Going Mobile - app.prosemedia.comways your mobile shoppers are engaging with your brand,” Hammond explains, “and providing the functionality and user experience that supports this

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Going Mobile Optimizing eCommerce for a Complete Omnichannel Experience

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ECommerce is big business in today’s retail industry, and having a mobile-friendly component has become critical for success in today’s marketplace. Not only do mobile sites provide another portal

for consumer access, they also allow consumers and retailers to stay

connected and informed anytime, anywhere.

“eCommerce is essentially a mobile industry,” writes Neil Patel in a

recent Inc. article.1 “Shoppers are using their mobile devices to browse,

compare and learn. Buyers are using their mobile devices to convert on

a purchase.”

In April 2015, Google announced it would prioritize mobile-optimized

sites in search results on smartphones,2 further pushing mobile into

the spotlight of the overall omnichannel experience. That means while

your site may be the No. 1 result when your customer is parked at home

on their laptops and desktops, it may drop in the ranks if that same

customer is scouring the Web on his smartphone while waiting for a

dinner companion.

But not every mobile site is right for every retailer, and the additional

data that mobile provides can be overwhelming. Recognizing which

platforms and strategies are right for a specific retailer, and employing

the data to best engage with consumers, can create a wholly satisfying

omnichannel experience for both consumers and retailers alike.

Neil Patel

“Shoppers are using their mobile devices to browse, compare

and learn.”

1 http://www.inc.com/neil-patel/3-things-you-must-optimize-on-your-ecommerce-site.html2 https://www.americanexpress.com/us/small-business/openforum/articles/google-search-mobile-friendly-smartphones/


vice president, product management from Kibo, a company that

specializes in unified commerce platforms. “Your mobile site has to offer

all of the filtering and functionality that the PC version would, in a form

that’s more digestible.”

However, while many consumers are using mobile as a shopping

channel, the majority are only just beginning to use it as a purchase

channel as well, says Chris Hammond, a consultant for Atlanta-based

Parker Avery Group, a consulting group specializing in integrating

customer insights and multichannel business models. While there’s a lot

of talk about reducing clicks on mobile sites, it’s important to also look at

where those clicks are being mitigated, he says.

Opting Into the Right Platform

oday’s shopper wants what they want when they want it. And

more often, consumers are accessing a retailer’s mobile site when

they can’t get to a brick-and-mortar store, or when they’re not in front

of their desktop. The decision to have a mobile platform to round out

eCommerce offerings isn’t an option anymore — but having the right

platform for mobile sites is.

For today’s mobile sites, responsive design is a requirement, as is

employing predictive analytics to provide shoppers with relevant

product information. Easy and seamless navigation of a website

between smartphone, tablet and desktop is a must, says Sam Hogin,

“Your mobile site has to offer all of the filtering and functionality that a PC version would, in a form that’s more digestible.”Sam Hogin, VP of product management at Kibo

T

“A critical element in the mobile shopping journey to streamline is the

process between an item being selected and checkout,” Hammond

explains. “Nearly 70 percent of customers who abandon items do so at

this critical juncture.” So how can retailers minimize this? Offer multiple

payment options, integrate with partners to import addresses and

have the option to create an account using auto-filled fields, Hammond

suggests.


“Even seemingly small elements of user functionality such as having

customers input their ZIP code first to remove the need for city and state

can be significant for the user experience,” he says.

More than half of customers use a mobile device as their first touchpoint

when starting in one channel and buying in another, according

to Google, says Hammond. In fact, more than 60 percent of U.S.

consumers said they go online to research a product before they visit a

store, according to “The Digitally Demanding Consumer: 2016 Consumer

Trends Report,” from Kibo.

To encourage them to follow through on the purchase via the mobile

site, retailers have to have a site that works for them. It’s not simply a

miniature version of their existing site, and thinking as such misaligns

with the way consumers are using technology, Hammond says.

“The key to embracing this difference is understanding the specific

ways your mobile shoppers are engaging with your brand,” Hammond

explains, “and providing the functionality and user experience that

supports this engagement.”

More than 60% of U.S. consumers

said they go online to research a

product before they visit a store.


ith the increase in optimized eCommerce sites, and the ever-

growing importance of a true omnichannel experience, comes a

barrage of new data companies have never before experienced. In the

past, loyalty cards and shopper rewards programs provided interesting

bits of data that could be used for coupons and promotions, but the

wealth of data that mobile sites provides opens up new windows into

consumer engagement.

And it’s not just for consumers who are shopping from their couch —

mobile-generated data, says Parker Avery’s Hammond, is beneficial for

both standalone information and when integrated with bricks-and-mortar

stores. According to Forrester, he adds, “retailers with a brick-and-mortar

presence should take note: 75 percent of their customers will access a

cellphone while in the store.” And that move alone brings to light more

data retailers can use to enhance the shopping experience.

Data You Can Use

W

“The data generated by customers using mobile apps or connected to the in-store Wi-Fi can provide insights into the customer's shopping paths and stops, purchases and showrooming.”Chris Hammond, consultant at Parker Avery Group

“The data generated by customers using mobile apps or connected

to the in-store Wi-Fi can provide insights into the customer’s shopping

paths and stops, purchases and showrooming,” says Hammond. It also


provides insight into behaviors such as review checking, social shares

and product descriptions.

For shoppers not in or around the store, Hammond adds, a dynamic GPS

feature, such as the “Find a Store Near Me” function, supports purchase

decisions by showing nearby stores and their inventory levels, which

supports omnichannel capabilities like in-store pickup, ship-to-store

and ship-from-store. Customers benefit, saving on shipping costs, and

retailers benefit, from being more price competitive as well as gathering

data on customer location, which can inform potential expansion or

demographic cross-sections.

