Going Mobile

Optimizing eCommerce for a Complete Omnichannel Experience

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ECommerce is big business in today’s retail industry, and having a mobile-friendly component has become critical for success in today’s marketplace. Not only do mobile sites provide another portal for consumer access, they also allow consumers and retailers to stay connected and informed anytime, anywhere. “eCommerce is essentially a mobile industry,” writes Neil Patel in a recent Inc. article.1 “Shoppers are using their mobile devices to browse, compare and learn. Buyers are using their mobile devices to convert on a purchase.” In April 2015, Google announced it would prioritize mobile-optimized sites in search results on smartphones,2 further pushing mobile into the spotlight of the overall omnichannel experience. That means while your site may be the No. 1 result when your customer is parked at home on their laptops and desktops, it may drop in the ranks if that same customer is scouring the Web on his smartphone while waiting for a dinner companion. But not every mobile site is right for every retailer, and the additional data that mobile provides can be overwhelming. Recognizing which platforms and strategies are right for a specific retailer, and employing the data to best engage with consumers, can create a wholly satisfying omnichannel experience for both consumers and retailers alike.

“Shoppers are using their mobile devices to browse, compare and learn.” Neil Patel

http://www.inc.com/neil-patel/3-things-you-must-optimize-on-your-ecommerce-site.html https://www.americanexpress.com/us/small-business/openforum/articles/googlesearch-mobile-friendly-smartphones/ 1

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vice president, product management from Kibo, a company that specializes in unified commerce platforms. “Your mobile site has to offer all of the filtering and functionality that the PC version would, in a form that’s more digestible.”

Opting Into the Right Platform oday’s shopper wants what they want when they want it. And more often, consumers are accessing a retailer’s mobile site when they can’t get to a brick-and-mortar store, or when they’re not in front of their desktop. The decision to have a mobile platform to round out eCommerce offerings isn’t an option anymore — but having the right platform for mobile sites is.

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For today’s mobile sites, responsive design is a requirement, as is employing predictive analytics to provide shoppers with relevant product information. Easy and seamless navigation of a website between smartphone, tablet and desktop is a must, says Sam Hogin,

However, while many consumers are using mobile as a shopping channel, the majority are only just beginning to use it as a purchase channel as well, says Chris Hammond, a consultant for Atlanta-based Parker Avery Group, a consulting group specializing in integrating customer insights and multichannel business models. While there’s a lot of talk about reducing clicks on mobile sites, it’s important to also look at where those clicks are being mitigated, he says.

“Your mobile site has to offer all of the filtering and functionality that a PC version would, in a form that’s more digestible.” Sam Hogin, VP of product management at Kibo “A critical element in the mobile shopping journey to streamline is the process between an item being selected and checkout,” Hammond explains. “Nearly 70 percent of customers who abandon items do so at this critical juncture.” So how can retailers minimize this? Offer multiple payment options, integrate with partners to import addresses and have the option to create an account using auto-filled fields, Hammond suggests.

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“Even seemingly small elements of user functionality such as having customers input their ZIP code first to remove the need for city and state can be significant for the user experience,” he says. More than half of customers use a mobile device as their first touchpoint when starting in one channel and buying in another, according to Google, says Hammond. In fact, more than 60 percent of U.S. consumers said they go online to research a product before they visit a store, according to “The Digitally Demanding Consumer: 2016 Consumer Trends Report,” from Kibo. To encourage them to follow through on the purchase via the mobile site, retailers have to have a site that works for them. It’s not simply a miniature version of their existing site, and thinking as such misaligns with the way consumers are using technology, Hammond says.

More than 60% of U.S. consumers said they go online to research a product before they visit a store.

“The key to embracing this difference is understanding the specific ways your mobile shoppers are engaging with your brand,” Hammond explains, “and providing the functionality and user experience that supports this engagement.”

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Data You Can Use

ith the increase in optimized eCommerce sites, and the evergrowing importance of a true omnichannel experience, comes a barrage of new data companies have never before experienced. In the past, loyalty cards and shopper rewards programs provided interesting bits of data that could be used for coupons and promotions, but the wealth of data that mobile sites provides opens up new windows into consumer engagement.

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And it’s not just for consumers who are shopping from their couch — mobile-generated data, says Parker Avery’s Hammond, is beneficial for both standalone information and when integrated with bricks-and-mortar stores. According to Forrester, he adds, “retailers with a brick-and-mortar presence should take note: 75 percent of their customers will access a cellphone while in the store.” And that move alone brings to light more data retailers can use to enhance the shopping experience.

“The data generated by customers using mobile apps or connected to the in-store Wi-Fi can provide insights into the customer's shopping paths and stops, purchases and showrooming.” Chris Hammond, consultant at Parker Avery Group “The data generated by customers using mobile apps or connected to the in-store Wi-Fi can provide insights into the customer’s shopping paths and stops, purchases and showrooming,” says Hammond. It also

