Over the past few years, mobile has ruled the world. Due to changes in consumer behavior, smartphones and mobile applications are becoming an integral part of everyday life. Businesses must adapt to changing consumer behavior, and retailers large and small have joined (and are still following) this trend.
Over the years, everything can move, that's evident. This concept applies to retailers more than anyone else. But let's hold off and take a closer look at the mobile industry to see what's happening and what opportunities it presents for retail.
What Do You Mean By Retail Business?
Retailers' interactions with customers have transformed as a result of the mobile revolution. Since the app makes it easier to promote sales and limited-time offers, you no longer need to rely on billboards or printed advertising.
Additionally, the growth of mobile devices has influenced and changed customers' purchasing habits.
They use their smartphones to compare prices and search for places, products, and reviews from other buyers. Today, mobile commerce has grown like a weed, surpassing all other types of e-commerce.
Retail and Mobile Apps: A Winning Combination
Mobile apps have taken over the world. Almost everything has an app, and retail is no different. The fact that retailers are developing their own applications appears to be healthy for the sector. By launching their Black Friday sales earlier than others on their mobile apps, Amazon and Walmart gained a tonne of money.
The retail industry has revolutionized the way shopping is done. Before shopping online, consumers had to get dressed, gas up, and drive. Slow traffic and crowded malls aren't the worst parts. After all the trouble, you come away empty-handed because you couldn't find what you needed. Then online shopping came along. You can lie in bed, turn on your computer, and find exactly what you're looking for.
Notable Retail Apps in India:
1. Amazon
2. Flipkart
3. AliExpress
4. eBay
5. Myntra
6. Club Factory
7. TataCliq
8. ShopClues
9. Pepperfry
10. Limeroad
11. Ajio
The Business Benefits of Android Mobile Apps For The Retail Industry
1. Increase income:
Giving customers a completely new purchasing experience with mobile apps can undoubtedly boost earnings. Due to the rise in smartphone usage over the past several years, many retail businesses have contacted firms that specialise in Android application development to create mobile applications. Furthermore, mobile apps are more likely to see purchases made than desktop websites.
2. Increase customer engagement:
In retail mobile applications, push notifications play a vital role to notify customers of upcoming promotions, new product launches, discount offers, or other in-store events. Push notifications are a powerful mechanism for increasing customer engagement. They are more effective than social media posts or email campaigns.
3. Strengthen customer relationships:
Selling to an existing customer is cheaper than acquiring a new one, which costs ten times more. The average difference in spending between new and existing consumers is 55%. In light of this, a mobile app loyalty program is the ideal solution to boost an organization's retention rate and existing consumer engagement, which will result in stronger client relationships.
4. Attract more visitors:
Having all the important information at your fingertips and personalized will improve your business relationship with your customers. Better communication, beautiful design, and a smooth shopping experience will definitely lead to higher conversion rates and sales. This ultimately makes mobile apps a valuable sales channel for retail businesses.
5. Customer Loyalty Program:
Developing a mobile app for a retail business can be a great idea to implement a loyalty rewards program. No more discount cards that can easily be forgotten at home or even lost - no more annoying questionnaires to get more information about your customers and their preferences.
Customers who download your app get exclusive offers, discounts, early bird specials, and more. The best retail mobile apps use different surveys to find out which rewards their customers prefer, thus offering them an effective loyalty program. Plus, you can collect your customers' purchase history to offer them special discounts on their favorite goods or services.
6. Keep pace with the times:
Many mid-sized and even tiny retail automation companies can be found in your area that have developed or are currently working on solutions. According to ContactIQ's report, 62% of respondents have launched or are about to launch a retail software application.
This group might decide on a different store using an existing retail store app.
7. Build brand loyalty:
Not only can retail mobile apps be used to achieve certain financial goals but they can also be used to build brand loyalty. Many large companies develop their applications for this very reason.
Loyalty programs can bring your customers everything they love—all kinds of special offers. Let us consider a few of the most popular solutions that brands empower their retail applications to generate more loyal customers.
Must-Have Features of Android Mobile Retail App:
1. Friendly user interface:
Simple and easy-to-use apps generally enjoy good brand recall among mobile commerce apps. Easy access to registration is a plus, and it directly leads to higher conversions and increased purchases. Fast customer service messaging options with real people or chatbots are more appealing. To reduce the likelihood of impulsive purchases, customer unhappiness, and product returns, the app should also offer thorough product descriptions. To foster trust and foster consumer loyalty, customers should be able to read or post product reviews.
2. Multiple payment methods:
The payment environment on your application must be highly diverse so that customers can easily complete transactions. To offer a straightforward and quick payment experience, your application should be integrated with a variety of payment alternatives including Google Pay, Apple Pay, PayPal, and other payment platforms. Prior to moving on to the payment screen, giving customers an order summary of their purchase and payment information decreases the possibility of refunds or order problems, which has a negative effect on the user experience.
