Why invest in Mobile Commerce (mCommerce)?

If your store is available on a mobile device, it doesn’t necessarily mean, it is mCommerce-friendly. Here are some features your mobile app must have in order to fully harness the power of mobile commerce.

But first, why not start at the beginning …

What is mCommerce and why should retailers care?

The term mobile commerce encompasses all devices that can be used unplugged and typically include a touch screen, such as iPads, tablets, smartphones, certain laptops, etc. as such, mCommerce doesn’t constrain the user to sit at the computer to perform any type of transaction, a transaction can occur at any moment and at any time.

The ability to connect with the customer right there at the moment of interaction with the product they’re interested in is the real power of mCommerce. Mobile commerce brings retailers closer to their customers, allowing for a unique and customized interaction.

Must-have features for your mCommerce-friendly app

We’ve already discussed why mobile commerce is far more than just the ability to browse through your shop on a mobile device. Here are some main characteristics that make mobile commerce powerful. Use them wisely:

1. Personalized commerce. Display products that are only relevant to your customer. Utilize user location, interests, social media profiles, items viewed, etc. to tailor the shopping experience unique to your customer’s needs.
2. Notification system. Use this unique-to-mobile-devices unobtrusive feature to alert your customer about new products, upcoming sales and events, or update them with their order details.
3. Buy anywhere, anytime. With the digital wallet and good connectivity, customers can now check out the product on their phone without any constraints, typically much faster with a mobile device that can offer them products literally with one swipe of a finger.
4. Use mobile as POS. Mobile devices come with a standard powerful set of features that can be adapted to commerce use. Use cameras to scan barcodes, and the existing mobile wallet to streamline the checkout process, and create a user-friendly, quick-to-operate POS system.
5. Permanently online. Mobile WAP system (Wireless Application Protocol) allows its users to be connected to the world wide web literally anywhere at any time, making communication between you and your customers a walk in the park.

The power of xCommerce

Consumers nowadays are rarely truly offline. The use of smartphones increases every year. eMarketer estimates that by 2021, mobile eCommerce sales are expected to account for 54% of total ecommerce sales. At the same time, commerce is breaking all-time high record sales, be it digital or physical. Consumers are breaking the rules as we know it, they interact digitally with brick and mortars and blur the lines between online and offline.

This world of chaos is there to be harnessed only by the most daring retailers who know how to supercharge their commerce strategy by investing in a unique stack of commerce technology that seamlessly interacts between any chosen channel.

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