Dive Brief:
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Forty-one percent of consumers plan to increase their phone or tablet shopping frequency in the next two years, according to BRP's report "The Mobilization of Retail." More than two-thirds (67%) of respondents to the company's online survey to 1,298 consumers said they're more likely to shop with a retailer that has mobile coupons available.
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Sixty-four percent of consumers reported choosing a store based on the product information readily available via mobile devices. Item availability, product information topped the list of favorite features, followed customer service, and access to coupons and loyalty programs.
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The survey also revealed that only 39% of respondents are comfortable with stores identifying them via their mobile phones when they enter a store. Meanwhile, 61% of retailers surveyed in BRP's recent Unified Commerce Survey reported making plans to use WiFi to identify customers by their mobile phones.
Dive Insight:
As retailers compete for customers both online and in-stores, BRP's report highlights the importance of building a mobile presence in tandem with a physical one, rather as separate endeavors. "A retailer's mobile capabilities can be a major driver for where a consumer chooses to shop," Marty Whitmore, senior vice president and practice lead at BRP, said in a statement. "With 67% of consumers choosing a store based on the availability of mobile coupons and 64% choosing a store based on product information availability via a mobile device, these are essential mobile capabilities for retailers."
The success of a mobile-meets-store experience relies on providing customers the information they want without taking too much of their information in exchange for the convenience. The plans retailers shared with BRP to offer identification by WiFi, beacons and other technology to identify customers don't yet match customer willingness to be identified by such measures. "Even with the best technologies to identify consumers, retailers need to convince consumers to opt-in to customer identification," BRP noted. "They need to make it 'valuable' enough for customers to want to be recognized."
As mobile identification methods become more prevalent to connect the online and in-store experience, retailers will need to select attractive offers — whether loyalty perks, personalized discounts or product promotions — that will convince shoppers to share their mobile identifiers.
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, Khareem Sudlow