3. Track shipping status:
Another useful but often overlooked feature that online retailers need to explicitly add to their applications is shipping status updates, from order placement to customer delivery. A company should include an anticipated delivery date for an item on the product page or in the shopping basket, according to nearly 86% of customers. Nearly 75% of people claimed they would be more likely to buy in this circumstance.
4. Push notification:
Push notifications can inform users about new product updates, saved items returning to stock, flash sales and tailored marketing campaigns, etc. These subtle but powerful nudges are key to getting your brand to engage with consumers.
5. Loyalty Program:
By providing consumers with promo codes and encouraging them to download and use the app during your interactions, customers can earn points that can be redeemed for discounts or rewards for purchasing or referring your business to someone. Using a dedicated mobile commerce app to retain and keep customers engaged by increasing loyalty is a smart strategy.
Upcoming Trends of Retail Mobile Apps:
1. Social responsibility and sustainable development:
Environmental issues and social responsibility have received a lot of attention recently. According to an IBM study, 57% of customers are prepared to modify their buying patterns to help reduce negative environmental impacts. Many online retailers are adopting environmentally friendly and long-term sustainable practices by reducing their digital carbon footprint, using environmentally friendly materials, going paperless where feasible, and using biodegradable packaging and recyclable supplies.
2. Buy Now Pay Later (BNPL):
BNPL is a type of short-term financing that allows customers to buy now and pay later, usually in interest-free installments. Although the concept of BNPL has a long history, the huge impact of the epidemic on consumer purchasing patterns has greatly promoted this trend. This e-commerce trend will grow significantly in the near future, especially among the younger generation.
3. Omni-channel retailing:
Omnichannel is a novel approach to commerce that offers customers multiple purchasing options, combining them to provide a consistent experience across different channels. Offering customers both online and offline channels, rather than completely replacing your physical store with an online store, is a great way to leverage both sales channels and benefit your business' long-term success.
4. AI Chatbots:
Today, chatbots are gaining popularity in retail operations. Despite the fact that chatbots are now a typical part of life, they have not yet entirely adapted to the mobile setting. The majority of the apps available now don't make use of chatbots. Chatbots are increasingly becoming an important marketing tool for resolving shopping questions and encouraging customers to have a smoother experience as they receive more personalized assistance.
5. Voice/AR shopping:
Voice and AR shopping are recent mobile commerce innovations that are often overlooked by many business owners. With the ability to use voice assistants, customers can now easily search products and even finish the entire purchasing process online. Furthermore, cutting-edge technology like augmented reality (AR) makes it easier for online customers to make decisions by giving them a true sense of the things they are buying. It's obvious that AR and voice shopping will be extremely beneficial for your online business in the present online war.
Consof Mobile Retail Apps:
1. The cost of APP development is high:
Developing a mobile application takes more time and money than creating a website. Create at least two versions, one for iOS and one for Android, to start. You must also take into account the chance that you could need to hire a different team to construct the application because web development is different from application development.
If your company doesn't have the means to take on this project, it would be a good idea to focus on mobile website optimization.
2. Complex APP development process:
When creating an app, developers need to take into account a variety of factors in addition to the operating system, whether it be iOS or Android. The two platforms' various device screen sizes must also be considered by developers. The fact that there are numerous Android versions available on the market nowadays makes developing Android applications more challenging.
3. Complex maintenance:
The app hasn't been finished even though it has been released in the app store. Due to the requirement for updates, particularly crucial upgrades like patching security flaws or guaranteeing compatibility with new iOS or Android versions, mobile apps demand a long-term commitment.
Not giving the update may result in the app malfunctioning or being inoperable when a consumer updates their phone to the most recent operating system.
4. Additional marketing requirements:
You still need to promote it so your previous customers and the general public can download the app.
You may need to update your marketing materials both online and in print. Some businesses are even creating live events around app launches. Standard SEO for websites doesn't apply to apps.
You might want to consider app store optimization with a whole new set of tools that you can use to promote your app.
5. Challenges of tracking and acquiring data.
The same security that apps might provide with respect to consumer data is also a challenge for businesses. For starters, getting data from apps to track metrics and get data is another story.
Then you also have to set up a different set of targets, events, etc. While all this data is beneficial in the long run, it does take a lot of time and effort to set up.
Final words:
Mobile applications must be immersive and unique, including shopping options. Make sure your software drives sales and profitability. Because of this change and the surge in smartphone use, advertisers and marketers are adapting their techniques and campaigns to the needs of mobile customers. Most businesses adopt mobile-based marketing and apps to save users' offers and services and a mobile and e-commerce optimization approach that emphasizes mobile apps.
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