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1. Implementing Mobile
Application for Your Retail Store

2. Writen by:
Nicolas Costa
Implementing Mobile
Application for Your Retail Store
Learn the most effective ways to stand out

3. Implementing Mobile Application for Your Retail Store 01
Let’s face it, we are inseparable from our smart phones.
O ur fast paced lifestyles need them. We need them. Our electronic
sidekicks have progressed in their roles as talking/texting tools to
far, far more. Now they are with us around the clock and serve us with
unimaginably more features than most ever imagined... one of the key
ones being shopping.
The Time Is Now To Build A Native Mobile
App For Your Retail Store

4. 02
New mobile technologies make this an exciting time in retail store marketing
history.
The short but overwhelmingly positive history of mobile apps in retail has
been an exciting and profitable one for all parties involved. Opportunities in
terms of POS (Point of Sale) have exponentially increased for all business
sectors due to mobile. The retail industry especially.
Take a look at a new mobile technologies (Augmented Reality) screen
capture.. it speaks louder than words:
The entire customer shopping experience has undergone a sea change,
permanently altering how people buy products and services. Augmented
Reality, 3D Printing, Wearables, POS Technologies, Beacons and more
have taken shopping to a whole new level.
Source: VOICE & DATA
Implementing Mobile Application for Your Retail Store

5. According to a recent Voicendata article, AR mobile technology’s use in
the gaming market is not going anywhere:
Macy’s is a perfect example of a large retail store with a well working
native application in place.
Because of their confidence in mobile marketing, Macy’s have stepped up
to be the pioneers in iBeacon technology.
They recently adopted a one of the newest forms of mobile technology in
ShopBeacon. Macy’s two largest and most popular retail stores, San Fran-
cisco and New York, currently are operating with this new feature
Macy’s is one of the more experienced now that they’ve initiated iBeacon
technologies into their mobile marketing plans.
“The Augmented Reality (AR)
apps in the mobile games
market will generate 420 million
downloads annually by 2019, up
from 30 million in 2014,
according to data from Juniper
Research.”
Augmented Reality is one of
many new avenues retail shops
now have at their disposal to
increase their numbers across
the board. With all the
possibilities to and strategies to
try, it can be a bit overwhelming
at first. Like with most things it
is best to keep it simple and
learn from those more
experienced.
A Real World Example Of Mobile
Marketing’s Capabilities
03Implementing Mobile Application for Your Retail Store

6. 04
With Beacon technology installed and live in action, they more than even
out the playing field. Macy’s Chief Executive Terry Lundgren spoke of their
ShopBeacon in an analyst conference in late 2014,
"We can find out where you are
standing and how long you've
been standing in front of the
Michael Kors handbag and if you
haven't purchased...And if you
haven't, I'll send you a little note
to give you encouragement to do
so."
Rewards, gift cards and various
other incentives make people
gladly opt-in to the ShopBeacon
technology retail app. Who
doesn’t want to save a buck or
two? American Eagle Outfitters
is another retailer on the early
adopter list of ShopBeacons’.
They have it installed in 100
stores within major cities
nationwide.
Not too long ago, we weren’t sure if mobile marketing was just fad or if it
was poised to be the next great thing in marketing since the internet… well
now we’re sure.. mobile marketing is the real deal.
Brian Solomon reveals positive numbers in a recent Flurry Mobile study:
“..shopping app usage grew faster than any other category of apps. Ses-
sions on shopping apps on iOS and Android devices increased by 174%
year-over-year, including 220% on Android alone. That’s up from 77% last
year.”
Mobile Marketing For Retail Is On The Rise
And Going Strong
Implementing Mobile Application for Your Retail Store

7. 05
These numbers are for 2013 to 2014 and all indications show even
stronger numbers in favor of mobile marketing in 2015. You can see in the
diagram below how mobile has grown over 76% in one year from 2013 to
2014.
And amongst the mobile app growth sector elite is just one, “Lifestyle and
Shopping.” This needs to be ringing alarms if you’re in retail and have not
thought about building out your custom app yet...
0%
45%
174%
121%
103%
89% 89%
74%
49%
33%
30%
Lifestyle
& Shopping
Utilities &
Productivity
Messaging
Social
Health &
Fitness
Travel Sports News &
Magazines
Music,
Media &
Entertainment
Games
90%
Average
76%
2013-2014Year-Over-YearGrowthRate
135%
180%
Source: Flurry Analytics
Mobile Use Grows 76% Year-Over-Year
(Sessions)
Implementing Mobile Application for Your Retail Store

8. 06
So, what does this mean for retailers?
It means you as a retailer are poised to benefit from mobile marketing’s
growing awareness and usage. It’s here. It’s going strong. And it thrives
within brick and mortar retail shopping.
The beauty behind native mobile apps is the fact that they attract more
in-store customers who then shop more often with them. If you’re thinking
mobile apps are the same thing as “ecommerce”, you are mistaken.
From augmented reality and mobile payments, to iBeacons and in-store
digital signage...
Mobile marketing is so much more than an
online transaction. It’s a marketer’s new
favorite toy.
Does Retail Success Depend On Mobile
Apps?
Implementing Mobile Application for Your Retail Store

