The Sooner You Know Tablet Commerce, The Better

July 30, 2014 , , , ,

Tablets, once thought to be mere entertainment consumption devices, are taking the mobile commerce world by storm. Even as tablet sales themselves have started to slow down, mobile commerce conducted through tablets is ramping up big time. You need to familiarize yourself with the way tablet based ecommerce has been trending or you are in danger of being caught without a key sales platform!

Tablets Are Everywhere

The first compelling bit of information you should know: tablets are all over the place. In the U.S., nearly 30% of homes own a tablet of some kind. That’s 81 million people that actually own the tablet, and many more that actually use them regularly (think tablets shared amongst family members). Worldwide, tablet sales ownership is expected to increase five-fold by 2017. In short, more people are using tablets in their daily lives than ever before, and that trend is expected to continue into the foreseeable future.

Customers Will Judge You Based on Their Tablets

Here’s a stat that could potentially be frightening for ecommerce merchants who haven’t put much thought into tablet strategy: 77% of tablet owners report that a sub-optimal tablet experience will affect their willingness to buy from an ecommerce site. If you are partnered with an ecommerce platform like Shopify or Bigcommerce then you have the option to switch on mobile-optimized stores, but even then if you do not have a tablet-friendly design then your website can be a liability.

People Use Tablets For All Facets Of Online Shopping

Right up front, you should know that 31% of tablet owners will use their device for purchases in 2014. That means, if you don’t have a tablet-optimized presence, then you will miss out on over 25 million potential customers. But actually buying from a tablet is not the only shopping behavior device owners engage in. These behaviors are many and varied, but consider that 66% use tablets to research purchases before buying on a desktop, 63% use tablets to check prices, and 54% use them to read ratings and reviews. The implications of not focusing on a tablet-based audience add up very, very quickly.

But Here’s The Good News!

All of these powerful stats that punish those individuals who haven’t upped their tablet game offer major rewards for businesses that have! You can immediately capture the value of tablet commerce by offering a tablet-optimized website and mobile app. That pairing will provide the optimum benefit for both new and returning customers, keep them happy and making you profitable!

Special thanks to Usablenet and Get Elastic for sharing this fantastic infographic that contained many of the stats used in this post!

Three Mobile Hotspots That Could Spawn The Next $100 Billion Company

July 10, 2014 , , , , ,

SONY DSC

Industry analysts believe that the next $100 billion dollar business will be mobile. Already, many of the largest businesses in the technology world have a mobile component and more are being added every day. But amidst this incredible diversity of fields that can benefit from a mobile offering, where will the true titan of mobile emerge? Here are three hotspots that we believe could easily produce the next major business in the mobile field.

Messaging

With Facebook spending $19 billion on Whatsapp, there is no question that mobile messaging has taken off. The big question for mobile messaging, then, is monetization. Whatsapp pledges to never show ads to its users, and charges $0.99/year. Likewise, Facebook has assured Whatsapp that they will not have to compromise their principles.

This presents an interesting problem for mobile messaging companies with ethics similar to Whatsapp. The first to solve it in a financially viable way will likely be the winner, and could definitely be the first massive mobile company.

Commerce

Shopping is transitioning towards m-commerce with new apps that beautifully showcase products. While massive e-commerce sites like Amazon may have a reasonable foothold on the mobile commerce space, there is still a lot of uncertainty in their mobile offerings.

One of the problems with the modern shopping experience is the massive catalogs of products available to consumers. Smaller e-commerce sites can target individuals to a greater degree and offer a more commoditized product than the big guys. Mobile commerce companies have access to more options than their desktop counterparts, such as better location data and the ability to use push notifications.

Purchasing

Mobile commerce isn’t just about the nice shopping apps that are prominent in the App Store, it is also about making payment more seamless, and the startup that can really get the payment system down will be on top.

