Walmart continues to see promise in mobile commerce field
Walmart has been taking note of the attention that the mobile commerce scene has been receiving recently. The retailer has long been accustomed to adapting to changes in the market and meeting the demands of consumers and now it is beginning to shift toward becoming more accommodating to the mobile space. More consumers are using their smartphones and tablets to shop than ever before, leading to a swell in the demand for mobile commerce services. Walmart is now working to meet this demand and has begun overhauling its e-commerce and mobile strategies.
Retailer to launch new website
Walmart believes that e-commerce is among its primary growth engines and claims that e-commerce may power the majority of the company’s growth in the near future. In order to become more attractive to online shoppers, the retailer is taking a new approach on the matter of e-commerce and has adopted a strong focus on mobile. The retailer is planning to launch a new home page for its website that will feature the services and functionality that consumers are coming to expect from companies in the retail industry.
Site optimized for mobile use
The new site will be optimized for mobile use, allowing those with smartphones and tablets to navigate the site easily and without any trouble. The site will also support mobile commerce for those interested in purchasing products online through their mobile devices. Walmart claims that more than half of its customers have smartphones and if the company does not cater to this demographic it may be missing out on a promising opportunity.
Retail industry continues to see growth in mobile commerce
Mobile commerce is quickly becoming a staple in the retail industry. Consumers have responded well to the concept of mobile commerce and are quickly becoming more comfortable with purchasing products online using their mobile devices. Walmart is one among many in the retail industry that has begun showing more favor to the mobile crowd.
Mobile Consumers can now enjoy a fast shopping experience with mobile scanning technology.
Retail giant Walmart is widening its mobile commerce footprint with its new Scan & Go mobile app that allows iPhone users the ability to scan the items they want to buy, which they can then purchase at a self-checkout with quick convenience.
New smartphone scanning technology provides shoppers with independence.
According to information from Walmart’s Scan & Go promotional material, “Scan & Go is a new way to shop in Walmart stores that allows YOU to take control of your shopping experience.” The new scanning technology transforms iPhone devices into mini mobile shopping helpers that allow consumers to browse the store, scan what they want, place the selected scanned products in their basket or cart, and head to a self-checkout where they pay for their scanned goods and leave. Customers can shop and go with no fuss and skip the long checkout line.
The new mobile commerce application is expected to reach 200 stores.
Currently, approximately 70 Walmart stores are Scan & Go compatible. Based on information from a published report, the total number of stores expected to offer this mobile commerce service is 200. When all is said and done, the company’s aim is to introduce the scan technology to 12 new markets in addition to the Atlanta market and the areas near Bentonville, Arkansas where the technology already exists.
iPhone users who would like to gain access to the Walmart application will find it available for download at Apple’s App Store. When the user accesses the app in a compatible Walmart store, a message will be displayed giving the consumer the option to choose “Store Mode”. From this point, they can begin scanning product barcodes with their smartphone. When the customer is done shopping, they take their items to the self-checkout where they will able to pay for these pre-scanned products by transferring the data from their phone to the register by scanning a QR code displayed on the resister screen.
An Android version of Scan & Go is not yet available but will be released in the near future. Currently, the mobile commerce app is only available for Apple iPhone devices that run iOS 5 or higher.
