{"id":5,"date":"2025-09-19T07:58:00","date_gmt":"2025-09-19T04:58:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogi.savonia.fi\/harrisavander\/?page_id=5"},"modified":"2025-09-25T16:04:53","modified_gmt":"2025-09-25T13:04:53","slug":"digi-society","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/blogi.savonia.fi\/harrisavander\/digi-society\/","title":{"rendered":"DIGI SOCIETY"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

MY EXPERIENCES WITH DIGITALIZATION IN THE RETAIL INDUSTRY<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

I work in a sports store, and over the past few years, I\u2019ve had a front-row seat to the changes that digitalization has brought to the retail industry\u2014from customer service and inventory management to marketing and beyond. The transformation has been rapid.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

One of the most noticeable changes has been in customer service. It\u2019s no longer enough to just know how a shoe fits or what kind of features a pair of skis has. Today\u2019s customers often come in already having researched products online and now they are looking for added values, something they can\u2019t find with a quick Google search. That means we need to stay updated not only on the products in-store, but also on what\u2019s available online, what campaigns are running, and what digital tools the company is using. Customers often show me a product they found on our website and ask if it\u2019s available in-store. Sometimes they\u2019ve already ordered online and are simply picking it up from the store.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Digital tools have also made my job easier in many ways. We use electronic inventory systems and smart devices that allow us to check stock availability, place orders, and monitor inventory in real time. This makes customer service more efficient and saves time searching for products. Promotions, pricing, and new arrivals update automatically in our systems, so we no longer need to do everything manually.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The growth of e-commerce has also changed the role of the physical store. Many customers shop online but come into the store and try items on or pick them up. At the same time multi-channel or omni-channel shopping is the \u201cnew normal\u201d. It means that customer experience should be seamless on every channel (online and offline, social media etc.) of the company. It means huge investments to the it-systems, logistics, marketing, education and so on. As a result, we\u2019ve become more like advisors and specialists, which makes the work more interesting, but also demands more knowledge and skills. It\u2019s important to stay up to date with both products and technologies. If you want to be part of the competition you must make those investments soon not later.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Of course, digitalization brings its own challenges. New systems and constant updates require us to adapt. At times, it feels like technology evolves faster than we can learn it. Overall, I feel that digitalization has made working in a sports store more dynamic and versatile. It\u2019s interesting to see what will happen in the near future.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

OPEN DIGITAL SOCIETY AND GDPR (General Data Protection Regulation)<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

There are some risks related to open society. I think one of the highest risks is collecting, sharing and losing personal data. For example, social media platforms, online stores and mobile apps often collect lots of user data. We are not fully aware of where or how they use it.  It\u2019s the same thing in the public sector or healthcare business. There is a huge amount of personal data and it\u2019s often private and very sensitive, so we don\u2019t want it to spread in the wrong hands. That\u2019s why we have GDPR. It\u2019s a key response to those risks.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

GDPR<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Its purpose is to ensure that personal data is handled safely, fairly and legally in the digital age. As a store manager in a sports store, I must take care of multiple things consider GDPR. Here are key points how GDPR affects my daily routines:<\/p>\n\n\n\n