Every type of shopper prefers a more personal shopping experience. In fact, almost half (46%) of shoppers said they will buy more from a retailer that personalizes the shopping experience. Most U.S. retailers (75%) believe that developing a more engaging in-store customer experience will be critical to their business in the next five years. This infographic, courtesy of Medallion Retail, highlights the importance of personalization and tips for retailers to offer a one-to-one retail experiences.

Although many restaurants use online marketing to connect with consumers, few are effectively measuring the ROI of those efforts. In order to build brand loyalty, restaurant owners must deliver messaging via current and potential customers' preferred channels.

The majority (77%) of restaurants are using social media and view it as a substantial investment, spending at least three hours per week on this strategy. By 2015, small and local restaurants will allocate 70% of their total marketing budgets to online media, as noted in this Swipely infographic. These companies can improve the ROI of their marketing efforts with a number of tactics, including: campaign insights, customer analytics and targeted email campaigns.

While the overall job market in retail is growing slowly, digital opportunities are expanding rapidly, due to the rise in e-Commerce sales. In fact, the National Retail Federation predicts that online retail sales will grow as much as 12% in 2013, compared to 3.4% overall. In addition, Forrester forecasts online sales will reach $262 billion by the end of 2012.

This infographic, courtesy of Baynote, highlights the impact of e-Commerce on the retail industry and the benefits of digital-based jobs.

 
Consumers are increasingly using their mobile devices to search for the best deals, which is costing brick-and-mortar retailers $217 billion in sales losses. Also, 35% of all Americans are engaging in showrooming (viewing products in-store and purchasing online) regardless of whether or not they own a smartphone. Showrooming impacts certain product categories more than others, including: consumer electronics, apparel, books and appliances.

This infographic, courtesy of 360pi, highlights the current state of showrooming and how retailers are affected by this trend.

Mobile is expected to influence $700 billion in retail sales by 2016. With 48% of U.S. consumers currently owning a smartphone, it is evident that mobile is beginning to impact overall browsing and buying decisions. In fact, 5.1% of online purchases are completed via mobile. This number is expected to grow to 21% in the next three years. This infographic, courtesy of Hubba, highlights the ways mobile will impact retail sales through 2016, as well as how consumers shop using these devices.

More companies are investing in mobile-optimized web sites to connect with the digitally-savvy consumer. In fact, as the number of smartphone users continues to rise, the more impatient these consumers are becoming toward retailers not implementing a mobile-friendly site.

One of the key benefits of having a mobile-optimized site is that these sites increase the likelihood of sales: 67% of consumers are likely to buy from a mobile-friendly site; 61% said they're likely to leave if the web site is not optimized well for mobile devices; and 50% of consumers admit that they will use web sites less if they aren't mobile-friendly, regardless if they are a fan of the retailer. This inforgaphic, courtesy of Demandforce, highlights the benefits of mobile optimization as well as the impact on a retailer's sales.

More retailers are focusing on improving the customer service experience. In fact, 70% of retailers providing quality customer service said they're using the feedback to "make strategic business decisions." 

Not providing good customer service can impact sales: 86% of consumers have stopped doing business with a company due to a negative service experience, while 78% said they chose not to complete a transaction/purchase based on their bad experience. This infographic, courtesy of The National Business Research Institute, highlights the importance of customer service as well as tips for retailers to provide an "unforgettable customer service" experience.

Retailers are increasing the focus on mobile as part of a complete digital strategy. As many as 50% of retailers said they have a mobile web site, while 30% currently provide customized promotions and offers through mobile devices, according to a survey sponsored by Motion Computing. In addition, 23% of retailers said they currently provide mobile devices to store associates.

More retailers also are adding tablets and mPOS to the existing infrastructure, rather than completely replacing all traditional POS units: More than two-thirds believe the addition of tablets won't disrupt the retail environment while maintaining other systems. In addition, 65% plan to utilize a combination of traditional and mobile POS.

This infographic, courtesy of Motion Computing, highlights the current state of mobile implementation and its impact on existing store systems.

Following a bad shopping experience, some customers will dismiss a brand. In fact, 39% of consumers said they will avoid retailers for two or more years after bad experiences.

Although good experiences are nice to share, consumers are more likely to discuss a bad experience with friends and family: 95% will share their experience with more than five people, while 45% said they share negative experiences through social media.

This infographic, courtesy of Zendesk, highlights "the good, bad and ugly truths" of how consumers are influenced by a retailer's customer service.

Retailers continue to invest in new ways to engage with customers as well as employees. Businesses spent $100 million on gamification in 2010. That total is estimated to reach $2.8 billion by 2016.

This infographic, courtesy of Engine Yard, highlights the different industries leveraging gamification techniques as well as seven gaming components retailers can use to "gamify" their mobile apps.