With iOS 8, Apple is allowing third party developers to begin using the fingerprint sensor found on the iPhone 5S and newer devices. Some mobile commerce startups will be able to use this functionality to make purchases even simpler, all you need is one finger. This functionality could even be used to have multiple payment methods on one device; one for each member of the family depending on the fingerprint.

Mobile is huge, but even though we’re starting to see some front runners emerge, the kings of mobile have yet to be crowned. It is entirely possible that nobody has even heard of the new billion dollar companies yet. The possibilities are endless.

 

Justin Profile PictureThis post was guest authored by Justin Fowler. Justin is a student at the University of Texas at Austin and the co-founder of Audio Press. You can find him on Twitter and on his blog.

Who Are The Mobile Addicts?

June 25, 2014 , , , ,

mobileaddict

If you’ve been following the Apptive blog or any of our social channels, then you have probably noticed a major trend: people are absolutely addicted to their mobile devices. There have been numerous reports around what people are doing on their phones (hint – mobile commerce is a biggie), but who are these people? Flurry recently put out a report on these “mobile addicts,” defining an addict as, “a consumer that launches apps more than 60 times per day.” While some of their findings were intuitive, others were very surprising!

Right off the bat, we can determine that there are two major age ranges for mobile addicts. First, we see individuals categorized as addicts making up 49% of the age range 18-24. No major shock there. However, the next largest category of mobile addicts? Age range 35-54, with addicts making up 40% of that population! This number becomes even more interesting when you consider this: middle aged (35-54) individuals only make up 20% of the overall mobile population, but they make up over 28% of mobile addicts.

These numbers are surprising in a general sense, but what do they mean from a personality perspective? Is there currently a particularly large number of tech enthusiasts making up the gamut of these age ranges? The answer is…not really. In fact, two of the top personas for male and females were Moms (on the female side) and Parenting and Education (on the male side). Not to say that parents can’t also be tech enthusiasts (in fact, they probably are given their new addiction to mobile), but that is not their primary personality trait as identified by their research.

Flurry offers a final point on the middle-aged parenting subsection that begs discussion. Many of them may very well be sharing devices around the family, meaning that they could be over-represented as addicts when in reality the per-person app rate would not place them in that category.

That being said, it seems that overall when we look at mobile addicts it is most likely to be young adults or, failing that, their parents!

Enterprise Mobile Commerce Apps

June 4, 2014 , , , ,

phoneinhand

At Apptive, our philosophy has always been that every company should have the ability to compete in the mobile space. Native apps provide the optimal mobile presence, and so our DIY platform offers ecommerce merchants of every size the ability to create a mobile app for their store quickly, easily and affordably. We do this by providing a robust creation platform that gives merchants control over the design and functionality of their apps. Our module system provides access to the functionality that the majority of ecommerce owners need, such as the ability to sell products from their app and send messages and deals to their customers.

Still, even though our DIY platform works exceedingly well for merchants of all sizes, we have had inquiries from enterprise-level ecommerce brands who simply need more. These types of one-off custom projects are often geared towards a specific store, offering functionality that would not be useful to another merchant even if they exist in the same space.These larger retailers have also requested highly customized design or templates that are unique to their brand.

Now, we are excited to announce Apptive Enterprise Apps! These apps are built using on the backbone of our existing robust mobile commerce platform, but offer extensive customization options in feature set, design, and functionality. Apptive Enterprise Apps can be tailor-made for enterprise-level retailers that need specific functionality or design that would fall outside of our existing DIY platform.

Apptive Enterprise Apps offer a number of advantages over apps produced on a one-off basis by traditional development shops. Of these, the most important to enterprise-level retailers is rapid time to market and competitive pricing. Because Apptive has extensive experience working with ecommerce platforms and merchants, we are able to quickly build a custom app over our well-tested mobile commerce framework, meaning that we can focus on the additional specific features that will make an Apptive Enterprise App appealing without focusing on development logistics or fundamental programming problems. For that same reason we are able to offer our enterprise-level apps at a significantly more competitive rate than a shop that would have to spend time and resources on building an app from the ground up.

