AIM Consulting Builds New Omnichannel Curbside Mobile Pickup Option for National Retail Organization
OVERVIEW
A large retail organization with a small but successful mobile team was looking to expand its digital storefront for both iOS and Android applications. Additionally, they had multiple internal applications used by employees in their stores needing further assistance with customer engagement and day-to-day tasks. Focused on expanding and strengthening their application usage, revenue, and mobile features, they needed a partner to provide support across project management, development, testing, and design in a managed service capacity.
AIM Consulting has been a partner with the organization for over a decade and worked with multiple marketing and technology teams. For this engagement AIM’s digital experience practice provided subject matter expertise to the mobile team to help with the application expansion.
CHALLENGES
Capacity and velocity issues on their mobile applications prevented the company from adding new features. Additionally, the employee application was not the main focus of the team and it was in need of significant updates. Finally, the architecture was outdated which created new issues for regular updates and features. Simply maintaining the application was becoming an arduous task.
A product lead and designer joined the team to redesign and re-architect the application from the ground up using Swift 5. With AIM’s support the application was rebuilt to be easier to maintain and update. The new version was more stable, and the customer was receiving positive feedback from its customers.
The team was progressing well when a new and unexpected challenge occurred, COVID-19. With COVID-19, all retail locations across the United States. As an early adopter with stay-at-home policies, the company closed all retail locations in early March. Our customer needed a mobile solution to allow transactions to be completed and picked up curbside from store locations.
SOLUTION
The push to digital came within the organization and the immediate surge in consumer online activity. With social distancing the new normal, the organization quickly switched gears addressing the immediate needs of the consumer. Answering how to fulfill BOPIS (buy online, pickup in-store) orders, limit contact with consumers while providing an enjoyable curbside experience.
Both AIM and the client collaborated to architect and put Curbside Pickup in place using Agile methodologies across the retail operations, designs, website, consumer application, and employee application teams. The new architecture utilized new microsites, microservices, and Airship push notification integrations.
For the consumer application, the team focused on a native iOS using Swift and Android using Kotlin and Java. The new application features allowed consumers to choose curbside pickup as an option and provided the stores that were available for this option. Once the transaction was complete, email confirmation was created to add a new link within the body that consumers could use to launch the microsite upon arrival to the store.
The team also focused heavily on the new microsite using Vue.JS and the internal design system built by AIM Consulting. The site tracked submissions to the Mobile Service / API capturing name and vehicle information and sending push notifications to the employees providing contactless service.
RESULTS
With over 160 stores nationally closed from the pandemic, the addition of curbside pickup provides new profitability for the organization. Ideation of working production prototype took only four weeks. Roll out begins nationwide in select stores starting May 2020, producing hundreds of jobs at retail locations. Opening stores for contactless curbside pickup solves a unique business challenge while upholding the safety of the consumers and employees.
Expanding BOPIS to CURBSIDE plus additional modifications made to the mobile application also equipped the team with an accessible framework for future updates, leveraging the core technology stack. Curbside provides the organization with a new business stream within its omnichannel strategy and increases consumer engagement options.
ABOUT AIM CONSULTING
AIM Consulting, an Addison Group company, is an award-winning industry leader in technology consulting and solutions delivery. AIM’s differentiation is our collaborative engagement model that provides cross-functional results. We work with clients, shoulder to shoulder, for one goal – their success. Founded in 2006, with offices in Seattle, Minneapolis, Denver, Houston, and Chicago, we are ranked among the fastest-growing private companies and best companies to work for due to a long track record of success with our partners and consultants. Our long-term relationships with the best technology consulting talent allow us to deliver on expectations, execute on roadmaps and drive modern technology initiatives.
