The rise of mobility has caused a shift in how people shop and how retailers engage with these consumers.
There are subtle nuances of mobile shoppers that retailers are encouraged to take note of. For one, they demand information quickly and easily. But at the same time, they also want rich experiences that are personalized and memorable.
During the eTail East conference in Philadelphia, Josh Bernoff, SVP of Idea Development at Forrester discussed the mobile mind shift.
Advertisement
This shift indicates “a real change in the way you think,” Bernoff said. “Instead of going online, you’re always connected and you just expect things to be there. It changes every relationship and the way companies behave."
Currently, most organizations think of mobile by devices, sites and apps. However, mobile’s importance is far more significant, according to Bernoff. The clear value of mobile is the ability to give customers everything they want, in context.
To help attendees better understand the importance of mobile and its potential power, Bernoff outlined six truths about mobile selling:
- Mobile selling is not like e-Commerce: Specifically, retailers need to create urgency and drive value to boost conversions via mobile.
- Mobile is not a channel: "If you think it is, and it is evaluated in its own silo, you’re missing the point,” Bernoff said. “It is supposed to be integrated with everything else and is part of the whole shopping experience.”
- Mobile is more about influence than selling: Bernoff pointed to a statistic from Deloitte, which confirmed that digital interactions will influence more than $1 trillion in retail sales.
- Mobile levels pricing: Smartphones empower consumers to access prices, offers and products anywhere and anytime, Bernoff noted. Mobile levels the playing field for retailers and, in turn, they need to fight to capture consumer eyes and dollars.
- Mobile helps sell more to loyal customers: Bernoff shared Alex and Ani as an example of a retailer using mobile POS to improve in-store sales and create better customer experiences. By partnering with Mobiquity, Alex and Ani integrated the mPOS system with in-house POS and gave associates the opportunity to complete purchases anywhere in the store.
- Mobile helps sell big-ticket items: Because consumers have more time to research products, they can take their time in making decisions, especially for big-ticket items.
Bernoff concluded: “If you recognize these truths, then you’re on your way to success in a mobile world."
