Imagine an automated sales clerk, one that is always available and reflects your brand perfectly every interaction

To stay in the forefront in a competitive environment, it is essential to recognize and utilize opportunities that will give you an advantage in creating growth and sustainability. The prestige of your brand must be upheld and most importantly, it must be accessible. Using innovative and exciting marketing and sales techniques you can significantly impact your brand equity.

Automated retail has become more prevalent in the shopping community and successful companies are increasingly taking advantage of the unique opportunities it presents. Self service retail isn’t new; consumers have enjoyed the conveniences of making a quick transaction at the ATM or getting their movie tickets from a self-serve kiosk to avoid long lines or slow customer service.

There’s nothing worse than a vending machine helping itself to your hungry wallet without dispensing anything in return. Equally annoying is watching in despair while your choice snack gets stuck as it makes its way towards you. They can be a real source of frustration. However, they do make for some comic relief! Here’s a look at some of the best vending machine fails from across the internet.

Grabbing and securing a customer’s attention continues to be increasingly difficult, as society’s expectations grow at the same speed as technology. With smart phones, streaming services and adblocking services for browsers, mediums to reach new customers are shrinking while people have more and more distractions to help them tune your message out. So, here are 4 creative ideas for breaking through the noise and increasing consumer awareness of your brand.

Where and when did it begin?

Vending machines are a tried and true vehicle for shrinking an entire convenience store into a refrigerator size round-the-clock revenue generator. 

Towards the end of the 19^th century English publisher and entrepreneur, Richard Carlisle, expanded his reach through vending machines by selling books and the trend vending was rapidly adapted by other merchants. 

Premium brands have to remain vigilant to retain their prestige. They are competing with everybody else in their product category, other premium brands and in the minds of their consumers – who are also the primary drivers of the value of premium brands. Therefore, the most important factor to increase value is maintaining the prestige of your brand in the minds of your audience. 

When Cuffwear wanted to drive its business to the next level of growth, it choose Signifi Solutions Inc, global leaders in automated retail.

Creatures of Habit

According to research out of Harvard Business School, families on average buy the same 150 products over and over again. This makes up 85% of their household needs. Of those 150 products, whoever does the family's purchasing likely chooses the same brand time after time. Getting people to become loyal customers and take a chance on a new business  in today’s crowded

Are we at “the end of the retail world” as we know it? Have we reached the unavoidable black hole of retail that has been looming? Are brick and mortar retail locations going to morph into all encompassing e-commerce consumer transactions? Perhaps. Don’t be afraid though, e-commerce has its limitations that will limit its growth.

Millennials are a diverse, multifaceted group. Nearly 40% have opted for a tattoo. Almost 25% sport a piercing someplace other than an earlobe. Most Millennials sleep with their cellphone next to their bed. It’s a fact, in North America that they are more ethnically diverse than the generations that came before. Millennials are optimistic and confident.