This is a follow up scenario to my previous blog post :
THE BIG PICTURE – THROUGH MY EYES.
If you haven’t read that blog post, you may wish to read it first to bring everything into context.
THE SCENARIO
The following is my envisaged proposal.
All the separate entities and services currently exist; but I am proposing a different format, method and utilization of them.
PRELUDE – SET THE SCENE
I not only have a list of items I need to buy, but I need them today. I want to get out of the house, enjoy a barista style coffee and some good old fashioned retail therapy with things I may not need, but as a treat to myself, I want and deserve.
THE EVENT AND EXPERIENCE
I am sitting in my car in the car park of a shopping plaza.
It is a major plaza with over 100 stores e.g. Westfield or its a small plaza with 5 – 10 stores, the process is the same.
1.
I toggle my Wi-Fi icon on my phone, and long press to see the available connections.
The plaza has a Free Wi-Fi connection. I click on it and my phone browser automatically brings up the plaza’s website and button to accept and connect through their Wi-Fi.
I can now see and have access to all the stores in the plaza.
I am now on their Wi-Fi connection which means I must be within the specified vicinity to which their WiFi is routed. This could be their entire plaza car park, or a specified section just for immediate in-store shopping car park delivery; shared by all retail outlets.
Because I am on that specific plazas Wi-Fi connection, I am shown the stores and their particular stock list, just like when I walk into the store I can only see what that store has in stock as opposed to the same stores in other locations.
2.
I pick the stores I am interested in.
Click on a coffee shop and get their website, which is linked within the plaza website.
- I browse their menu and order a coffee.
- I don’t have to give out any personal details, it’s just an extension of In-store shopping.
- I order a latte and click, car park delivery.
- An input area is activated, requesting my car park number and row, I enter the address and click enter.
3.
I now click “pay now”, a selection of payment buttons appear, Apple Pay, Google Pay, WeChat , Stripe, PayPal etc.
- All kept in your phones or computers–secure payment wallet, each of these payment methods are then securely authorised by your home bank which you would have previously set up when you created your secure payment wallet.
- These payment wallets are very common and accessible with most phones and computers and in some countries are the preferred option, as they are encrypted.
- This is what people use in-store when they hold their phone up to the payment credit/debit terminal at checkouts.
- You can have just one home bank account or have as many credit/debit accounts in your wallet.
- Just like your physical wallet which you carry in your pocket or bag, which is not encrypted.
- Crypto currency wallets are also an increasingly popular payment method, but I won’t go into that at this stage.
4.
The locked padlock 🔒 icon is activated and displayed in my browser, indicating that I am in a secure payment site .
I click my payment option and then click confirm .
5.
My friend sitting next to me in my car is on a laptop shopping, and doesn’t have his secure payment wallet activated on that device.
No problem, there is also a QR code that he can scan with his phones camera, that is linked to his payment wallet in his phone – by pointing it at his laptops screen display with the QR code on the screen.
SCAN. PAY. GO
6.
I receive my online receipt which I can download to my phone, have sent to my email address or copy to a file folder.
- The receipt has the details of my purchase and order number, along with an estimated delivery time, 15min.
- You will also receive a separate payment confirmation from your payment wallet straight away to cross check if you desire to.
7.
The dedicated staff members for car park orders fulfil my order and deliver to my car.
They have full car park maps, so they know exactly where you are.
8.
While my coffee was being made, I click on a homewares store and browse through their virtual but real store and look at their displays.
- I see a quilt cover set I like and click on the item, pick the size I need and click buy.
- I then click car park delivery, and again enter my car park space address.
- Then click, pay now, and again click my payment wallet type, and confirm.
My new quilt cover is delivered to my car 15 minutes later. I finish my coffee and browsing through other stores with a new list of things I need and want.
PRIVACY AND SECURITY
None of my personal details have been handed over online to either store, not even my credit card number as I am paying with my secure payment wallet which gives an encrypted proxy number. They don’t even know my name, just like in-store shopping whereby you walk into a store pick an item off the shelf, go to the checkout and pay with your credit/debit card .
I have the receipt of payment, with date and time, and car park delivery address.
If there is a problem, I have the receipt and only approximately 100m away from either store and I’m connected to their Wi-Fi.
While many allow you to use the Wi-Fi connection for other things, remember that it is their Wi-Fi connection, not your personal Wi-Fi, therefore don’t do anything you would not do in public or in a physical store. Anyone can see you physically walk through the plaza and there are often security cameras, treat their Wi-Fi the same, the security protocols are needed for your online security.
FREE STANDING STORE
Now I need some office supplies from a store that is a free standing outlet, not within a plaza or complex.
1.
I drive to their outlet and park out front in their designated, numbered car spaces . Social distancing due to the pesky pandemic is still in practice.
2.
I check my Wi-Fi possible connections and find their store, they have two. I click the one that is for guests, without the locked padlock. I click connect and my browser brings up their website, I need to enter an email address, no problem I have different email addresses for different things. At least they aren’t asking for personal details or physical addresses or phone numbers, which can be used by professional scammers to piece together your personal details to gain access to private online and physical things without your consent.
3.
They have the same exact process of In-store car park delivery as the plaza, great because I’m desperate and need them today.
4.
A little browsing through their online store, a couple of clicks, a short 10min wait, during which I logged out of their Wi-Fi and checked my SMS messages and emails, then I was heading home with everything I needed plus more.
FINALLY
Once you have connected to a stores, plaza, businesses or venues Wi-Fi, you can save it or your device will save it depending on your device and settings. If your device is a shared device and you don’t want your connection history seen by others who use the device, remember to clear it from the connection list. This is usually found under your Wi-Fi settings in the advanced settings section.
This is NOT Click and Collect.‼️
- With Click and Collect, you must buy online from a businesses main central website, go through the lengthy process of giving your personal details and payment details.
- Then you have to wait for them to SMS/email you when your item is ready to be picked up from your selected store.
- On average a 2 day wait.
- Generally never the same day.
- You then have to show your receipt and with some, even a photo ID when you pick up the item .
MY PROPOSED VISION
This is an extension to in-store shopping, when you connect to their Wi-Fi it is just like being on their premises as you must physically be within their Wi-Fi router range.
It is blending the physical, digital and virtual in real time.
Hmmstudio 
I do consider all of the concepts you’ve presented to your post. They’re really convincing and can certainly work. Nonetheless, the posts are too brief for starters. Could you please extend them a bit from subsequent time? Thank you for the post.