Using Smartphones to Engage Consumers and Drive Shoppers to In-Store Purchases

Since the Smart phones arrived, it has changed the business model for Retailers.

Mobile is Transforming Retail:

Retailers are under enormous pressure to adjust both internal and customer-facing business strategies in order to keep pace with rapidly evolving consumer demands, and most are not evolving fast enough, according to a survey and report, "How Mobile is Transforming Retail," commissioned by SAP's Economist Intelligence Unit.

The report, based on a consumer survey across 39 countries, identified three key mobile imperatives to retail growth:

1. Address generational differences in shopper behavior
   The report shows that 69 percent of consumers polled use smartphones and desktops for shopping in equal measure — but 81 percent of millennial respondents said they mainly use smartphones for the purpose
2. Prioritize the user experience to attract and retain customers.
   Of those who shop infrequently from mobile devices, 63 percent blame small screen size and 38 percent cite awkward navigation as the obstacle. Among those who do not yet use mobile devices to request product samples, 51 percent believe they will do so in the future
3. Close the gap in mobile shopping functionality.
   In a few years, a generation whose shopping habits have matured alongside that of mobile technology will become the mainstay of retail spending in developed economies.

The report also found:

• About 60 percent of those polled used their mobile devices to comparison shop.
• Of those polled, 76 percent said in-store staff using mobile devices to ring up purchases appeals.

The increasing use of mobile shopping functionality threatens retailers who fail to meet this group's expectations for more sophisticated mobile shopping services, especially as the group's purchasing power grows.

Mobile shopping continues to grow in its reach and breadth. But as demand for more sophisticated services picks up, particularly among Millennials, shoppers will be less forgiving of services that fall short. As retailers shift or expand their mobile service offerings, a cohesive strategy considering consumer capabilities and needs across multiple touch points, from the physical store to desktops and smartphones, is paramount.

How Mobile Drives Shoppers to In-Store Purchases:

Mobile shopping has reached some remarkable new milestones.

Mobile shopping-related searches increased 120% in the last year, a review of Google data shows. With this growth, retailers are finding that mobile plays a critical role in driving shoppers in-store. Shoppers now reach for their smartphones in every kind of micro-moment, from "I want to be inspired" and "I want to learn more," to "I want to buy" (and crucially, "I want to buy again") moments.

These moments represent a tremendous opportunity for brands. Because with mobile, marketers have the unique power to match marketing messages with signals of intent, identity and context. What kind of person is shopping? What is that person looking for? Where is that person right now? With mobile, marketers know.

Recent Google search data and mounting third-party evidence has given us new insights into how marketers can engage shoppers in these micro-moments, How marketers can engage shoppers in these micro-moments. Here's what recently can be learned:

1. Mobile is the "front door to the store."That's the phrase the retail giant Target now uses after learning that three-fourth of its guests start their shopping journey on mobile and that one-third of guests who click on a mobile search ad take a trip to a Target store.
2. Consumers are hungrier than ever for local information.Google searches with phrases such as "near me," "closest" and "nearby" have more than doubled in the past year. In fact, a 2015 Google consumer survey found that 50% of consumers who conduct a local search on their smartphone visit a store within a day  and 18% of those searches lead to a purchase.
3. Ads that show local inventory drive shoppers into stores.One in four people who avoid stores say it's because they don't know if a product is in stock. If you're an Omnichannel retailer, showing shoppers the items you have in stock at nearby stores can be half the battle. For example, after adopting Google's Local Inventory Ads, which show actual store inventory to online searchers, Sears Hometown and Outlet Stores saw a 122% increase in store visits. Furthermore, Local Inventory Ads drove $8 of in-store sales for each dollar invested.

1. Smartphones are the new in-store adviser.Eighty-two percent of shoppers say they consult their phones on purchases they're about to make in a store. Amazingly, nearly one in four shoppers say they have changed their minds while in a checkout line after looking up details on a smartphone. The beauty and body-care retailer Sephora  has been a leader in treating in-store mobile behavior as a major opportunity: It encourages in-store customers to scan products into Sephora's mobile app to receive product ratings, reviews and other key information.
2. Omnichannel shoppers spend more.According to MasterCard, customers who shop both online and off with a specific retailer buy 250% more on average. Macy's discovered that its omnichannel shoppers are eight times more valuable than those who shop in a single channel.

Taken together, the numbers say that whether you're a global brand or a local shop, mobile is changing your shoppers' behavior in and out of the store. It's essential to be there on mobile, yes. But it's even more important to create rich and relevant experiences that connect your stores with shoppers in all their micro-moments—and encourage those shoppers to come back again and again.