This year, we’ve been invited to present our technology showcase for several customers at their annual conferences, introducing innovative new solutions designed to improve the customer experience and make life in retail easier. With a range of solutions on display, there’s been one in particular that has attracted a lot of attention from store colleagues… Workstation Connect from Zebra.
Causing excitement amongst store managers and retail operation teams, it’s easy to see why Workstation Connect has been so well received. This seemingly simple solution offers retailers incredible flexibility, making it possible to do much more with a Zebra mobile device.
There’s not much we don’t know about how to maximise the benefit of Workstation Connect in your retail business and today we’re sharing this with you.
Why do retailers love Workstation Connect?
What’s not to love? A specialist charging cradle that allows you to dock your Zebra device and connect it to a monitor or touchscreen, Workstation Connect is a cost-effective solution that extends investment made in mobile devices. This means that retailers can do even more and enhance the return on their technology spend.
We’ve heard many ideas from retailers on how they can see themselves using the solution and the impact it could have on both the customer and colleague experience. From adding a dock in consultation rooms to creating dedicated areas within a store to walk customers through the sales process, and even introducing a dock in staff areas to support training needs, the possibilities are endless.
How can Workstation Connect enhance the customer experience?
Workstation Connect is particularly useful in consultative retail environments with high levels of customer interaction. By placing a cradle in front of house, you can create a dedicated area within your store to dock your device and walk customers through a process, complete forms or benefit from assisted selling including:
- Selling extended warranties on electrical items
- Completing product sales or service documentation
- Conducting health checks and reviews
- Providing personalised beauty consultations with recommendations
There are a couple of additional things to think about when using Workstation Connect to support customer consultancy, for example, you may be inputting personal information such as name and address. By adding a privacy screen to your touchscreen or monitor as part of the solution, you protect customer information from the view of passersby.
How can Workstation Connect improve back-of-house efficiency?
Workstation Connect seamlessly adapts your mobile device to a large screen within seconds without compromising functionality. Add a keyboard and a mouse to your Workstation and you have a full PC set-up. This simplifies tasks and reduces the number of devices store managers need to use, resulting in enhanced efficiency and the ability to work more flexibly within the store.
How can Workstation Connect benefit store colleague training?
That same Zebra device used to complete tasks on the shop floor can also be used to support the training needs and continued development of store colleagues. Simply docking the device using Workstation Connect, your workers can watch training videos and complete courses in a designated space. As Zebra devices have headphone connectors, store colleagues can learn without distraction and without disrupting those around them.
How else does the Workstation Connect solution benefit retailers?
There are other soft benefits to your retail business too such as:
- Reduced power consumption: The Workstation Connect cradle with a mobile device uses more than 50% less power than an equivalent desktop or laptop setup, reducing energy costs to your business and supporting green initiatives. It also wastes less energy while in an idle state.
- Consolidated maintenance: Another benefit is the consolidation of maintenance providers and contracts; with fewer types of technology to support you can reduce your maintenance costs too.
- Reduced waste: Consolidate the number of devices and reduce the replenishment of desktops and laptops within your stores while utilising existing peripherals including monitors, keyboards, and mice with Workstation Connect and your Zebra devices.
What we’ve learned, and you should know about Workstation Connect
There’s no doubt that Workstation Connect is a game-changer for the way retailers can work in their stores, but there are still a few things to consider before you get started:
- Device compatibility: Zebra’s latest mobile devices and tablets including the TC21, TC22, TC5X range and ET4X range are compatible, but each dock is slightly different with a separate SKU for each device. We can help make sure you get the right dock for your device(s).
- Zebra DNA: For the solution to work, your device needs to have Zebra DNA. This is included as standard on some Zebra devices, but not on all.
- Configuration: A bit of configuration is needed on your device to use Workstation Connect, but we can take care of this for you.
- Cables: You will also need to source HDMI and USB cables as they are not included in the box with the Workstation Connect cradle.
- Peripherals: You can utilise existing keyboards and monitors but what peripherals you plan to use with your solution needs some thought.
- Placement: Consider where you plan to use your Workstation Connect solution. Do you want the flexibility for it to be moved around within your store or will this be built-in to preserve the aesthetic of your store? This is something to consider, particularly for new store openings where there is the opportunity for it to be a part of the shop fit.
How could Workstation Connect change the way that you work?
To learn more about Workstation Connect and introducing it into your stores, get in touch with our team of retail technology experts.