But with an overwhelming number of apps available today, it can be

tricky to get consumers to not only use a mobile site but continue using

it, thus creating that continuous stream of data that companies use.

Using data to engage repeat customers works well when companies

can provide personalized product recommendations, says Kibo’s Hogin.

“If you can feed shoppers content that is relevant and personalized,

instead of something that’s not, you’ll create a connection with that

consumer that drives brand loyalty and repeat purchases.”

There also has to be a connection between the mobile site and the

website. “Consumers don’t differentiate between platforms, so both

your sites must offer a seamless shopping experience, such as one-

touch purchasing options that include any promotion or credits they

"If you can feed shoppers content that is relevant

and personalized ... you'll create a connection with

that consumer that drives brand loyalty and repeat

purchases."Sam Hogin, VP of product

management at Kibo


might have in their account,” Hogin says. “The ability for your customer

to transition seamlessly between mobile and desktop and back again is

one important way you can delight your customers.”

Hogin provides the example of Kibo customer Cost Plus World Market,

and their World Explorer loyalty program on their mobile site. The

microsite provides shoppers access to the usual information such as

transaction history and order status, but they can also see their loyalty

points balance, access coupons both in-store and online, and shop as

they normally would. Email promotions are automatically applied when

consumers click through, so there’s no need to remember a code for

discounts. With such complete integration, the company, Hogin says, has

had great and repeat success with their loyalty program.

Hammond also provides an example of how retailers can put mobile

data to work for them. Let’s say “customer data showed a significant

segment of customers, both in the city and the suburbs or traveling

between the two, pulling up a retailer’s mobile site after 5 p.m., as

they commuted from work to home,” he explains. And, the banner ad

clicks during that time show a high interest in a retailer’s new sweater

collection. Based on that information, Hammond says, retailers could

plan their next store near the suburb where a significant portion of the

customer base likely lives, and feature an ongoing “red zone” table of

key times with a similar marketing message.

Sam Hogin, VP of product management at Kibo

“Consumers don't differentiate between platforms, so both your sites must offer a seamless shopping experience.”


t’s no secret that the millennial and Z generations have a lock

on anything revolving around web-based technology, and

eCommerce, especially mobile eCommerce, is no exception. According

to ComScore’s State of the U.S. Online Retail Economy report, one-

third of 18-to-24-year-olds (Generation Z) report that they use no other

touch point to shop than a mobile device.3 And millennials, for their part,

“remain the key age demographic for online commerce, spending more

money online in a given year than any other age group,” says an April

2015 Business Insider article. “These consumers spend around $2,000

annually on eCommerce, despite having lower incomes than older

adults.”4

Generational Divides Can Bring

Shoppers Together

I

3 https://www.comscore.com/Insights/Presentations-and-Whitepapers/2015/State-of-the-US-Online-Retail-Economy-in-Q1-20154 http://www.businessinsider.com/the-age-demographics-of-who-shops-online-and-on-mobile-2015-4

But don’t discount the Gen Xers or the baby boomers in the mobile

shopping arena. The sheer number of people who fall into these two

generations is considerable, and their incomes are, on average, higher.

Gen Xers, the Business Insider article notes, are not all that far behind

“Generational differences can be key to both future-proofing and aligning the experience with shopper expectations."Chris Hammond, consultant at Parker Avery Group


millennials in dollars spent online, clocking in at around $1,930 annually.

What’s more, the article states, is that baby boomers and seniors are

adopting mobile commerce. “One in four mobile shoppers in the U.S. is

over the age of 55. That’s about even with their share of the overall U.S.

population,” the article states.

Recognizing and understanding the way different generations are

using mobile sites is necessary to successfully optimizing eCommerce.

“Generational differences can be key to both future-proofing and

aligning the experience with shopper expectations,” says Parker Avery’s

Chris Hammond. And having a multigenerational site — in other words, a

site that can synthesize data and then apply that information to cultivate

a better shopping experience for different groups of consumers — will

also help translate to bricks-and-mortar stores.

“Generational markers can also help shape store design, store location

and branding, using insights and triggers to match the right products to

the right locations by geography or demographics, as well as tracking

movements in living habits, such as millennials moving more to cities, to

more effectively stage inventory,” Hammond explains.

“Generational markers can also help shape store design,

store location and branding, using insights and triggers

to match the right products to the right locations by

geography or demographics..."Chris Hammond, consultant at Parker

Avery Group


hoppers today want the complete package: They want to be able

to browse and buy whenever and wherever they may be, whether

that’s in a bricks-and-mortar store, sitting at their kitchen table or while

on the run to pick up their children from soccer practice. For retailers,

recognizing that mobile is quickly gaining traction as the touchpoint of

choice for many consumers is essential to creating a relevant mobile

and complete omnichannel experience.

“Mobile is a shopping experience focused on customer engagement

with the brand, and part of the overall shopping journey,” says

Hammond. “It’s not necessarily a singular buying experience focused on

driving a sale.”

Says Kibo’s Hogin, “You can’t ignore optimized mobile sites, and

you can’t pretend you don’t need one. Mobile shopping is a growing

eCommerce strategy that competitive retailers must embrace. To

delight and satisfy your consumers, spend time to make their shopping

experience seamless, intuitive, relevant and personalized to their needs,

no matter what device they are shopping on at the time.”

S

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Going Mobile - app.prosemedia.comways your mobile shoppers are engaging with your brand,” Hammond explains, “and providing the functionality and user experience that supports this