Even large companies are struggling to compete with Starbucks
In the past, mobile commerce has been considered something of a novelty, with several small companies offering services that would allow people to shop for and purchase products from with their mobile devices in stores and online. Now, large companies like Apple and Google are involved in the mobile commerce space, but they may not be finding the success that they had hoped to see in the field. Starbucks has come to dominate the mobile space and other companies may be struggling to keep up.
Majority of mobile transactions made in 2013 were done in Starbucks stores
Starbucks accounted for 90% of all mobile transactions made in the United States last year, according to the company’s CEO, Howard Schultz. According to Schultz, more than $1.3 billion in mobile payments were made during 2013, with the vast majority of these transactions taking place in Starbucks stores throughout the country. The company’s success in the mobile field last year is just the beginning, as Starbucks has plans to continue dominating mobile transactions.
Company plans to accelerate its mobile commerce plans
The company intends to accelerate its mobile commerce plans over the next few years, putting more emphasis on its mobile audience, but not sacrificing its traditional brick-and-mortar interests. Schultz notes that many consumers are beginning to migrate away from traditional forms of commerce, showing more favor for mobile services. In order to accommodate the changing behavior of consumers, Starbucks will be following suit.
New partnerships will help Starbucks remain dominant in the mobile field
Over the next few years, Starbucks plans to make careful, strategic partnerships that will further its mobile interests. Earlier this year, the company announced plans to begin offering its mobile payments technology to other companies, allowing them to engage mobile consumers more effectively. The company will also be highlighting the convenience of mobile payments in order to further its popularity among consumers with various types of mobile devices. Starbucks also has plans to enhance its My Starbucks Rewards program, providing more incentives for people to purchase products with their mobile devices.
The Seattle based coffee chain has been the prime example of how the transaction technology can be used.
According to a recent report that has been released by Starbucks, mobile payments made up a full 15 percent of the total revenue brought in by the café chain in the United States.
This was the statement that was made by the company with regards to its third quarter earnings.
The chief executive officer of the company, Howard Schultz, informed investors that the Starbucks mobile app currently boasts 12 million users in the United States and Canada. That represents an increase of about 2 million from what the figure had been within the second quarter earnings report. However, it was the increase in the number of mobile payments that still has everyone feeling quite impressed with the progress being made by the company.
Starbucks seems to have been able to overcome the mobile payments barriers that have halted the progress of others.
The third quarter report showed that there were six million mobile transactions processed every week in the United States. This was an increase of a full million over what the company was processing in its second quarter.
CEO Schultz also went on to point out that Starbucks intends to test a new feature that will become available in its mobile app during the fourth quarter, in which it will allow customers to order and pay for their purchases ahead of time, so that they can come in and pick them up. To start, this feature will be available only in a single major U.S. city, but if it proves successful, it will certainly expand from that point in the future.
There was not a great deal else revealed by Starbucks about previous comments that had been made with regards to white labeling its mobile application and loyalty program in order to allow them to be used by other retailers.
The company’s global chief strategy officer, Matt Ryan, explained that Starbucks is currently conducting a number of different active conversations with technology partners about the development of a program of that nature, but he did not expand on it with any further detail.
What is certain is that Starbucks can and is feeling strong about its mobile payments and commerce experiences, as Ryan stated that “We have absolute confidence in the nature of the opportunity.”
