Maximizing the Impact of Grocery Innovation with Smart Data Capture

In the high-volume and low-margin world of grocery, innovations don’t need to be groundbreaking. Scale amplifies impact so that marginal gains can represent significant time and cost savings when multiplied across thousands of items and hundreds of stores.

Finding a common denominator that applies to many workflows also compounds the effect of innovation.

For grocery workflows, this commonality is data capture.

It’s a key component of inventory management, order picking, and pricing and promotion execution – and it happens a lot.

Manual and outdated data capture can cost retailers millions yearly. On the other hand, smart data capture optimizes daily operations and allows retailers to rethink them to unlock efficiencies and revenue.

Going a step further, Scandit’s Smart Data Capture Platform contains unique, adaptable capabilities that can cater to the diverse needs of grocers – regardless of setup, workflow, or existing technology deployed.

Below, discover the latest Scandit innovations leading grocers are adopting.

Once received, items are taken to their respective areas, including ambient temperature zones, giant fridges and freezers.

After creating a pick list, one key task workers have to do is restock the front-of-house shelves, typically under time pressure. A ‘first in, first out’ (FIFO) approach can be difficult when they have to inspect each label manually.

And these stockrooms are crowded places. Inefficiencies here lead to empty shelves and increased waste, particularly for perishable items.

Clarity with interactive AR task assistance

Scandit brings clarity to this process with our multi-scanning and AR capabilities.

Workers hold their smart scanning devices up to the shelf, and intuitive and interactive AR overlays highlight tasks for completion, eliminating the need to check labels manually. Workers can update tasks and confidently select the correct restocking item without hesitation.

Our Director of Retail Solutions, Jessica Grisolia, shows how it works here:

AR-assisted tasks bonus benefits

• Reduce perishable item waste by highlighting FIFO items
• Fast restocking ensures better product availability
• Time saved allows workers to focus on other value-adding tasks

E-commerce penetration in grocery is increasing. More pressure is being placed on in-store pickers to fulfill these orders. Their productivity is often measured by the number of items or orders they can complete per hour.

Against the clock, pickers rush to complete orders to remain on schedule.

Errors at this point can cause inefficiencies for the grocer, or worse, find their way to the customer in the form of incorrect items or poor substitutions.

Locate items instantly with AR-guided search and find

MatrixScan Find removes the burden of searching for hard-to-find items when many on the shelf look similar. It uses multi-scanning and AR guidance to help workers locate items easily.

See how quickly it works in the following video:

MatrixScan Find bonus benefits:

• More efficient order picking
• Reduce picking errors
• Fulfill more orders with the same resources, driving revenue growth

Error-free weighted item picking with simultaneous barcode and text capture

Processing weighted items is a challenge for pickers. It is usually done manually and can be tedious and error-prone when done multiple times per shift. Pickers must add the correct weight or quantity of items to a printed label.

Getting it wrong can lead to revenue loss if there is a mismatch between the values and even erode customer loyalty if they are charged more for their items.

Scandit automates the capture of non-barcode information like printed text with weight, easing the burden on grocery workers and ensuring accuracy.

See how it works here:

Multimodal data capture bonus benefits:

• Minimize the risk of customer dissatisfaction with incorrectly weighted items
• Fast order-picking rates
• Avoid revenue loss from underpriced items

Point of sale, curbside pick-up, and home deliveries are just some retail workflows that require age verification when orders include age-restricted products. Not checking customer IDs can result in heavy fines and license restrictions for retailers.

But it can be daunting for grocery workers, and dwell time can frustrate customers, especially when there is suspicion of a fake ID.

Streamlined order pickup with automated ID validation

Using ID Validate from Scandit, workers pass the burden of checking IDs to technology. ID Validate reliably parses identity data to check the authenticity of IDs and validate ages in 1 second.

Here’s how it works:

Automated ID verification bonus benefits:

• Customers’ Personal Identifiable Information (PII) is secure because all data is processed directly on the device
• Customers never have to wait, thanks to 1-second processing of results
• A full audit trail guarantees compliance

E-commerce ID check

Add an extra layer of security when selling age-restricted goods with Scandit’s pre-built web plugin, ID Bolt,  that retailers can integrate into any e-commerce workflow.

Customers scan their ID at the point of purchase to confirm they are old enough to buy restricted items.

Walk-through a demonstration here:

ID Bolt bonus benefits:

• Integrate seamlessly with any website or web application using minimal code
• Achieve faster processing of online order collection and delivery
• Avoid refusing order handovers or reshelving items

As store shelves become increasingly complex to try and entice customers to buy, so does the task of keeping prices and promotions accurate.

This pricing task can involve checking thousands of items and is often manual – absorbing time and resulting in errors.

Accurate pricing checks with real-time shelf analytics

Scandit ShelfView automates pricing checks by capturing the shelf label price and barcode simultaneously and instantly comparing them to those in the system.

On-screen augmented reality indicates when prices are correct and when they require action. Workers complete multiple updates in seconds.

See how quickly it works here:

Automated price-checking bonus benefits:

• Maximize revenue opportunities with well-executed promotions that entice customers
• Ensure satisfied customers by avoiding unwanted checkout price surprises
• Reduce the risk of regulatory fines with compliant pricing

Above, we highlight several innovations that deliver tangible benefits across different workflows. However, one thing is consistent with all the innovations mentioned – guaranteed high-performance, accurate, unified scanning experience.

Whether across multiple store applications, different devices, or even different types and sizes of barcodes and shelf labels, Scandit delivers the same seamless scanning experience.

Expertly engineered user interfaces (UI) boost worker confidence and efficiency when performing tasks. Our development team spends months designing and testing award-winning out-of-the-box UIs so retailers can quickly integrate and deploy new capabilities.

By embracing smart data capture innovations, grocery stores can create a win-win situation. Multiple workflows can be enhanced at once, creating efficient operations and a customer experience worth returning for.