Author: Rebecca

Brick and mortar shops are finding that smartphones present an important opportunity for advertising.

A new report from InReality, the first from this firm, which was entitled “Reality of Retail”, has shown that mobile marketing is starting to play an important role in-store due to the massive increase in the use of smartphones by consumers.

Despite the influx of mobile device use, in-store purchases still represent the largest percentage of retail sales.

In fact, 94 percent of retail sales in the United States are made in-store. That said, those shoppers are using their smartphones to an increasing extent while they are inside those shops, so it represents a very important opportunity for retailers to be able to connect with customers through mobile marketing. The InReality also went on to report that not all of the research that consumers are doing with regards to products that they want is being conducted online.

This means that mobile marketing in-store has a considerable chance to influence decisions.

The participants in the research showed that 53 percent of shoppers prefer to learn more about the products that they are considering by going to the store itself. Among shoppers between the ages of 18 and 24 years, that percentage rose to 57 percent. Among the shoppers who do head to the brick and mortar shops, 75 percent reported that they use their mobile devices. This does not stop them from making the purchases inside the stores. Among those who did buy, one in four said that they had bought items using m-commerce.

That said, while traditional advertising in-store is still very important, InReality said that they will need to alter their strategies. Fifty six percent of shoppers explained that advertising has an impact on the decisions that they make while in-store. Only 12 percent feel that sales assistants in-store are “an important touchpoint in a purchase decision.” At the same time that 46 percent of shoppers say that loyalty programs help them to make their decisions, 71 percent of the users of loyalty programs will still use their smartphones while in-store in order to compare products and prices through mobile marketing tools.

Even though consumers have expressed certain worries and have been resistant, the institution is moving forward.

The chief exec and co-founder of Atom Bank, Mark Mullen, has revealed that the financial institution is looking into a future of banking that uses wearable technology, even though there are worries with regards to the resistance that consumers might have toward it.

Mullen feels that this digital lender from the United Kingdom is ready for an app designed for smartwatches.

Mullen explained that “I think wearable technology has a long-term future in creating an ecosystem of connective technology held together by the cloud.” Apple has already opened up its own Watch for pre-sale and it will be available for purchase later this month. This is expected by many to be the start of the launch of smartwatches into the mainstream market. It is also anticipated that it will be more than just the Atom Bank that will be focusing on creating banking apps for wearables.

Barclay’s has already revealed that it is among the first banks to release a wearable technology app for the Apple Watch.

That Apple Watch app is among the select few that have been made available even before the official launch of the device. The smartwatch app has been designed to let customers check their current account balance no matter where they are.

Mullen explained that through the app that Atom Bank is developing, customers will be capable of using their bank services no matter what device they prefer, regardless of whether it is a smartwatch, a smartphone, or over the traditional internet. He stated that “I think we will be one of many looking to optimise better services. The customer has to buy this technology and it’s about whether we respond or not,” and that “I think the Apple Watch is one example, but portable technology generally has a long way to go.”

According to a report on ft.com, people familiar with the matter have said that the bank intends to bring in at least another £75 million from investors by the summer, ahead of the launch of the banking app.