Standards body, GS1 offers best practice advice on ensuring a clear mobile conversation with consumers
Standards body, GS1 offers best practice advice on ensuring a clear mobile conversation with consumers
Mobile phones have already radically changed the way we live, work and communicate, in fact it’s hard to remember how we managed without them, said Tom Beston, mobile commerce marketing manager at GS1 UK.
There are currently four billion mobile users worldwide, according to Informa, that’s more than those who own computers, credit cards or TV sets. With the rise of affordable smart phones, mobile phones are poised to change the way we shop forever. Not only do we now directly purchase products on such devices, research from e-commerce vendor, ATG shows that 43% of us use them to research before making important purchasing decisions.
Why make the call?
Consumers already expect to be able to access relevant store, product and pricing information through their mobile phones. It’s therefore natural that retailers should want to integrate m-commerce into their business strategy, not just to meet consumer demand but to communicate with them more effectively. Mobile phones allow brands to talk to shoppers through a two-way dialogue. Technology can be used to engage consumers with personalised services and content, tailored promotions, loyalty programs, extended packaging and customer service information. Most importantly, all of these methods can be used to support and inform shoppers at the critical “purchase decision” moment.
Mobile coupons are already a popular way of getting targeted information to consumers, with Juniper Research predicting that this market will double globally to exceed $12 billion (£7.8 billion) by 2014. According to The Mobile Marketing and Retail Strategies report, there is also growing demand for location-aware mobile technologies, which give retailers knowledge of where users are located to offer personalised special offers. Social networking application, Foursquare, has already harnessed this technology so retailers can contact customers with special offers when they are in the area. The service already has 1.8 million users worldwide, and has roughly 15,000 new users signing up every day.
Who is dialling into the market?
Various big name brands are already exploring this new way of communicating. Forrester Research reported that 74% of online retailers either have an m-commerce strategy in place, or are currently developing one. Most High Street banks have been using mobile technology for some time by sending customers personalised bank balance text messages.
Marks & Spencer has developed a specific website for customers browsing the net on their mobile, while High Street fashion chain Urban Outfitters has recently signed a deal to develop an in-store mobile point-of-sale (PoS) application. The aim of which is to improve customers’ instore experience and lower transaction costs. M-commerce is also being applied in the grocery market.
Co-operative Food has a specifically designed ‘Grown by Us’ iPhone app, which allows shoppers to barcode scan products with a camera phone and see where items are grown. Tesco also has an app which allows customers can use their mobile to check their Tesco Clubcard points balance as they shop.
Ensuring a clear conversation
Despite these developments, it remains difficult for British retailers to unlock the full potential of the market, as it is fragmented by different mobile devices, mobile and internet networks, mobile barcodes and information sources. Retailers are continuing to develop their own specific mobile applications to communicate with their consumers, using their own data standards.
This is simply impractical, as standards are needed for market development. Standards guarantee a consistent and easy experience, they make mobile commerce applications cost-effective and scalable for retailers, and give consumers clear guidelines. As an independent data standards organisation, GS1 is in the unique position of being able to bring together retailers on neutral territory to get them talking in the same language, and enable m-commerce success.
The GS1 Mobile Group has been set up specifically to help retailers overcome data challenges by offering a forum for discussion, as well as a starting point for the initiation of standards development and help to implement existing GS1 data standards.
Standards create a common language which help all retailers accelerate the adoption of mobile retail and communicate with consumers in a far more relevant and personal way.
