March 23, 2024 1:15 am

A brief guide on knowledge management for retailers

Customers will be able to quickly voice their concerns, and they will get a prompt solution. If these two situations are resolved quickly and with little effort by the customer then your chances of winning the award to the best retail customer services are high.

Statista predicts that global retail sales will surpass $30 trillion by 2024. It is critical to excel in customer service, especially in the highly competitive world of retail services. Retailers have the best weapon to streamline their operations, hire a professional workforce, provide smooth customer service, and knowledge management.

What is knowledge-management?

Knowledge management, also called KM, is a way to organize existing information within a company. It makes it easier to find, use, and modify whenever needed. KM establishes best practices that allow companies to share and store information in the future.

Knowledge management for retailers is vital to allow them to implement the best practices to share and access retail knowledge, and empower their employees. Now, what exactly is knowledge in retail?

Retail knowledge covers everything from information on products and services to the SOPs for dealing with clients. A key aspect of retail knowledge is the fact that there is more to it than what can be physically or documentally documented.

This leaves workers unable tap on the information when needed. Knowledge management solutions are available to retailers to help end this curse and enhance data flow within retail settings.

Why choose knowledge Management for Retailers?

#1 Offers assistance with self-service in-store

Optimized Self-Service Mediums

It can frustrate customers if they are unable to access product or service information after several attempts at the selfservice information tabs.

It is also a disaster for customer service if they attempt to make a purchase without reading the most current information. Retailers can improve their self-service by using knowledge management.

Customers will find the answers to their questions in a simple, clear and engaging way that enhances their shopping experience.

Well-trained workforce:

A skilled workforce is key to optimizing self-service systems. A well-trained workforce with a solid knowledge of the information system can better assist customers to find the information that they need.

Effective in-store staff can also assist clients when they have questions. KM is a tool that allows retail outlets and service providers to provide information alongside notes and other information. This helps them to accurately communicate the correct answers to their customers.

#2 Enables training for retail employees

Onboarding employees

Knowledge management is a key component of the retailer onboarding process. Businesses can quickly set up training modules to aid new employees in acquiring essential and basic knowledge. Then, they can get to work. KM for onboarding employees aligns with their expectations. 49% say they want to learn what and where they need.

Knowledge management systems are made up of various directories or spaces that allow for the bifurcation. Employees can find new information wherever they wish without needing to be trained by an external trainer.

Re-training workforce:

Importantly, training employees is an ever-evolving process. Knowledge management ensures that every employee in the retail outlet can access the most current training module on a product or learn new information about it from scratch.

Knowledge Management for Retailers helps them manage the flow correct information if they have multiple outlets.

#3 Provides everything needed for retail employees

Get quick access to data

A retail environment is full of complicated information. Guides on different products and their latest features, information about how to handle customers, procedures for auditing inventory, and so forth. Knowledge management helps retailers organize all this vital information and make it easy for their employees.

Software that helps employees manage their knowledge can also be used to break down silos. Employees can also flag data to be reviewed by the management. This ensures that there are no irrelevant pieces of information in the knowledge database.

Multilingual data:

Retailers no more have to worry if they want to expand in areas where language barriers exist. Multilingual data access with KM enables employees to use their preferred language to access the data. Employees can help customers in regional languages and provide multilingual support to answer customer queries.

Customer data:

The key to standing out is customization. Knowledge management systems incorporate data from CRM systems to offer deep insights about the customer. Based on this data, employees can use their knowledge to sell products to customers. This personalized shopping experience will encourage customer loyalty. As 80% of customers prefer to shop from companies that provide a customized experience, it is more likely that they will return.

#4 Best systems to update knowledge

Information that isn’t relevant:

An inorganic information base in retail settings adds information to the existing one. It causes obsolete information to still be part of an information base in the form Excel spreadsheets, files, media, etc. and is available to anyone.

As there is no way to completely remove data from scattered databases, this increases the likelihood of unwanted or outdated information creeping up.

Knowledge management for retailers on the other side makes the knowledgebase the’single source to truth’ and removes any concern about irrelevant information overshadowing those that are relevant.

Simple and efficient ways to update your knowledge

A central knowledge database for a retail company allows for an efficient and seamless process of updating information. Administrators can find and update knowledge quickly. This removes any redundant information that may misinform the workforce and customers.

#5 Interactive Use of AI for Enhanced Store Experience

Interactive chats

AI has changed the way customers interact with retail stores. AI chats have deep insights into customer preferences and buying history. They can provide customized solutions to improve customer experience. After browsing the knowledge base, an AI chat will present to the customer a list of narrowed search results.

AI insights

Knowledge management has another advantage for retailers. The insights provided by an AI-driven knowledgebase help them understand customers’ buying habits. Retailers can then reinforce their strategies to grab customer attention, and push different products.

AI-powered information management (by knownmax.ai), allows for quick resolution of queries by the in-store workforce. This allows them to quickly locate the most commonly asked questions. Further, administrators can monitor and assess the relevancy to the data through analytics.