Just 22 percent of retailers are currently using the technology to connect with customers.
Google has recently referred to mobile as “the door to the store,” citing stats that 76 percent of shoppers who search for an item on their smartphone visit a related business to look for the item within a day.
In 2015, mobile commerce comprised 30 percent of all U.S. e-commerce, and U.S. retail e-commerce dollars are projected to increase to almost $482 billion in 2018, according to PointSource. But while 91 percent of retail companies already have a mobile website, and 84 percent already have a mobile app, challenges for a successful mobile strategy go beyond just the user experience. In fact, more than half of the retail respondents in the recent State of Mobile Experience report said that they biggest challenge is finding ways to integrate mobile strategy into an overall marketing strategy.
So how can retailers use this kind of technology to engage with customers and improve the in-store experience as we head into the holiday season?
While PointSource’s recent State of Mobile Experience report found that 61 percent of retailers using loyalty apps have experienced increased engagement and another 61 percent of retailers say location-based notifications have contributed to positive results in user engagement, retailers are still struggling with the best ways to leverage in-store geolocation and are not utilizing the personalized features that could engage customers with targeted content and therefore enhance the overall shopping experience.
The study found that only 22 percent of retailers are currently using in-store geolocation technology and that discounts, coupons and loyalty rewards are also behind with just over half (57 percent) of retailers currently using mobile coupons, and 40 percent reporting use of a loyalty app.
Geolocation technologies can be incorporated in innovative ways to enhance the mobile customer experience. Understanding your target audience and their values can help retailers create and implement strategies to wow and delight mobile users.
Retailers can also use new technologies to identify individual consumers – not just devices – when they are visiting competitors or a brand’s own brick-and-mortar locations, allowing them to target specific in-market consumers at just the right moment.
