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Millions of apps for that … apparently you only use about 5

What your mobile app usage means for today's marketers

Image Credit: KROMKRATHOG; Freedigitalphotos.net

This year's Super Bowl was an interesting event to watch. If you are into American football, the game was exciting and went down to the wire. The Super Bowl ads, not so much! Many of the ads exhibited all of the tired clichés designed for past couch potatoes two decades ago. From where I watched the game, everyone was using a mobile device "while watching the game". Apparently, many of the Super Bowl marketers missed that fact. Many missed the mobile factor entirely. In this age of mobility, there is an app for almost anything. If mobile is our preferred portal, even during events like the Super Bowl, then where should marketers invest? The old adage is fish where the fish are. So, one of the most critical questions is where are consumers going on those smartphones … and where do they spend their time?

Why this is important: As mobility continues to rise, there has been a rush for retailers and brands to build an app. Usage data suggests that marketers need to rethink their strategy of how to best reach consumers, especially on mobile devices.

Black Friday is dead – 3 omnichannel behaviors that killed it

Consumer behavior is changing holiday shopping and all of retail

Image Credit: Simon Howden

Black Friday is dead. If not completely deceased, all of the stats point to demise of the premier kickoff to holiday shopping in the US. It's not just about the slow economic recovery, although that is still having an impact. The phenomena unfolding right now is about universal changes in consumer behavior, regardless of socio-economic status. There are three fundamental changes in omnichannel consumer behavior that are sucking the life out of Black Friday, and changing the face of retail forever.

Why this is important: Retailers still thinking in terms of events are doomed. For the omnichannel shopper, retail has become a stream of experience across places and time. It's no longer about the "place" of the sale, but the engagement on the journey.

7 Disruptive trends – Why the next retail dinosaurs will die

Retail evolution is speeding up … and waits for no one

Retail has been described as the world's "second oldest profession". But, that doesn't mean that retail is not changing. In fact, some of the most well-known retailers in their categories suddenly went extinct. The forces that caused these retailers to vanish are yet again evolving at an even faster pace. Darwin's law of survival is even more relevant for today's "retail dinosaurs" on the verge of extinction. For those unwilling or unable to adapt, there are at least 7 major disruptive trends which will cause the next wave of retailer casualties.

Why this is important: Habits from the past can actually spell doom in today's rapidly evolving marketplace. The mantra "Differentiate or Die" has a new corollary … Rapidly adapt to change, or get run over by disruptive innovators.

Tencent is a case study for the future of retail worldwide

Was Zuckerberg crazy buying WhatsApp for $19B? Crazy like a fox!

We have posted recently about the Chinese holding company Alibaba, who will soon surpass Amazon in size. But, my real story coming out of China last week is the emergence of a whole new kind of internet company. Zuckerberg grabbed the US headlines with his "outrageous" $19 Billion purchase of WhatsApp. Very few had previously heard of WhatsApp. Even fewer know of the new "beast of the east" simply called 0.1 or Tencent. Tencent is a new model that might best be described as a FB+Twit+Tmall+Goog+Paypal conglomerate touching all consumer experience in a mobile world. Zuckerberg may still be a wunderkind.

Why this is important: Mobile devices are rapidly replacing PCs for email, search and purchase. Creating the "stickiest" preferred mobile relationships means that holding company can make money in many ways beyond just selling products at lowest prices.

Declaring that you are omni-channel does not “Make it So”

Retailers require more than words to deliver a seamless experience

You have to be living under a rock if you haven’t seen the seismic shift in consumer shopping patterns.  While US retailer stores did ok on Black Friday traffic, sales were flat. Contrast that with online shopping which was up 20+%.  I can’t begin to count the number of retailers saying that they’ve got to beef up their online presence and address mobile marketing.  The battle cry is going out from traditional retailers that they “have to be omni-channel”!  It reminds me of the famous line of Captain Jean-Luc Picard: “Make it So”.  What many retail execs don’t seem to realize is that saying it doesn’t create a seamless consumer experience.  Making it so requires the infrastructure of a starship and a very talented team.

Webrooming - How retailers must fight back against Amazon

Reports of the death of traditional retail have been greatly exaggerated

Image: Stuart Miles; Freedigitalphotos.net

In our last post, we highlighted how Amazon continues to innovate for competitive advantage. While Amazon is certainly not the only successful online retailer, it has become the persona of e-commerce. Some pundits have gone so far as to predict the death of traditional retail. To paraphrase Mark Twain, those predictions have probably been greatly exaggerated. Especially in light of Accenture research, which shows that consumers are just as likely to "webroom" as showroom. If retailers can't stop showrooming, they must fight back by leveraging webrooming and other means to engage today's "omni-sumer" when, where and how they shop.

When does “personalization” become an invasion of privacy?

Retailers have to walk a tightrope of how to personalize and engage

Image: David Castillo Dominici; Freedigitalphotos.net

Without realizing it, you are creating a digital trail of your behaviors with every click and tap that you make. Ecommerce has been using our cookies to track us, and make personal offers since we began using our computers to shop online. What many do not realize is the incredible amount of data that we create by using our phone apps. In fact, you don't have to tap. The mere presence of your smartphone can create a digital trail that enables retailers to change service levels. When is "personal" too personal? There is a delicate tightrope walk of personalization, versus "creeping out" consumers by invading privacy.

Future of retail – Consumer engagement beyond transactions

Beyond multi-channel, future success requires "on-demand interaction"

Image: Naypong; Freedigitalphotos.net

Historically, stores were the primary, and often only places to make a purchase. With the advent of ecommerce, consumers had a choice of purchasing online or in store. Today's mobility consumers are no longer tied to a computer. Smartphones have "unleashed the beast" – consumers now expect to engage anytime, anywhere. More importantly, consumers now expect to engage before, during and after transactions. The future of retail success will not be measured by the site of the sales transaction, but by the level and quality of consumer engagement … one tap at a time on their smart screens.

Beyond “cookies” - how do you feel about being “surveilled”?

The eyes in the mannequin just might be watching every move you make

Image: Digitalart; Freedigitalphotos.net

The headlines are replete with stories about "showrooming" and the migration of shoppers from bricks and mortar to the web. Traditional store based retailers have seen traffic decline, so they are increasingly concerned about creating a store experience that will convert a sale. The paradox is that ecommerce tracks your "cookies" and knows every page you visit. Stores have historically struggled to track if you came in the door. Well that's all changing! Aggressive retailers are now using video surveillance and cell phone signals to track your store movements. It's even getting a little creepy … they know if you're a returning customer.

5 Ways How Best Buy and Retailers Can Beat “Showrooming”

Showrooming is not a fait accompli … or the death of bricks and mortar

Columbus Times Dispatch Illustration

The term "showrooming" is the new buzzword in the dictionary of retail. It refers to the act of consumers literally shopping on their smartphones while in the aisle of a retailer. Consumers using mobile devices to shop in aisle has been noted as particularly impacting consumer electronics retailers like Best Buy. In fact, it has been portrayed that bricks and mortar retailers have become "helpless has beens". But, Best Buy and others are fighting back. There are 5 ways that retailers can beat showrooming by changing the consumer experience.