4 Ways Smartphones Are Changing Consumer Shopping Behavior

4 Ways Smartphones Are Changing Consumer Shopping Behavior

Two-thirds of smartphone or tablet owners have used their devices to make purchases and more than 80% have used them to help in the purchase decision, according to the new L.E.K. Consulting Mobile Commerce Survey.

The survey also found that 39% actually make purchases with their handheld devices at least every month (excluding music and video downloads), with 60% using smart phones to research purchases each month in a variety of ways. L.E.K. divides these two groups into “Active Mobile Consumers” and “Mobile Window Shoppers.”

The survey also identified four trends that businesses should monitor:

1. Price Harmonization: During the past six months, more than half of Active Mobile Consumers surveyed reported using at least one mobile coupon app (e.g., Coupon Clipper), nearly one-third checked a pricing comparison tool (e.g., RedLaser), and 29% tapped a loyalty or similar tool (e.g., Shopkick). And they did this while standing in store aisles.

In other words, consumers have the necessary price information at their fingertips so harmonization is now essential.

2. Deeper Customer Relationships: More than half of Active Mobile Consumers are willing to share their location with brands in exchange for real-time offers when they “check in” via Foursquare or similar geolocation-based apps, which is twice the rate of Mobile Window Shoppers. And 37% of Active Mobile Consumers are willing to have brands track them all the time in order to receive special deals.

However, brands must provide the right incentives to keep mobile consumers engaged and willing to share certain information. Marketing tactics with an immediate payoff resonate strongly with this consumer group (e.g., coupons, discounts, rewards or loyalty points).

3. Social Media Influence: Active Mobile Consumers are much less influenced by traditional information sources than their older counterparts. Instead, they turn to independent reviews, friends and family for recommendations before making purchases; and mobile puts these powerful influences in the palm of their hand in the aisle.

4. Flash Retailers: The immediacy of mobile shopping creates new opportunities for consumers to keep up with the latest deals on flash sales sites like Gilt Groupe and Rue La La. More than 40% of Active Mobile Consumers use flash sites, which is more than twice the percentage of Mobile Window Shoppers.

Flash sites are also disrupting the market by capturing share of planned purchases from other channels.

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4 questions to ask before developing a mobile app - iMediaConnection.com (4)

4 questions to ask before developing a mobile app - iMediaConnection.com

4. Could this be perceived as a junk app?

App stores' approval policies have recently come under fire, with users wondering why certain apps are not approved for distribution, while others are deemed worthy with no red tape. Marketers, consumers, and smartphone companies alike want to avoid cluttering their stores with so-called "junk apps" -- those apps populating the stores that have little to no value and get in the way of more meaningful content. Some companies have flooded app stores with multiple iterations of the same app, or apps that actually cheat users by appearing credible when they really don't meet any of the user's needs.

A mobile application is truly an extension of your brand promise and should be taken as seriously. As I mentioned in an earlier example, some marketers make the mistake of getting out there too early with a subpar mobile app experience that doesn't deliver. In doing so, they harm their relationship with their audience and could hinder their ability to convert or transact within the mobile space for future iterations. Remember, consumers only need one bad experience, online or on a mobile device, to send them to your competition. Don't jump into the mobile app space too quickly at the expense of brand loyalty.

To app, or not to app: That is the question

The frenzy around smartphone adoption rates, devices, app development, and downloads is impossible to ignore, and it seems like everyone wants a piece of the action.

As a digital marketer, carefully consider the risks associated with getting out of the gate early with an app that misses the mark. Think about your audience and its needs; what unique value will your app provide? What role should your mobile app play within your brand conversation and overall digital strategy?

Focus on your content and audience by thinking about the mobile experience you want people to have with your brand. Are they walking to the bus or sitting on the bus? Or both? Be sure to design and develop uniquely for each device, and don't stretch usage and content at the cost of user experience.

Don't forget to measure. The capabilities are there -- use them!

These are exciting times. Mobile application development is reminiscent of the early days of the internet. Instead of websites, it's mobile applications, and like those early days, everyone is scrambling to participate. But we've learned so much since those early days, and just participating is no longer enough. Our audience demands substance over stunts, and the competing brands covet audience loyalty.

