When even the companies are preparing for the jump to electronic commerce and to change their sales strategies by new needs imposed this change in consumer habits, an evolution of e – commerce has already appeared willing to change even more things. This is the m-commerce, which is no more (or less) than e – commerce from mobile devices. Consumers increasingly access the network from their smartphones and from their tablets, so I expected it to also make e – commerce sites.
The statistics, whether they come from private companies or public bodies from all point towards this trend and confirm that it is a way to buy fully upward. “In recent years, we have seen an upward trend in mobile shopping, but improved usability of the online store to make purchases through mobile devices is essential to compete in this niche market,” recently stated Ivan Navas, CEO Doofinder a shopping search engine, in presenting a report which highlighted, based on data from the firm, which in the first half of 2014 had increased by 12% the number of orders via mobile devices against him achieved in the previous year.
The data are in line what marked the most reliable study on B2C Electronic Commerce , conducted annually by the National Observatory for Telecommunications and the Information Society (ONTSI). According to their figures, the number of Internet users who purchase products or services through mobile devices increased in 2012 (although the study was presented a few months ago, and always carries a delay) , reaching the figure of 2.1 million buyers. This number represents an increase of 15.1% yoy and is driven mainly by the segment of digital content, which is the product that records a further increase in sales and accounts for most purchases. Become an ebook or app from the mobile is not as shocking as the consumer may perhaps buy something physical, so that the contents now account for 47.9% of mobile sales.
Convincing users
“Social networks, internet and new smart mobile devices have created a new model of business relationship with its employees and with the end user,” noted Marta Martinez, president of IBM Spain, Portugal, Greece and Israel, in the presentation of the latest annual report of the company.Consumers are increasingly mobile and companies have to reach them taking advantage of the characteristics of the devices increasingly used and new possibilities (and conflicts) they generate. For example, smartphones have created a new problem for physical stores, the showrooming, which makes buyers visiting physical stores Compare using their handsets and buy PC.
What sellers should get is to convince consumers to make purchases directly through their smart terminals and remove the final step leading to go through the computer browser to consume. Fashion companies are among those that have understood more the potential that smart devices may have to sell. According to the latest barometer Vente-Privée of fashion companies, not only 8 out of ten Spanish companies are already selling on the net (and 93% expect that their sales will increase during that year in that channel) but have also begun to enter the mobile segment. One out of two is already active in the m-commerce. In fact, some of the success stories that are often used to exemplify the potential success of betting on trade in mobility usually come from this niche. It is what happens, for example, Showroomprive, another competitor in the market for online outlets, it expects to close 2014 with sales in that channel approaching almost half of the turnover.
To do this, companies must convince users that purchase using your smartphone or tablet is as safe as access online stores from their computers. As they did at the time to convince the reliability of e-commerce, companies must make an outreach to show what to do (and what not) when purchasing through the mobile e-commerce. Take advantage of seasonal opportunities is another option to boost m-commerce. For example, according to statistics Vente-Privée, mobile access and mobile sales grow during the summer months, which is not without its logic.
For stores that have physical spaces in addition to online sales, direct sales or m-commerce make consumers understand how it works or how limited your risk is even simpler. By having physical spaces, they can establish more or less tangible solutions that serve as a bridge for m-commerce, such as windows specific sales (show products and lead the app) or add tablets and similar supports in stores to help to break the barrier of entry.
Technological needs
Much of what the m-commerce need to start is a push from vendors when telling a story. That is, we need to know brands sell their customers the potential and benefits of mobile e-commerce. But another part, and this should also add a lot, what you need is some care in the technical part. The communication effort of evangelization and actions will come to nothing if the companies have not adapted their tents and their proposals to the mobile territory.
Having a mobile application is the most suitable formula to sell in m-commerce , because the brand can control the whole process and can also create tools and solutions for the terminal for which it is designed. The app can also play with other possibilities, such as geolocation (and thus make the buying process with related actions) or notifications. But that should not obscure the corporate website. Consumers continue to access through the browser on your smartphone or tablet and the site of the brand and its online store must be prepared to adapt to what those browsers will impose and specify.