Shopping Process
After the customer leaves the device dispensing area, they enter the shop floor. The customer then selects the items they want to buy and scans them before putting them into their shopping basket. The Self Scanning Client shows all items in a detailed list view and calculates the total purchase amount of the shopping basket at all times.
Item Views
The Self-Scanning Client has two different views that can be used to look at the scanned items in the virtual shopping basket. The customer can choose between the list view and the detailed view (both allow pictures to be displayed).
The list view is the default view for the customer. In this view, all of the scanned items are shown in a list in chronological order. If the customer taps an item in the list view, the Self-Scanning Client shows the detailed view. By tapping the blue arrow pointing left (←), the customer switches back to the list view.
When a customer scans an item that they have already scanned before (for example a second bag of rice after a first bag was already scanned), the new item and the already scanned item are merged and displayed together on one line with the corresponding number of items.
When starting the shopping trip, the user can also navigate to the Shopping List tab to select the shopping list for the trip. Items are checked off the shopping list as they are scanned.
Search Basket Items
The items in the basket can be searched using "search basket”, which can be accessed from the basket view ellipses menu during the shopping process,
When this function is selected the user is prompted to either scan the item they would like to view or search the basket via text search. If the item is found in the basket, the detailed item view is shown.
Scanning Items
Self Scanning Client on a Personal Device (BYOD)
To start the scanning process of the Self Scanning Client on a personal device, the customer has to tap on the camera icon at the bottom of the application. The Self Scanning Client switches to the standard camera mode, where the customer has to point their camera at the product barcode. It is not necessary to tap the screen again or press a physical button on the device to trigger the camera because the Self Scanning Client detects barcodes automatically and reads the information when the barcode appears in front of the lens.
After the item has been scanned and has appeared on the screen, the customer can use the plus and minus buttons on the screen to increase or decrease the quantity of the scanned item. In this way, the customer only has to scan an item once even though they are buying multiple quantities of the same item.
Deleting Items from the Virtual Shopping Basket
The customer can delete any item they scanned by decreasing the item quantity to 0. A specific “Delete” button is not available. After the customer uses the minus button to decrease the item quantity from 1 to 0, the Self-Scanning Client will ask the customer one last time if they really want to delete the item from the virtual shopping basket.
Special Items
Special items are items which require an additional action from the customer or retailer or show up differently in the virtual shopping basket compared to normal items. Simply scanning the item and putting it into the shopping basket is usually not enough; the customer must perform additional actions.
Items with Unit of Measure
The Self Scanning Client is able to process item prices where the item price depends on the unit of measure. This function can be useful when the customer buys products, for example, in a hardware store where a wooden slat is sold by a defined price per meter or the price of paint is calculated by the liter.
The customer scans the item barcode. The price and the amount of the item are encoded in the barcode. When the barcode is scanned, the total price including the amount of the item is added to the basket.
Sales Restrictions
The sale of some items is restricted to a specific age bracket (e.g. alcohol or tobacco products), some items are only sold with special permission (e.g. guns or medicine) and some items cannot be sold without the interaction of a shop assistant (e.g. a T-shirt with a security tag).
After the customer scans a sales restricted item, the Self Scanning Client will show a customized message. The customer must follow the instructions on the Self Scanning Client screen and confirm their action by tapping OK.
Follow-on Deposit Items
Follow-on deposit items are items automatically connected to a main item, which the customer has put into their shopping basket. For example, a customer buys a large quantity of beer bottles. A crate of beer is automatically added to the virtual shopping basket and the customer has to pay a deposit for this. The deposit item itself cannot be selected. If the customer removes the main item, the deposit item is automatically removed too. A change in the quantity of the main item leads to a change in the quantity of the deposit item too.
Discount Items, Coupons, Promotions
The Self-Scanning Client supports different discount coupons in digital or analog form. The retailer has to decide in which form their customers can scan these discount coupons and configure the Self Scanning Client accordingly. For example, the customer may be able to scan their discount coupons at any time during the shopping trip, or the retailer could stipulate that discount coupons can only be scanned and used once the customer has reached the check-out area of the store at the end of their shopping trip.
Depending on the configuration of the Self Scanning Client, the application can show an error message during the scanning process, informing the customer that they must scan their discount coupons later in the shopping trip.
If the retailer allows their customers to scan the discount coupons during their shopping trip, the Self Scanning Client displays the promotions in the virtual shopping basket. The original price of the item is shown, the discount is shown, and the new price is calculated automatically. If the customer wants to know which promotions are applicable to a specific item, the customer can tap the specific item in the virtual shopping basket and all applicable promotions are displayed in a scrollable list in the detailed item list.
Special Price / Reduced Price
Depending on the item, a special price can apply. For example, an item was put in the shop window in November and is now sold at a drastically reduced price in February. In this case, the customer can scan the item but the plus button for increasing the quantity is not available. Only the minus button for removing the item from the virtual shopping basket is shown.
Multiple-priced Items
If an item has multiple price labels (for example, a new price label was stuck on top of the old label due to a price change of the item, but this new label subsequently falls off, revealing the old original label), the Self Scanning Client automatically selects the most recent price of the item and displays it correctly in the virtual shopping basket.
Engage-Based Coupons
Retailers use GK Engage to create engaging loyalty programs with features such as point earning, tier rewards, and special offers, such as coupons. These coupons are made available to consumers through the mobile app, within the loyalty or membership section.
Consumers can view and activate available coupons directly in the app. Once a coupon is activated, it is automatically applied during their SSC trip.
Troubleshooting
Barcode Cannot be Scanned
If the Self-Scanning Client is not able to scan a barcode (because the barcode is damaged or dirty, for example), the Self Scanning Client shows a warning message to the customer. The message prompts the customer to ask a member of staff for help during the shopping trip or, at the latest, to ask a member of staff at the check-out area of the store so that they can scan the items for the customer. The message displayed to the customer can be configured by the retailer, depending on the number of employees in the stores.
Customer Orders
The customer cannot scan customer orders with the Self-Scanning Client. A corresponding message is shown on the display.
Returning Items to the Store
It is not possible for the customer to capture items that they want to return to the store. The customer has to talk to a member of staff in the store in order to return their items.
Self Scanning Client is Offline
If the Self Scanning Client loses the online connection to the SAP Omnichannel Point-of-Sale by GK – Self Scanning Services, the customer can still use the Self Scanning Client without any restrictions. For further information about the technical specifications, make sure to read the section Offline Capability in the document: Product Description – Self Scanning Client.
The customer can determine whether the Self Scanning Client is online or offline by looking at the color of the prices. Blue item prices in the virtual shopping basket represent live online prices, which are stored and changed in the enterprise resource planning (ERP) software. Common developers of this type of ERP software include SAP, Oracle and Microsoft. The Self Scanning Client is able to read the item prices from these systems in real-time with the help of the SAP Omnichannel Point-of-Sale by GK – Self Scanning Service. Gray item prices in the virtual shopping basket represent offline prices, which are not currently connected to the ERP software. The Self Scanning Client is still able to calculate the total purchased amount based on the offline prices, but the customer must be aware that the prices in the virtual shopping basket can change when the Self Scanning Client reconnects to the store network and shows blue item prices again.