Be mindful as you develop your mobile strategy. Think about your audience and the unique role your mobile app can play in providing value. The game hasn't changed -- we're just getting more tools. The prize remains the same.

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4 questions to ask before developing a mobile app - iMediaConnection.com (3)

4 questions to ask before developing a mobile app - iMediaConnection.com

2. What is the best delivery platform?

While considering the unique needs of your audience, remember to also think about the device best suited for your brand's mobile experience. Broad-stroke decisions are easy to make based on overall market share within the smartphone lineup, but with the arrival of the iPad, we have a new tier of mobile experience to consider.

The iPad offers significantly increased real estate along with a new dimension in mobile browsing. While a user will often view mobile content on-the-go while walking to the bus or moving between meetings, the iPad -- and subsequent soon-to-be-released tablet devices -- offers a more coherent mobile browsing experience.

So, generally speaking, do you need an iPhone or an iPad app? Do you need both? One thing is certain: The two experiences should be custom designed, capitalizing on the unique feature sets and capabilities that each device offers. Many marketers have already made the mistake of thinking they can simply tweak their iPhone apps to make an iPad apps. This mindset equates to the misguided notion that having a website means you already have a mobile-optimized website.

You must consider each delivery system and design experiences to fit that product. Your audience will thank you for it, and your brand will reap the benefits.

3. How will I measure the effectiveness of my app?

You can't manage what you can't measure. As marketers in this day and age, we need to think about ROI with every advertising dollar we spend, and we cannot create a mobile app without a strategy for measuring an app's effectiveness.

Today's mobile devices have full browser functionality. Mobile sites support Javascript and cookies and can be tracked like any other site, giving us the ability to track site usage and visitor behavior. However, this tracking model requires a direct internet connection, which is not necessarily common for app users. To overcome this challenge, analytics features must be built into the app while it is still in development so that tracking features are inherent in the app and can then log data and send it to a server once an internet connection is established. Today's app analytics offering can track app usage, visitor behavior, opens, app features and actions, conversion paths, and device information.

Marketers should think about metrics first and then implement tools early to effectively leverage user data within their mobile applications. Protect your investment by learning from user behavior and feedback, and make changes as needed on an ongoing basis. While a frenzy can be chaotic, it also signifies activity -- and lots of it. Put the appropriate analytics in place early to harness that activity and use the generated data to your advantage.

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4 questions to ask before developing a mobile app - iMediaConnection.com (2)

4 questions to ask before developing a mobile app - iMediaConnection.com

Here are four questions to ask yourself when considering mobile application development:

1. Should I app?

Identify the unique value a mobile application would provide for your audience. Our relationship with our audience has clearly changed. As marketers, we no longer create one carefully constructed message using mass media channels to broadcast out to a large passive audience. We now send many targeted messages through specific channels to an engaged and educated audience. They know what they want and how to find it. When today's consumers come to the app store looking for your brand, make sure they're finding and experiencing something that supports and enhances your brand promise and takes into account the unique opportunities inherent in a mobile experience.

An app should be viewed as one tool in your marketing toolbox, not a must-have and certainly not just because it's in vogue. Take a step back and ask yourself if your app strategy fits within your comprehensive digital and mobile strategies and aligns with your business goals. If it doesn't make sense, don't do it.

Consider your audience carefully. Do they want a mobile app? Do they need a mobile app? Will a mobile app increase opportunities for meaningful brand interactions? Will a mobile app build on your brand in a significant way?

The life of a successful mobile app can certainly be measured by the number of initial downloads, but even more so by the subsequent updates installed. If a user is updating an app as updates become available, presumably the app has remained relevant and useful. The app is providing ongoing value to the user and has become an integral part of that person's mobile life.

Facebook's mobile application is an excellent example of the right way to build an app. Facebook's apps are some of the most downloaded and heavily adopted mobile applications across iPhone, Android, and BlackBerry users. Facebook's app is so valuable that many Facebook users no longer log into facebook.com on computers anymore, but exclusively use the mobile app to access content and interact with friends. In fact, at any given moment, more than 100 million folks are accessing Facebook via a mobile app. Consider Facebook's total number of active users: 500 million. The usage and widespread adoption across platforms indicates that Facebook successfully defined user experience and functionality needs, delivered well, and is providing value to their audience.

