Majority of the retail customers are asking us to help them with their mobile strategy, while the perfect mobile strategy has yet to be devised. What I recommend to our customers is to first develop a strategy for their web site which includes mobility support as one of the major driver. They should have a clean, mobile-optimized site with easy-to-read pages that load quickly, easy-to-use shopping carts, and smooth checkouts. Most retailers wants to include app into their mobile strategy, they think that this help them drive traffic. That is not the case according to data from Mckinsey “Having an app doesn’t always translate into traffic: half of those who installed an app stopped using it entirely”. Basic functionality is more important to customers. The easier it is for a customer to navigate the mobile site, add and drop items from their shopping cart and check out, the more likely is that the mobile customer will be less frustrated and will have an easy and pleasant experience. The customer will more likely to complete his/her transaction.
The digitization value comes from driving self-service at all levels both on the customer and employee side. A well thought out digital strategy with mobile site as the main driver will enable business capabilities that will make customers rely less on the associates to make their selection and check out. Good digital tools along tying the online and in-store inventories with the mobile apps will make associates more valuable in delivering great users experiences and building customer loyalty. Nicely developed apps with feature like order tracking, items availability updates, and items comparisons on the top of the great mobile site will enhance over all customer experience.
The best way to carve a sound mobile strategy for any retailer is to take a disciplined approach and develop a deep understanding of the decision journey their shoppers undertake and what they really value when it comes to mobile shopping.
Technology Leader - CTO 