Our team has extensive experience working with ecommerce platforms and merchants. If you would like more info on Apptive Enterprise Apps, or to speak with an Apptive team member about a project you’d like us to complete, just click here!

The Mobile Point of Sale

January 21, 2014 , , , , , , ,

register

In the last few years, the lines of traditional commerce have increasingly become more blurred. The rise of first ecommerce, and now mcommerce, have created a unique environment that allows shoppers to browse and buy products everywhere. However, mobile strategies are not limited to digital only sales offerings. Increasingly, we are seeing more hybrid solutions, such as physical retail stores that also have websites to capture shoppers both in person and online. One of the more interesting trends in recent times is the emergence of the mobile POS, or point of sale.

This trend was first embodied by the Square Reader, a small square shaped credit card reader that you could connect to your smartphone and, through its accompanying app, take credit cards without a standalone credit card machine. The implications of this device were huge. Anyone who previously relied on cash, such as local artisans or convention exhibitors without reliable access to power sources, were now freed to take credit cards. Because many people no longer  carry cash at all, this meant that they could finally accept payments from significant portion of their customer base that they were forced to neglect before.

It didn’t take long for others to take notice, and other card readers were introduced, including a dedicated PayPal card reader and one from established business software provider Intuit. With established names such as these, and with the growing recognition and success of Square, businesses began turning to these systems rather than traditional credit card machines due to the incredibly low adoption cost and flexibility that they offered. As they became more established so too did the offerings, culminating in such products as the Square Stand Register, a stand that accepts a tablet and allows for the easy display and entry of products, fully replacing a comparably clunky computer and standalone reader setup.

Now, ecommerce has entered the arena. Shopify recently introduced their own card reader, made in response to an increasingly large number of customers on that platform who have decided to branch their ecommerce presence into a physical one. The beauty is, this iteration of physical presence does not need to be brick and mortar. It is now possible for an individual to represent his or her products anywhere while simultaneously having the full catalogue on standby. For individual store owners, there is no longer a distinction between where you can and cannot sell products.

2013 Year in Review: Five Key Mobile Mentality Posts

January 7, 2014 , , , , , , , ,

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2013 was a year of incredible growth, not just for Apptive, but for the mobile ecosystem as a whole. 2014 is set to continue the trend as advanced mobile strategy sets the divide for ecommerce merchants worldwide.

In order to make sure you get 2014 kicked off on the right foot, we curated some of the most useful posts from the Apptive blog up to this point. Check these out to get caught up on mobile strategy for the new year!

Think Mobile, Act Local

Have a physical presence but want to engage with your users on mobile devices? This post will give you insight into a mobile customer’s mindset and strategies to effectively engage them.

Infographic: Email Marketing vs. Facebook Page vs. Mobile App

How do you market to an online audience? This infographic will give you a quick (and dare we say, attractive?) visual guide to three primary methods of digital marketing.

The Smartphone Impulse

Impulse buying has a bad rep. This blog post will show you how to trigger impulse purchases the right way in order to increase customer satisfaction as quickly as you increase your sales.

How to Match App Design to iOS7

2013 also marked the release of Apple’s most significant update of their iOS operating system. This post will help you match the style of your app to the iOS7 standard.

Infographic: M-commerce and You!

Mobile ecommerce is the most rapidly growing trend for online store owners. This infographic will give you a good idea of the current state of m-commerce and how to use it for your online store.

We appreciate all of our readers and hope that these posts have proved and will continue to prove helpful. Check back often for more insights in 2014 and beyond!

Three Freaky Mobile Mistakes You Must Avoid

October 29, 2013 , , , , , , ,

scarymobile

It’s Halloween, and things are getting a little creepy.

This year, the scares are not all related to costumed trick-or-treaters or haunted houses. We’ll tell you about the three spookiest mistakes companies make in their mobile marketing that you should definitely avoid.

 

Wildly Inappropriate Ads

Let’s say your kid is playing a harmless game on your iPad. There is a stream of ads, but who cares, the game is free right? Plus it’s a children’s game. It’s not like there’s gonna be anything too bad.

