Mobile commerce sees growth through coupons
Mobile commerce is seeing aggressive expansion throughout the world. This explosive growth is due to various factors, some of which are more mundane than others. One of the factors driving the growth of mobile commerce is the use of mobile coupons. These coupons are specifically designed for consumers with mobile devices, providing them with a way to save on products they enjoy in a convenient manner. The coupons are also powerful marketing tools and have succeeded in drawing more attention to mobile commerce in various sectors.
Report highlights value of mobile coupons
A new report from BI Intelligence, a leading market research firm, sheds some light on why mobile coupons are contributing to the growth of mobile commerce. The report suggests that these coupons are helping drive traffic to online stores and physical stores alike. Coupons that can be redeemed at physical stores have been especially popular with consumers and have proven to be an effective way to draw consumers into these stores rather than allowing them to linger online.
Coupons could be an effective data collection tool
Beyond the financial aspects of mobile coupons is the data that these tools acquire. When these coupons are used, they are able to collect information from consumers, which is quite valuable for the businesses behind the coupons. This data can be used to develop more engaging marketing campaigns or create more effective mobile commerce services. For some companies, this information has helped drive yet more traffic to physical stores.
Coupons supply incentive to mobile commerce
Mobile coupons have helped create more familiarity between consumers and mobile commerce. The coupons have also provided consumers with a reason to actually participate in mobile commerce. Consumers often only need a modest incentive to embrace something new and mobile coupons have been able to provide a way for consumers to justify mobile payments to some degree.
Report highlights consumer complaints regarding mobile commerce
Mobile commerce has been showing promising growth around the world, but not all consumers have been won over by the prospects of mobile payments. Those that do support mobile commerce praise it for the convenience and efficiency it brings to both online and offline shopping. There are a growing number of consumers that consider mobile commerce to be time consuming and more difficult than necessary, according to a new study from Harris Interactive.
Businesses eager to embrace mobile payments
The study highlights the growing problems that consumers in the U.S. are beginning to have with mobile commerce. U.S. retailers and other merchants have been aggressively supporting mobile commerce, hoping to tap into the growing market of consumers with smartphones and tablets. In the scramble to appeal to mobile consumers, the mobile commerce platforms that many retailers are putting to use have apparently failed to meet the standards of customers. The study suggests that consumers are growing more frustrated with faulty platforms that disturb their shopping experiences.
Technical issues drive consumers away from mobile commerce
The study shows that approximate 68% of mobile consumers have attempted to purchase products from their smartphones or tablets, but 66% of these consumers have failed to do so due to the obstacles they have encountered with mobile commerce platforms. Many of these problems come in the form of poor network support. A slow Internet connection can effectively ruin a mobile commerce platform as connection problems can halt or duplicate transaction. Other technical problems have also proven frustrating for consumers.
Faster transactions could reclaim the favor of consumers
According to the study, some 47% of mobile consumers claim to have abandoned mobile commerce simply because transactions take too long. Businesses embracing mobile payments may do well to ensure that transactions are not time consuming so as to placate the concerns of consumers. This may require some retailers to make use of new mobile commerce platforms that are more capable of facilitating transactions over a better Internet connection.