MLB-At-Bat is another app that clearly and accurately defined an audience and their needs, and addressed those needs perfectly. Price point and sales figures alone indicate that the audience is seeing value in the app's in-game experience, pitch-by-pitch batter's view, almost-instant video replay, and live streaming. Users can even tweet real-time during the game to talk trash with fellow fans and rivals from the opposing team. MLB-At-Bat created a perfect environment for fans to interact in meaningful ways, thus leading to greater brand affinity.

Nike has successfully integrated an innovative product and full-scale website community with its Nike+ mobile app. This app reads data from a chip in a user's shoe while, and after, they run, tracking their distance and time. The app then ties into a mobile device/smartphone and keeps track of a runner's history. Reaching certain milestones initiates motivational messages, changes musical choices and tempos, and delivers messages from professional athletes like Lance Armstrong. The app ties into a larger running community, where users can upload times, buy gear, compare running performance with friends, set up challenges or virtual races, and map out running routes.

However, for every valuable app there are several apps that either fail to deliver on the brand promise, don't make sense for their user, or are too redundant in the mobile app market to be effective.

E*Trade launched its app too early with limited features and ultimately failed to provide useful information in a meaningful way. What information its app does offer can be found for free in other places and is presented in a more usable format and better UI elsewhere.

The popular online money management web service, Mint.com, has yet to realize its full potential as a mobile application. The opportunity for a mobile app that allows users to access their financial information, manage accounts, and create budgets is definitely there, but the app's current form doesn't deliver maximum value. The functionality and features offered are so limited that it doesn't exist as a useful extension of, or meaningful counterpart to, the website.

This is an example -- one of many -- of an app that could have had great potential, but probably got out there too early with an inferior product. With such a choice, you risk customer loyalty, and you might not get a second chance. With often only a fraction of the development timelines of that of a website or larger digital marketing initiative, some marketers jump the gun and rush to launch. Consumers are being spoiled by the well-constructed, valuable apps, and likely won't be forgiving of a mobile letdown, especially if there is another mobile app option available to save the day. Plan carefully and launch only when you're ready to do so.

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4 questions to ask before developing a mobile app - iMediaConnection.com (1)

 4 questions to ask before developing a mobile app - iMediaConnection.com

More than one-fifth of the people on Earth now own a smartphone. The rate of smartphone adoption is increasing at an extraordinary pace, bringing with it a crop of users eager to download mobile applications -- and lots of them. The average iPhone user has downloaded an astounding 37 apps onto his or her device, and with more than 150,000 apps to choose from in Apple's app store, users downloaded more than 3 billion apps in the 18 months following the store's opening.

With these kinds of numbers, savvy marketers would do well to ask themselves the question, "Do I need an app?"

We haven't seen a frenzy like this since everybody needed a website. Unfortunately, frenzy can often be accompanied by its close friends, folly and foolish. Too many marketers today are creating apps just to create apps, not because of an audience want or need, or because an app would fit well into their overall brand experiences. Too many apps are being created by brands big and small to simply allow companies to be able to say that they have an app.

All the world's a stage, but not all the world needs an app.

Consider the opportunity an app presents carefully, and don't underestimate the role -- whether positive or negative -- a mobile application can play within your digital strategy. The current volume of apps is so great that it truly seems like there's an app for everything. There's an app to calculate your tip, one that you can use as a flashlight, an app giving you access to the complete works of William Shakespeare -- even an app that teaches you how to develop apps. There are good apps and bad apps, useful apps and those that are not so useful. App stores are filled with apps that provide no value to the customer; remember that these types of apps can actually harm your brand. Harm your brand, and you risk losing a lifetime of loyalty.

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How to integrate mobile into all your campaigns - iMediaConnection.com (2)

How to integrate mobile into all your campaigns - iMediaConnection.com

Untethered: reaching the consumer on-the-goMobile marketing solutions also provide a digital platform that can easily complement and enrich desktop digital campaigns with the ability to extend digital marketing activities into the real world. Mobile marketing tactics can work hand-in-hand with digital marketing strategies to enhance your ongoing digital campaigns in many of the same ways outlined for traditional advertising tactics.

