As retailers ramp up efforts to digitize store branded cards and foster customer relationships via new touchpoints, Motorola is seizing the opportunity to influence customers in-store with the launch its new Mobile Loyalty Solution.
The Enterprise Mobility Solutions division of Motorola, Inc.unveiled the solution today at NRF’s Big Show in New York City. Delivered as a managed service, the new solution is designed to help retailers foster a more personal relationship with their customers and digitize store-branded membership cards on customers’ mobile phones.
Compatible with most mobile phones in the US market, the solution is designed to provide customers with a more convenient shopping experience by offering access to the best offers and discounts on products that interest them.
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The new Mobile Loyalty solution can act as an extension to an existing retail loyalty program or serve as an alternative option for retailers looking to create a new program. and enable retailers to proactively send offers and incentives to the customer’s mobile phone. The platform is ultimately aimed at helping to eliminate the need for membership cards and paper coupons.
By mobilizing the card, retailers are afforded the opportunity to increase program participation, and shoppers are rewarded with special offers, more convenient access to customized coupons and a quicker check-out experience.
Customers can opt in to the program online or in the store by text messaging a short code to indicate interest in receiving offers on their mobile phone. Customers then receive a mobile application with a bar code on their mobile phone that acts as the shopper’s unique identifier or mobile loyalty card and can be scanned at the point of sale.
The solution is designed to approach loyalty with a ”closed-loop” system that allows retailers to maintain a rich database of shopper product interests, purchase habits and preferences. While Motorola manages distribution to the program members, retailers can focus on creating relevant marketing messages, as well as determining how frequently coupons and offerings are sent.
The launch of the new service from Motorola comes in response to a dramatic uptick in mobile usage among consumers. For example, consumer use of mobile coupons will generate close to $6 billion globally in retail redemption value by 2014, according to Juniper Research.
An annual research study of holiday shoppers from Motorola’s Enterprise Mobility Solutions’ group identified that consumers across 11 countries turned to their mobile phones for in-store activities spanning multi-channel comparison shopping, peer feedback, product information, and coupons, which all signal the increasing importance for retailers to adopt mobile shopper technology strategies to remain competitive.
The study found that the usage and impact of mobile shopping technologies exploded during the 2009 holiday shopping season. 64% of Gen Y (age 18 to 34) shoppers utilized their mobile phones for in-store shopping-related activities during the holiday season. In addition, all surveyed age-segments cited interest in next-generation retail technologies, demonstrating the growing consumer demand for real-time information to make better informed shopping decisions.
“Consumer use of the mobile phone is evolving, and its importance during the shopping experience is increasing significantly,” said Dana Warszona, Global Lead for the m-commerce portfolio within Motorola’s Enterprise Mobility Solutions division. “With a growing number of smart phone users and the enhanced capability of their operating platforms, an era where a constant digital connection via a mobile phone enhances the consumer’s shopping experience has begun.”
Warszona said the mobile phone has become a business critical tool, and advises retailers to integrate the mobile device into their strategy to meet present and future customer needs. She added that the new Mobile Loyalty Solution is the first in a planned series of mobile commerce offerings designed to help retailers create a great shopping experience for their best customers.