9. 07
Understanding the true potential of native mobile applications gives oppor-
tunity to express the product/service in the best way possible; through
virtual shopping windows and unrelenting personalized consumer experi-
ences.
Thanks to human shopping behaviours, having a fully functional mobile
app for your retail store is now a necessity rather than a luxury or add-on
option to consider.
Learn How Mobile Apps Are A Win For
Retailers:
Continuous Visibility to Customers is guaranteed - A well
designed app icon or text image registers in the minds of clients as
they browse their phone. Did you know? An average person
spends over 2 hours per day on apps. This means more chances
of getting noticed by the customer even when they are not actively
looking to buy something.
One-to-one Marketing Channel - Apps save money and effort
involved in advertising the USPs of your offering. Retailers can
have direct access to customers via location based push
notifications to share promotions, seasonal sales, deals, exclusive
stocks, news feeds and works.
Implementing Mobile Application for Your Retail Store

10. 08
Value Creation - Delighting a customer is not limited to useful
info. But has transcended to giving special coupons, discounts and
loyalty rewards via mobile apps. This implies more app downloads,
suggest to friend recommendations, favorable feedback and return
business.
Brand Building and Recognition - Mobile apps serve as
wonderful billboards. When used wisely to involve customers, they
can turn prospects into active buyers by the sheer charm exuded
through its design.
Edge over Competition - Assumption that every retailer has an
app might prove wrong. There is a huge scope to gain an
advantageous head start in capturing that market share with your
shopping app. Not only it’s a cool way to connect but also conveys
the message of “futuristic” thinking on your part.
Long Term Customer Loyalty - Customers today are ready to
share their location and personal details with your retail app as
long as they receive value in return. This in turn creates loyalty.
Instead of being present anywhere and everywhere throughout
social media platforms, focus your online retail marketing strategy
on a do-it-all app that brings you right to your customers’ finger-
tips.
Implementing Mobile Application for Your Retail Store

11. A survey study by Compuware has shown that “85% of consumers prefer
to shop on apps rather than mobile websites” owing it to the convenience,
speed and ease of use apps provide.
While devising your mobile app strategy, you will need to weigh all the
pros and cons; your available budget, intended app purposes, features you
want built, level of customization and target audience.
Before Developing Your Mobile App
Strategy…
09
Before jumping in blindly, here are some thoughts you should consider:
Will the mobile app give you the required ROI?
While the excitement of doing something new is comprehensible,
the strategy should be financially viable and increase the market
share.
Does the app support all stages of successful purchasing by
customer? Aspects like Inventory Management, Customer
Support, Sales Associate Training or Online Payment Platform
should not be missed while chalking out the mobile plan.
What are the hardware and device options for your app?
Doing thorough research on what devices and hardware platforms
work for your purpose is crucial and pays off in long term.
Development and Maintenance costs should be taken into the ambit
at this stage.
Implementing Mobile Application for Your Retail Store

12. 10
Do you want your app to talk to the customers even when
they are offline? Some additional investment in the app
development can ensure the data is stored locally on the phone to
allow browsing of the downloaded content even when there is no
Internet connectivity.
How do you want to increase the traffic on your mobile app?
Retail Marketing team need to take a call what will drive user
traffic - Exclusive features, promotions/offers, ease of use, variety
basket of brands/goods or relevant product alerts. This is
imperative if a business is trying to open up new revenue streams
or enhance brand loyalty.
How to structure the feedback and measure success?
Engage the customers and sales associates to know whether the
mobile app process give desired results. Improve the process by
consumer choice analytics, running a quick check on quarterly
sales and overall streamlining of new technology with customer
expectations.
Mobile Apps for Retail – Next Level
Expectations:
As the number of retailers relying on mobile apps for sales keeps surging,
both the approach and output of these apps is expected to become more
integrative and highly responsive to customer needs.
Many use retail mobile apps on their tablets too. However, phones are the
most heavily used.
Implementing Mobile Application for Your Retail Store

13. 11
How Do People Search On Mobile Devices?
40%
Search on
Their Tablet
60%
Search on
Their Phone
Source: iACQUIRE
Here are a few ideas to keep in mind while creating your mobile strategy
deployment plan:
Manage the challenge of newer additional devices in terms of
remotely tracking and deploying apps.
Continuous improvement of business process to make it more
customer friendly with innovative add-ons and benefits.
Implementing Mobile Application for Your Retail Store

14. Making the apps more localized and social, thereby giving
customers exactly what they want. It should be able to speak with
other social networking platforms.
Active and comprehensive help to the customer while shopping on
mobile apps has to undergo some revamping to be really useful.
Detailed FAQs, reliability of product reviews, customer support via
email and call needs to be prompt without lengthy procedures.
Build on the “in-store” functionality in locations where it is yet to
be made popularized like any other common app feature. This will
allow the customers to view store layouts, create shopping list, get
proximity alerts and get personalized offers on the go.
Enhance the maturity of app offering by taking into account the
quality of rich media like videos, 360-degree product views and
product zoom features. Barcode scanning also has to play catch up
in terms of frequency of use.
With around 70-75% mobile
searches leading to purchase
within 1 hour as per iAcquire,
there is no escaping from the
fact that “Smartphone owners
are Smartphone Shoppers”.
Banking on this here-to-stay-
for-a-long-time trend, the retail
industry needs to accelerate the
efforts in securing the
consumer’s attention and interest
through mobile apps.
12Implementing Mobile Application for Your Retail Store

15. Tech-savvy customers are the future shoppers, and mobile apps serve as
the medium that will power retail into the future.
13
The potential with mobile applications native to their store is massive, and
the emerging technologies and trends are not slowing down. New apps are
being released often, and with that comes exciting, new and improved
interfaces.
The question now makes it not if, but how will you use mobile technolo-
gies in your retail business when you start using them to grow your brand
awareness, loyal customer base, and bottom line?
Implementing Mobile Application for Your Retail Store