One of the key values of mobile to a digital campaign is its ability to transfer the brand experience from the desktop right to the consumer's pocket. Mobile-based "dial and deliver" capabilities let consumers conveniently access the offers and promotions without having to remember anything or print something out.

For example, couponing is a great way to implement online-mobile interactivity. If you want someone to have a digital coupon from Starbucks, they must click the online ad, print it out, and then remember to bring it to the coffee shop. The mobile call-to-action, for example as a Mobile Dial Code, looks more like: "To receive your coupon, simply dial **STARBUCKS."

Without any other actions required of the consumer, the offer is delivered straight to their phone. There is no break in continuity of experience, and no extra step for the consumer to take. If the goal is to drive a mobile coupon campaign, it can be effectively spawned from the digital ad without asking the consumer to print the coupon.

Further, there's an added element of measurability in these tactics. With mobile, the actual interest is measured through the consumer response to the Mobile Dial Code, as you may or may not know how many people printed out the coupon if it's from a banner advertisement. With the StarStar Code **STARBUCKS, you know how many requests for the coupon were received as well as how many of those coupons were actually redeemed making these interactions easily measured and the success easily tracked.

Mobile marketing and the success of your marketing campaign

The implications of successfully integrating mobile marketing into your ongoing campaigns are well worth the minimal cost associated with revising your advertising creatives, which for larger organizations can be as minimal as a margin of error in budgeting.

Primarily, mobile campaigns ensure that whenever consumers are presented with the opportunity, they can interact with the brand in real-time. With 90 percent of Americans carrying a mobile phone with them everywhere they go, leveraging this platform effectively means you'll have a portal to their purchase decisions and communication habits at all times.

According to an online survey conducted by Harris Interactive and commissioned by Placecast in May 2010, consumer receptivity to opt-in mobile marketing is growing. With this acceptance, the variety of promotions and creativity and innovation in how mobile is applied to campaigns will diversify.

Secondly, mobile success can be measured through metrics that deliver new and equally important guidelines for interaction. The marketing industry has become accustomed to measuring against CPCs, uniques, etc., to determine the success of a campaign. Mobile, however, allows marketers to more accurately measure the quality of the engagement by providing more insight and transparency into the number of times the coupon was redeemed per number of people that called for it, for example.

Third, mobile campaigns can expand your engagement with consumers beyond a direct response mechanism to foster ongoing communication, building brand awareness and loyalty. Follow-on activities can include offers and promotions such as coupons and mobile commerce capabilities, as well as communication offerings such as videos, MMS, and applications or games.

Advances in mobile commerce -- mobile shopping, mobile payments -- will ultimately complement the ongoing consumer engagement as mobile becomes a closed-loop platform to actually sell product, drive need, awareness, and additional advancements.

No matter what, it is important to understand the relative strengths and weaknesses of the various mobile solutions so that they integrate seamlessly and enhance the overall campaign experience. Assuring that your call-to-action works for all mobile subscribers, on any phone, and is easy and simple to use is critical to the success of the program. Solutions that require special handset software or user skills will limit response rates and program success. Focus on initiatives that will reach your target markets, be easy for consumers to understand and respond to, and give measurable results.

Finally, many mobile marketing strategies move beyond direct response to build brand awareness and better foster relationships via a real-time, always-on platform. Mobile is becoming social as consumers pass their phones around to share the latest viral video, pictures of a celebrity, great offers at a retailer, or any other update that can be accessed from their phones.

Succeeding in the year ahead, and key takeaways

In the next year, marketers and consumers will see big mainstream brands making mobile a regular part of all of their campaigns. No longer a small line item, mobile will emerge as a standard marketing spend as it integrates seamlessly and drives a direct marketing tool.

In doing so, it's important to remember four tips for successfully integrated mobile into ongoing marketing and advertising campaigns:

• Keep your target audience in mind. The mobile experience must be relevant to their expectations. 
  
  
• Expand your engagement. Provide a mobile offering that's meaningful and will have the consumer coming back to the branded response. 
  
  
• Make it memorable. There are brandable mobile solutions available to ensure your consumer can easily find you. 
  
  
• Make it easy. Relying on the consumer to learn about your engagement method may be asking too much of them.

