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Mmm, Mmm, M-Commerce
Smartphones, mobile apps and mobile browsers can transform your business … if you’re smart enough and quick enough to get in on the action
The demigods of technology have long warned of the demise of desktop computers and laptops. One day in the near future, they predicted, mobile devices would forever change our lives.
Well, that day has come.
Smartphones, iPads and other wireless devices are redefining the way we live, work and play. For small businesses, this seismic shift in technology has opened the door to improved operational efficiencies and higher profits.
For specialty retailers, in particular, mobile apps and related software – particularly mobile web browsers that make shopping a breeze – can lead to higher sales, stronger margins and more compelling marketing capabilities. The ex- ecution includes mobile apps designed for the back end of your business as well as the front end — including point of sale and traditional e-commerce.
If you are skeptical about leveraging the power of m-commerce, consider this: According to a recent study by ABI Research, global consumers will spend about $119 billion on goods and services on their mobile phones by 2015. Currently, mobile shopping sales in the U.S. stand at about $3 billion and are rising at about a 25 percent growth rate, according to several industry sources. In 2010, eBay said its mobile gross merchandise volume was over $800 million in the U.S. alone.
Want in? Well, before launching into the m-commerce space and hiring a technogeek to build a specialized mobile app for selling your wares, developing a strategy is a critical first step. Since m-commerce is relatively unchartered territory, navigating a B2B market cluttered with solutions can be overwhelming without a strategy.
Solutions include everything from developing new ways of using Facebook and Google Maps to rolling out inventory- tracking and SKU-pricing apps on sales associates’ Blackberries. And many of them can be created with off-the-shelf software rather than customized programming.
One thing to consider is whether your business is looking to make hard and fast m-commerce sales or just wanting shoppers to browse instead of buy, which is great for extending your retail brand. Either way, finding the right vendor partner is essential.
To make the process easier, AT&T’s mobile business division has an online Certified Solutions Catalog of vendors approved by the wireless company. The catalog features products such as AirClic MP, which is designed to manage a variety of business processes as well as track inventory and assets.
Mobiquity Solution Suite is another, more robust solution that includes a merchandising/inventory solution suitable for retail chains of five to 10 stores. Microvision is another AT&T certified vendor that offers a host of back-room solutions including several for barcode scanning.
The latter products are more robust versions of the ones consumers use such as Google’s barcode scanner for the Android and a few that have been popularized by iPhone aficionados.
On the point-of-sale side, there’s a ton of apps available for processing credit card transactions, which includes AprivaPay from AT&T. AprivaPay Professional is a newer version that supports Windows Mobile, iPhone and RIM Blackberry. This software is basically like jamming a traditional credit card transaction software package into a smartphone.
For Verizon mobile users, the small business apps include credit card payment and transaction solutions from Intuit and Charge Anywhere (designed for the Android) as well as about a dozen m-commerce solutions for consumers, which require your front-end, online presence to be mobile-browser friendly.
Notable successes with m-commerce in the fashion retail segment include efforts by American Apparel and Brooks Brothers. The mobile apps are well designed and fit seamlessly into these companies’ online businesses. Another one to keep an eye on and study is eBay’s Mobile Fashion app.
Bottom line with all of this stuff is customer experience. If your mobile website has content that loads quickly, has an easy check out and offers an overall pleasant and secure experience for users, your m-commerce sales will soar.
For the back-end solutions, make sure it fits into an overall m-commerce strategy and that it functions in a way that improves the efficiency of your business. If it doesn’t, then the app or mobile device is just another toy.
INSIDER TIPS: They know what you need
1. PayPal
www.paypal.com
2. eBay Mobile
www.mobile.ebay.com
3. AT&T
www.developer.att.com
4. Verizon
www.mediastore.verizonwireless.com
Arthur Zaczkiewicz
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specialtyinsider.com
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