Wait, is that an ad for e-cigarettes? In the kid’s game?

We wish we could say this didn’t happen. But it did, and recently. British American Tobacco ran an ad for their e-cigarette in a kids mobile game. Fortunately they responded quickly and pulled the ad, but the fact that the ad appeared at all was no bueno. While the company claims that they are unsure how the ad ran, the lesson here is to make sure that you are targeting your ads carefully to make sure they don’t appear in front of an inappropriate audience.

 

Spam That Won’t Die

Mobile spam is becoming a big deal. Customers who haven’t opted in to messaging programs, SMS-type services being the biggest offender are frustrated when they continuously receive annoying messages without the ability to opt out. In fact, people have gotten so frustrated that they have successfully filed and won lawsuits against companies that send them spam without an opt-in. Turns out, its pretty illegal.

That being said, while safer message systems like push notification allow for opt out, you should still avoid spamming customers all the time. After all, you want customers to have the ability to opt out. You don’t want them to feel the need to use it!

 

Horrible Value Props

So you’ve got a mobile app? Good for you.

Now answer this: what does it do for your customers?

If you have trouble answering, or if the “value” is of a pretty dubious nature, then you should probably reevaluate your strategy. Makeup brand Lancome recently came under fire from Forbes for introducing a mobile app that provided only token benefit for customers while serving as a thinly veiled advertising medium.

Failure to provide value to customers will make them feel betrayed, and can quickly result in your app being blacklisted and abandoned.

Mobile Fanaticism

September 24, 2013 , , , ,

Mobile Fanboys

“Fanboy!”

If you’ve frequented any tech blogs within the past several years, you are likely (very) familiar with the above term. To the uninitiated, it is a derogatory remark thrown at an individual that supports or even just speaks favorably about one company. Recently, it seems that it is thrown around predominantly when discussing the relative merits of iOS vs Android operating systems, but it is a wide-ranging term.

So, “Fanboy” might be construed as a fanatic. And what is a fanatic?

Winston Churchill once said, “A fanatic is one who can’t change his mind and won’t change the subject.”

After watching a massive crowd wait in the streets for days on end to get hot new devices like the latest iPhone, you might think this isn’t too far off the mark.

Certainly, a fanatic may not always be the best person to cordially debate with. But consider the business implication. When you are talking about an emergent trend that can benefit your business, in this case the mobile ecosystem in general, do you want your customers to change their mind? Do you want them to change the subject?

Consider also that widespread fandom also fosters a sense of community. By appealing to said community, you increase the virality of both your product and message.

Just something to think about the next time you see a flame-war on your favorite tech blog or news site.

Reflections on a Mobile Reservation

August 6, 2013 , , , ,

mobile reservations

I needed to book a table for a good friend’s birthday. I did a bit of preliminary research and picked up the phone. However, I did not use it to enter a telephone number. Rather, I opened up that restaurant’s app, which had a direct link to OpenTable. I made my reservation through there. Because I was the one who physically entered the details of the reservation, I knew there would be no mistakes due to human error. I even got a confirmation message so I knew that the restaurant was also on board.

After I finished this, I was struck by a thought: even though I regularly write and research on mobile topics, strategies and trends, I was somewhat bewildered by just how natural the mobile reservation process was. Just two years ago I would’ve been dialing in to the restaurant, waiting while someone checked schedules and took my information over the phone. That would have felt like the safe bet, rather than turning to an app that may or may not be proven. In two years time, my view has completely shifted.

At this point, many people expect a mobile presence from businesses of any type. While online businesses were the first to gain the most direct mobile-driven revenue, restaurants and other forms of brick-and-mortar businesses have been looped into the fold. At this point, it would feel somewhat strange to me if a business didn’t have some sort of mobile integration, even if it is simply a mobile-optimized menu shared through Yelp!. A mobile offering today is what credit card readers were years ago. It will soon seem downright bizarre if a restaurant can’t take a mobile reservation or showcase a menu easily to mobile customers.

