The 20 most profitable retailers from 2012 now are using mobile apps to engage consumers, according to a study conducted by Digby, a mobile and location-based marketing solution provider. Findings were gathered via analysis of the STORES magazine Top 100 and Hot 100 retailer lists.
Research results indicated that 70% of retailers on the Top 100 Retailers list and 47% of brands on the Hot 100 list now offer mobile apps.
In fact, mobile app development is spreading across verticals in retail and restaurant industries, including:
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- Fast food brands (78%);
- Big box retailers (77%)
- Casual dining brands (75%);
- Specialty retailers (59%); and
- Grocers (58%).
The ongoing proliferation and adoption of mobile apps has helped bring location-based marketing more to the forefront, according to David Sikora, CEO and Founder of Digby. Supporting this claim, analysis from Digby showed that apps provided by three out of the top five retailers ask for location services. In addition, four out of the top five retailers’ mobile apps ask permission to send consumers push notifications.
Sikora noted: “By implementing location-based mobile marketing, retailers can pair powerful location detection with a contextual communication engine and best-of-breed notification capabilities to help make branded mobile applications more intelligent, relevant and engaging.”