2. Smart ClerkTM – Provides UPC scan of products to deliver product information, reviews and social shopping features.
3. Dynamic Couponing – Serves behaviorally targeted and timely "in-aisle" coupons to automatically cross-sell product categories and increase consumer conversion.
4. Self-Checkout System – Allows customers to complete the transaction and avoid long lines via a "patent-pending" smartphone-based mobile self-checkout feature linked to preferred credit cards and retailer loyalty programs.
5. Advanced Analytics – Provides retailers with unprecedented business intelligence and real-time behavioral metrics previously only available to online retailers. This data is critical to providing personalized offers, making better buying/merchandising decisions and identifying "high-value" shoppers.
ABOUT AISLEBUYER, LLC
AisleBuyer is a mobile shopping platform that dramatically improves the in-store retail shopping experience by leveraging smartphone technology to unite the best features of both "bricks" and "clicks" retailing. A virtual shopping assistant, "location aware" digital circular, and patent-pending mobile self-checkout system provide retailers with an end-to-end solution designed to increase sales, reduce costs and gain unprecedented analytical insight into in-store shopping behavior. A simple product scan provides consumers with valuable product info, targeted offers and the first-ever mobile self-checkout option … meaning they will never have to wait in line again. The Company is headquartered in CAMBRIDGE, MA.
About Magic Beans
Magic Beans is a booming children's retail concept based in Brookline, MA. Owned by a local mom and dad, Magic Beans is celebrated for its handpicked selection of baby gear and toys for all ages, and a fanatic approach to outstanding customer service. It has stores in Brookline, Hingham, Wellesley and Cambridge, and an award-winning website, http://www.mbeans.com. It has won numerous accolades and awards, and was named Best of Boston by Boston Magazine in 2007, 2008 and 2009.
Media Contact:
Chuck Ball, EVP, Head of Marketing of AisleBuyer
617-858-1203
Email
# # #