Article

Improving the customer experience through service and automated checkout

Wincor Nixdorf says its innovations in cash management and automated checkout are enhancing the shopping experience, for retailers and consumers.

February 1, 2009 by Tracy Kitten — Editor, AMC

To see a slideshow from Wincor World 2009, click here.

Customer service and innovation in cash-management were the focus of Wincor World 2009. The annual banking and retail trade show, hosted by Wincor Nixdorf AG near its base in Paderborn, Germany, has evolved from a show focused on hardware to one that highlights software and services.

The company's ability to provide a combined solution portfolio was the message senior executives wanted to get out to their customers, who this year were more heavily represented from developing global markets such as Nigeria, China and parts of Latin America, than they have been in years past. Wincor made note to highlight its customer representation from Ghana, Nepal, Pakistan, Venezuela and the Philippines.

During his opening address, chief executive Eckard Heidloff said the global financial crisis is pushing retailers to change.

"Looking at the next three to four quarters, we will all have to focus more on customer service, and more than ever before, you will need to cope with your costs," Heidloff said.

The company is stressing that message asit encourages retailers to not delay or cancel plans to invest in IT outsourcing and technology.

Cash optimization, cash management and overall IT outsourcing are three points the company is pushing.

Retail and service

Breaking into the retail market has been somewhat challenging for Wincor Nixdorf — a company that admittedly has strong and profitable ties to banking. But Wincor says its banking strength and expertise can benefit retailers, and the company is making strides toward getting that message heard.

In China, Wincor Nixdorf has signed outsourced servicing deals with retailers Best Buy and B & Q. Kerstin Zilla, head of Wincor Nixdorf's servicing business, says Wincor Nixdorf assisted both retailers during their openings in China — managing all of the IT implementations with their respective infrastructures.

"Three years ago was a turning point. It was a time when we put our business in place to provide services in markets throughout the world," Zilla said. "Today we have 34 customer care centers worldwide."

The global economic crunch may benefit the services side of the business, Zilla says.

"We cannot foresee all of the consequences of the economic crisis today, but it is critical for retailers and banks to reduce costs and improve efficiency," she said. "They really want to know what the cost reductions are, and that is really the task of the IT company."

Wincor Nixdorf's competitors are focusing on the servicing side of the business, too. NCR and Diebold are both advancing their cash-handling and servicing offers; Diebold last year announced the launch of a newly developed corporate division focused on service. What makes Wincor unique in its cash-management and servicing push is that it is not focusing solely on financial institutions — it's focusing quite a bit of its attention on retail.

In the United States, Wincor Nixdorf says the retail business is poised for great growth.

Globally, from a checkout and POS position, Wincor is the No. 3 retail supplier. To ascend, as it has in the ATM market, Heidloff says the company will provide retailers with solutions that include cash management, automated sales and marketing processes, checkout automation, and managed services and outsourcing.

Topping that list is cash management. As cash use increases, the need to manage it goes up. In fact, Heidloff says research shows that circulation and production of euros continually increases, despite notions that the European Union is moving toward a cashless society. He said the world has three times more euros now than it did when the euro was first issued.

A clichÃ© with value?

Is cash still the king? According to Currency Research in the Netherlands, it is.

During his presentation, "Cash is king, but will it remain," Gerben van Wijk, marketing director of Currency Research, said the use of cash, especially in developing markets, continues to rise. As new markets move more consumers to banking services, their use of cash increases, thus creating a greater need for retailers and bankers to manage their cash processes.

But Wijk warned that new technologies, such as mobile payments, could soon overtake the use of cash among this currently so-called cash-preferred segment. Wijk says the payments industry and those who provide services to it need to be fluid and adaptable to change.

For Wincor Nixdorf, that translates to opportunity in enhanced checkout solutions that do not take cash out of the equation, but rather work to increase the checkout transaction when cash is used.

Automated checkout

Wincor has found a niche in automated checkout solutions, some of which include a teller, and some that separate payment from checkout all together.