A Close Look at the Three Types of Mobile Presence

July 16, 2013 , , , , ,

threemobile

Businesses are becoming increasingly aware of the need to establish a mobile presence. In fact, the statistics indicate that taking a business mobile may be one of the most profitable methods of customer engagement possible in the near future. But what does going mobile entail, and more basically, what does it look like? It turns out there are numerous methods to take a business mobile. In fact, most businesses have (perhaps inadvertently) baked in some elements of a mobile presence through their activities on popular social sites or other forms of customer communication.

Still, when we refer to a true mobile presence, we are implying a direct link to your business itself, not a page on Facebook or a Twitter profile. With those constraints in mind, there are really three forms of a mobile presence: A full website accessed through a mobile browser, a mobile-optimized website, and a mobile app. As you might expect, there are varying levels of value and functionality for each.

A little over a year ago we discussed three ways to establish a mobile presence. This is a closer look at each of the options, so you can get a better understanding of the differences.

The Full Website Through a Mobile Browser

This is absolutely the most basic form of a mobile presence. Essentially, this is just the same version of your website that people would access from their desktop. It is also the most “convenient” form of web presence, in the sense that you don’t have to actually do anything. Further, it would be wrong to imply that such a presence is useless. People can still access your pages and even interact with your site in basic ways.

Still, the drawbacks are present and in some cases severe. First, traditional web design is meant to be viewed on a relatively large monitor, meaning that something that looks great at full-size may look crowded, confusing or difficult to decipher on a small smartphone screen. Further, there are numerous elements regularly used in websites that just won’t work on certain mobile devices *cough* Flash on iPhones and iPads *cough*. Finally, this type of presence does not capitalize on any of the unique capabilities of smartphones. You can not send or receive direct notifications, detect motion, or leverage location-aware capabilities. Therefore, while a full website through a mobile browser is not a death sentence for your business by any stretch of the imagination, it is not a particularly effective mobile engagement tool.

The Mobile-Optimized Website

A mobile-optimized website addresses several of the user interface issues of the full-website viewed through a web browser. Most importantly, it detects when users are trying to access a website with a mobile device and automatically shifts the design to one formatted for mobile. This helps to clear up confusion and often increases both ease of navigation and aesthetic quality. Finally, the mobile-optimized website is relatively easy to “build.” Some services will even automatically render an existing website into a mobile-optimized version for a small fee.

However, a mobile-optimized site is ultimately a layer placed over an existing website to mask interface problems. This is definitely a step in the right direction, but doesn’t address a fundamental problem of relying on a browser to deliver a mobile experience: it doesn’t take full advantage of smartphone capabilities. Ultimately, a mobile-optimized website serves its purpose as a front-facing customer information channel. However, if you really want to engage with customers you are going to need more functionality.

The Mobile App

Mobile apps might appear very similar to mobile optimized websites at first glance, because they often share similar navigation and design elements. Static content, such as lists of menu items and “About Us” pages will also be almost identical. The major difference comes in the interactive elements a mobile app can afford. If you want to be able to send messages directly to customers smartphones through push notification (thus avoiding email clutter and SMS fees), facilitate the purchase of products and services right from a customer’s smartphone, and integrate with smartphone hardware such as a camera, then the mobile app is the way to go.

Of course, there are some downsides to the mobile app as well. In terms of cost and development time, apps have traditionally been much more expensive compared to mobile-optimized websites. They also require more attention from a business, as stagnant apps are likely to be deleted from customer phones. However, recent developments in software that allow you to build an app yourself do alleviate these issues a great deal, making development time and cost very competitive with the mobile-website optimization.

These are the three ways to establish a mobile presence on a customer’s phone. Clearly, the mobile app offers the greatest customer engagement and direct-sales potential, but the mobile-optimized site does offer some advantages.

Which of these options have you explored for your own business? Have you been engaging in a mobile strategy or have you been holding back?