Mobile Commerce Minute

The latest study by eMarketer confirms what we already suspected: Digital coupons have migrated over to mobile. This should not come as huge news to most of us but it does confirm a few things around how coupons are being used today. The biggest is how we use our devices to redeem coupons: We know that tablets are the dominant redemption device today but that will change as more of us are using tablets to research and clip but smartphones to redeem. Will the mobile coupon unseat its forefather, the printed coupon? Not yet says Chuck.

When you ask consumers what they want in their mobile wallet the overwhelming response shouldn't surprise anyone. The answer isn't payment cards or loyalty cards or pretty much anything that anyone is building right now. The #1 response, according to a recent study by T|SYS|, is...the driver's license. This shines a bright light on the disconnect between what is being built out there and what will actually provide value. This episode highlights some great learnings from the study and asks the question about why Square is walking away from their version of the mobile wallet.

A new study by Gallup suggests that the vast majority of consumers spend their hard-earned money inside of stores. Not on the web, not on the mobile web and certainly not from a mobile app. In fact, close to 60% of consumers aren't being impacted by mobile at all and 22% of consumers are actually being driven into the store from mobile. The downside? 19% are shopping less. Is showrooming's short existence over? Have retailers adapted to the mobile-first world? This episode highlights it all for you.

The latest e-tailing group merchant survey (their 13th annual) shows the disconnect between what retailers say versus what they do. The vast majority of those in the survey say that mobile is critical to their business however only a very small percentage of those same retailers are investing the appropriate amounts in their mobile strategy. The most staggering number? How about the 11% of retailers that aren't planning on spending ANYTHING on their mobile strategy this year...they must have nailed it the first time, right?

A recent report by eMarketer puts mobile payments in context - both as a percentage of spending and how it differs across the globe. The one undeniable fact is that the growth is happening here, there and everywhere. This episode highlights the key points of the report as well as shows this truly global phenomenon is, er, truly global. Look east and you'll see a clearer path to mobile commerce adoption you will...

Lines.

 

Seems simple enough no? An Edmonton, Canada (yes!) boutique retailer called Lux found out how to succeed with in-aisle payments when they recently introduced it inside their store. The key was to have a busy store and long checkout lines. Take those two factors and add the ability to download an app, pay where you stand and walk out instead of waiting in said long lines and success was had. A simple but valuable lesson on how/when/where to begin with this type of offering.

 

Canadians eh? We are smarter than your average bear.

Now that the dust is starting to settle on the first wave of mobile's influence on the retail industry there are a certain number of truths that have emerged. The first is that stores are necessary - so much so that 94% of sales happen within it. The second is that the impact mobile has on the way and how much we buy is staggering. What hasn't changed, despite all the retail innovations when it comes to mobile, is our disdain for sales people.

 

All this is from a recent Deloitte Digital survey entitled "The New Digital Divide" and the key highlights are summarized in this episode.

Flurry's recent study on mobile usage showcases the ferocity with which we've adopted smartphones into our lives and the addictive behaviour that comes with it. While the Flurry breaks our mobile app usage into three categories - regular user, super users and addicts - Chuck takes a different approach in showcasing the diminishing gap between all of them. We are all trending towards addicted... 

Targeting a customer while they are in a store is set to become a big business and for good reason. Emerging technologies like Apple's iBeacon and other low energy Bluetooth-enabled (BLE) beacons are descending and may seem complicated and imposing however there are 2 very distinct ways they can be used. What will emerge is a deeper set of data that will help shape the future of retail just watch out for that creepy line, you don't want to cross it...

Does mobile influence what bank we put our money into? A recent study by Harris Poll on behalf of BancVue highlights the influence mobile has on the emerging mobile generation and how they decide which of the banks they will form a long-term (often lifetime) relationship with. The simple fact is that mobile does have a say in this - a very big say.