"(During the fair) There was particular demand, for instance, for solutions to rationalize cash handling at stores and branches, as well as for the organization of cash logistics," said Andreas Bruck, head of corporate communication for Wincor Nixdorf.

During Wincor World, an expanded portfolio of automated checkout solutions was on display, with additional modules that offer technical enhancements as well as analysis, design and implementation offers. The modules were touted for the ability to improve processes at self-service terminals for customers.

"Self-service and automation are where we see retailers investing, so Wincor is working closely with retailers as they work through the change-over process," said Joachim Pinhammer, head of marketing for Wincor Nixdorf's retail business. "Our TP Application Suite (based on the TP.net platform) can connect different platforms and services and our TP Loyalty module is one that really allows us to integrate loyalty solutions. But our automated checkout is where we are really making a big focus this year."

One innovation includes linking the payment terminal with the exit gate. If the customer has paid the receipt amount, the barrier opens automatically. The customer experience is enhanced, since customers no longer have to identify themselves with paid receipts in order to open the barrier.

Another highlight comes from TPiSCAN, which allows Wincor Nixdorf to offer software product that can be tailored to a retailer's specific checkout needs, whether at the self-service checkout lane of the assisted checkout lane.

Wincor also touted its special consulting services for retailers, which comprise an analysis of the individual structures and processes at the checkout zone to create a precise picture of the status quo and identify the core problems. The analysis is rounded out by project management for planning and controlling a pilot before subsequent rollout.

Take the Real 360 Automatic Scanning solution. Josef Twiste, product marketing manager for Wincor Nixdorf's retail division, says the automated, tunnel checkout solution is still in pilot with a couple of large retailers in Europe, as Wincor works to ensure the customer experience is optimum.

The assisted automated checkout system allows shoppers to place their own items on a conveyer belt, which is monitored by an attendant or clerk. The items are scanned by a tunnel that can take up to 60 item pictures as the scanned items pass through. From there, the customer moves on to make his payment at a payment tower, which is separated from the checkout lane.

"This is a solution that scans the barcode and includes the assistance of a cashier," Twiste said. "We believe the use of RDID at the checkout is some five to 10 years away, because of the expense of RFID tags, which run between 10 cents and 20 cents euro apiece. So it is not cost-effective."

2009 also will be a year of 'green' solutions, and Wincor was excited to show its self-service checkouts that can be operated with paper bags. The solution is being launched with Wincor partner GSD Verpackungen.

Expanded BEETLE POS family

The BEETLE/iCLICK and BEETLE/Fusion systems have been developed to optimize system availability, low-cost swap service and minimal power consumption. The new BEETLE /iCLICK was introduced curing Wincor World.

Like the docking station of a notebook, this POS system is built with a docking design, a central unit, a power supply, an interface hub, data carriers and an integrated power supply that is connected via socket strips. Staff at the store can quickly and easily replace components that need servicing, without the need for specialist know-how, Wincor says.

The new BEETLE/Fusion is a multifunctional all-in-one touch POS system. To meet individual retailer neeeds, the terminal can be installed and configured differently. For instance, a card reader, fingerprint sensor, camera, barcode scanner and customer display can be integrated.

The BEETLE/iCLICK and BEETLE/Fusion use power-saving processor technology from Intel, which includes maximum power consumption of 5.5 watts. Both systems are fitted with an energy-efficient 80PLUS power supply and can be configured with a solid state disk instead of a hard disk to increase the system's availability.

The BA83 POS touchscreen also is new, and offers a splash-proof surface and new design. The advantages: peripherals such as the POS keypad, magnetic card reader, fingerprint sensor and camera are easy to integrate. The display is connected to the POS system via a standard DVI or VGA interface and supplied with power from a USB port or external PSU.

Mobile shopping

Mobile shopping is the next big retail wave in Europe, and Wincor is making significant headway in the mobile shopping arena, says Pinhammer, with one major retailer, which has deployed some 600 mobile devices in one of its stores. Pinhammer says more than 40 percent of that store's transactions are now being conducted via mobile devices. The store has thus reduced its in-store labor by 70 hours per week.