Sharper Image enters into the mobile commerce field for the holiday season
Sharper Image has a long history in specializing in high-tech products, but the retailer is entering into new territory that it has not yet explored. The retailer is set to launch its holiday catalog, which will feature a wide array of innovative gadgetry. While this is nothing new in and of itself, the catalog will be linked to a mobile commerce site, allowing consumers to purchase products they are interested from their smartphones and tablets.
Retailers work to engage mobile consumers
Mobile commerce has become quite popular among retailers, largely due to the success that many companies saw with their mobile commerce initiatives during the 2012 holiday season. Last year, many consumers opted to shop from their mobile devices, taking advantage of special deals being offered by retailers trying to engage the mobile crowd. For many retailers, this led to a sharp increase in revenue, which has encouraged them to continue pursuing mobile commerce aggressively.
Application equipped with image recognition technology
Sharper Image is not content to simply link its holiday catalog to a mobile commerce website, of course. The retailer has also developed an application that will allow consumers to browse, research, and purchase products directly from the catalog using image recognition technology. Each image in the catalog contains a digital watermark that function in a similar fashion to a QR code. When the application registers the watermark, it directs consumers to a particular product page.
Mobile commerce may usher in success for retailers
The application is designed to make the shopping experience more engaging while also leveraging the convenience of mobile commerce. Sharper Image expects that consumers will respond well to the initiative, which may also be a boon for those looking to get their holiday shopping out of the way early. Other companies have similar initiatives in mind, but none are utilizing image recognition technology to promote mobile commerce among consumers.
Burst Media has released the results of its annual holiday survey, indicating that consumers are prepped with their smartphones.
The latest annual holiday survey from Burst Media has revealed that consumers are already getting ready to start their shopping during the heaviest season of the year, and that while they plan to head to brick and mortar shopping malls and online shops, alike, they will be using mobile commerce in a number of different ways to help them throughout their purchasing journeys.
This year’s calendar has shaken up the pattern of events when compared to previous recent years.
For instance, this year, Hanukkah will be starting ahead of Thanksgiving, and for the first time since 2008, Cyber Monday will be occurring in December. This could be a defining pattern, particularly when it comes to mobile commerce, as it was barely in existence the last time this happened, so this year will present the first real data regarding what retailers can expect when online shopping kicks off when December has already started, and after Hanukkah is already in full swing.
The survey provided a considerable amount of online and mobile commerce insight for this year’s season.
Among the key findings of the holiday shopping and mobile commerce survey from Burst Media are the following:
• Marketers have time on their sides. Among the respondents of the survey, a large portion (40 percent) begin their holiday shopping following their Thanksgiving celebrations. Only 14.3 percent have already begun, and 11.8 percent started just after Halloween.
• Smartphones and tablets are playing an increasing role in the overall shopping process. Among the respondents, 45.7 percent use smartphones, and 41.3 percent use tablets for online browsing and shopping for holiday gifts and products. This is far greater than last year’s statistics.
• Mobile commerce apps will play an important part in the shopping this season, as 54.6 percent of women and 41.9 percent of men use shopping apps at least somewhat frequently – far more than in 2012.
• Smartphones are helping with shopping in brick and mortar shops, as 40.3 percent of the respondents use their devices while inside the stores to assist in their decision making.
• Parents are using mobile commerce to comparison shop for better prices while inside brick and mortar retail locations. This was the case among 64.5 percent of moms and 63.2 percent of dads.