We, as marketers, should continuously challenge the available technologies to ensure we're leveraging the most relevant and up-to-date technologies to communicate with our consumers. Integrating mobile into your ongoing marketing campaigns -- regardless of how far into the digital space the campaign may have evolved -- is paramount as it creates a real-time interaction and enhances consumer engagement in your brand.

• Tim Jemison
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How to integrate mobile into all your campaigns - iMediaConnection.com (1)

How to integrate mobile into all your campaigns - iMediaConnection.com

As mobile continues to emerge as an increasingly important marketing channel, marketers are facing a new set of challenges and opportunities in the struggle to find the most effective means for engaging consumers on their mobile phones.

To date, mobile marketing has been regarded as a stand-alone channel, lacking integration with other key marketing initiatives. As a result, companies typically approach mobile as a series of independent initiatives such as "a text campaign," "a mobile website" or "an app."

Instead, mobile needs to be viewed as an additive component of every marketing program. Mobile has the unique ability to drive interaction and brand engagement from traditional advertising activities and to connect consumers with the brand, offers, and promotions with a unique sense of individual attention.

We have evolved since the days when traditional marketing and advertising urged consumers to pick up their phone and "Call Now!" Today, phones are not simply a communications tool but an interactive marketing channel that can be used to elicit a response, engage the consumer, and deliver results.

It's time to start thinking about mobile marketing as a component of the overall marketing mix and as an overlay for all types of marketing and advertising. In the same way that "online" has evolved to become "digital," and is now an integrated part of virtually every marketing campaign, it's time for marketers to stop thinking about mobile marketing as a stand-alone activity. Mobile capabilities enable advertisers to interact with consumers like never before and can be integrated seamlessly into existing traditional and digital tactics to increase brand awareness, engagement, and return on investment.

Below, we review the variety of ways marketers can now implement mobile tactics into their ongoing campaigns, including short codes, 2D barcodes, mobile web experiences, and Mobile Dial Codes, as well as the implications of including mobile in your marketing campaigns and tips for doing so successfully.

Breathe new life into print, radio, TV, and billboard ads

Traditionally, advertising channels have included print, radio, television, and outdoor ads as a method to raise brand awareness and create demand for a product -- both of which are difficult to measure reliably. Advertisements were meant to catch someone's eye and stay ingrained in their memory to recall at a later date when the purchase can be made.

But what if we could take those traditional forms of advertising to a new level and move beyond the one-dimensional characteristics of the past to bring an element of interactivity to consumers? With mobile, this becomes a reality. Mobile can be a part of any traditional advertising campaign; it's interactive, it's personal, and it delivers a seamless engagement point between a brand and a consumer.

By including a mobile call-to-action in your one-dimensional advertisement, the mobile phone becomes an engagement platform and turns a traditional ad into a whole new way to interact with a consumer and draw them in, while also providing a reliable means for measuring the response to the advertisement. As most consumers regularly keep their mobile phone nearby, mobile is the perfect way to make a print, radio, or TV campaign memorable, engaging, and measurable.

One of the more widely recognized examples of integrating mobile into print advertising is the integration of a 2D barcode into advertisements in the Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue. The inclusion of this barcode converted the traditional advertisement into an interactive and engaging experience for the consumers, while ensuring the marketers can easily see and measure the ROI of the campaign by how many people actually responded to the advertisement.

Another recognized mobile campaign integrated into traditional advertising was the use of a short code in the American Red Cross' efforts to raise money for the Haitian earthquake victims. The TV commercials had a clear call-to-action (Text Haiti to 90999 to donate $10), it was on heavy rotation on all the prime networks, and it was extremely successful, raising more than $30 million for relief efforts.

Mobile Dial Codes are also a great call-to-action for direct marketing activities such as sweepstakes and contests, where the simple response can drive immediate enrollment and lead generation. For example the StarStar Code**INK provides consumers with a quick and easy way for them to try and win free printer ink, and provides the marketer with a ready-made database of prospects.

This integration also extends the life of a TV commercial from the 30 to 60 seconds it might be viewed on-air into an indefinite, ongoing experience because the consumer can respond to the call-to-action at their convenience over a period of minutes or hours. This means consumers don't have to get up from their couch, or go to their PC -- they can simply engage from their phone wherever they are. This means a simple TV commercial, with its hook and mobile call-to-action (SMS or Mobile Dial Code), has effectively engaged the consumer.

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