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provides insight into behaviors such as review checking, social shares and product descriptions. For shoppers not in or around the store, Hammond adds, a dynamic GPS feature, such as the “Find a Store Near Me” function, supports purchase decisions by showing nearby stores and their inventory levels, which supports omnichannel capabilities like in-store pickup, ship-to-store and ship-from-store. Customers benefit, saving on shipping costs, and retailers benefit, from being more price competitive as well as gathering data on customer location, which can inform potential expansion or demographic cross-sections. But with an overwhelming number of apps available today, it can be tricky to get consumers to not only use a mobile site but continue using it, thus creating that continuous stream of data that companies use. Using data to engage repeat customers works well when companies can provide personalized product recommendations, says Kibo’s Hogin. “If you can feed shoppers content that is relevant and personalized, instead of something that’s not, you’ll create a connection with that consumer that drives brand loyalty and repeat purchases.” There also has to be a connection between the mobile site and the website. “Consumers don’t differentiate between platforms, so both your sites must offer a seamless shopping experience, such as onetouch purchasing options that include any promotion or credits they

"If you can feed shoppers content that is relevant and personalized ... you'll create a connection with that consumer that drives brand loyalty and repeat purchases." Sam Hogin, VP of product management at Kibo

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“Consumers don't differentiate between platforms, so both your sites must offer a seamless shopping experience.” Sam Hogin, VP of product management at Kibo

might have in their account,” Hogin says. “The ability for your customer to transition seamlessly between mobile and desktop and back again is one important way you can delight your customers.” Hogin provides the example of Kibo customer Cost Plus World Market, and their World Explorer loyalty program on their mobile site. The microsite provides shoppers access to the usual information such as transaction history and order status, but they can also see their loyalty points balance, access coupons both in-store and online, and shop as they normally would. Email promotions are automatically applied when consumers click through, so there’s no need to remember a code for discounts. With such complete integration, the company, Hogin says, has had great and repeat success with their loyalty program. Hammond also provides an example of how retailers can put mobile data to work for them. Let’s say “customer data showed a significant segment of customers, both in the city and the suburbs or traveling between the two, pulling up a retailer’s mobile site after 5 p.m., as they commuted from work to home,” he explains. And, the banner ad clicks during that time show a high interest in a retailer’s new sweater collection. Based on that information, Hammond says, retailers could plan their next store near the suburb where a significant portion of the customer base likely lives, and feature an ongoing “red zone” table of key times with a similar marketing message.

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t’s no secret that the millennial and Z generations have a lock on anything revolving around web-based technology, and eCommerce, especially mobile eCommerce, is no exception. According to ComScore’s State of the U.S. Online Retail Economy report, onethird of 18-to-24-year-olds (Generation Z) report that they use no other touch point to shop than a mobile device.3 And millennials, for their part, “remain the key age demographic for online commerce, spending more money online in a given year than any other age group,” says an April 2015 Business Insider article. “These consumers spend around $2,000 annually on eCommerce, despite having lower incomes than older adults.”4

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Generational Divides Can Bring Shoppers Together

“Generational differences can be key to both future-proofing and aligning the experience with shopper expectations." Chris Hammond, consultant at Parker Avery Group But don’t discount the Gen Xers or the baby boomers in the mobile shopping arena. The sheer number of people who fall into these two generations is considerable, and their incomes are, on average, higher. Gen Xers, the Business Insider article notes, are not all that far behind

https://www.comscore.com/Insights/Presentations-and-Whitepapers/2015/State-of-theUS-Online-Retail-Economy-in-Q1-2015 4 http://www.businessinsider.com/the-age-demographics-of-who-shops-online-and-onmobile-2015-4 3

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millennials in dollars spent online, clocking in at around $1,930 annually. What’s more, the article states, is that baby boomers and seniors are adopting mobile commerce. “One in four mobile shoppers in the U.S. is over the age of 55. That’s about even with their share of the overall U.S. population,” the article states. Recognizing and understanding the way different generations are using mobile sites is necessary to successfully optimizing eCommerce. “Generational differences can be key to both future-proofing and aligning the experience with shopper expectations,” says Parker Avery’s Chris Hammond. And having a multigenerational site — in other words, a site that can synthesize data and then apply that information to cultivate a better shopping experience for different groups of consumers — will also help translate to bricks-and-mortar stores. “Generational markers can also help shape store design, store location and branding, using insights and triggers to match the right products to the right locations by geography or demographics, as well as tracking movements in living habits, such as millennials moving more to cities, to more effectively stage inventory,” Hammond explains.

“Generational markers can also help shape store design, store location and branding, using insights and triggers to match the right products to the right locations by geography or demographics..." Chris Hammond, consultant at Parker Avery Group

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hoppers today want the complete package: They want to be able to browse and buy whenever and wherever they may be, whether that’s in a bricks-and-mortar store, sitting at their kitchen table or while on the run to pick up their children from soccer practice. For retailers, recognizing that mobile is quickly gaining traction as the touchpoint of choice for many consumers is essential to creating a relevant mobile and complete omnichannel experience.

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“Mobile is a shopping experience focused on customer engagement with the brand, and part of the overall shopping journey,” says Hammond. “It’s not necessarily a singular buying experience focused on driving a sale.” Says Kibo’s Hogin, “You can’t ignore optimized mobile sites, and you can’t pretend you don’t need one. Mobile shopping is a growing eCommerce strategy that competitive retailers must embrace. To delight and satisfy your consumers, spend time to make their shopping experience seamless, intuitive, relevant and personalized to their needs, no matter what device they are shopping on at the time.”

Here to Stay

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Kibo is the strategic merger of industry leaders, MarketLive, Shopatron, and Fiverun. With a combined 40 years of innovations, we're joining forces to help retailers and branded manufacturers unify the consumer experience. Kibo is a complete omnichannel commerce platform, delivering the lowest total cost of ownership and the fastest time to market. With predictive technologies and enterprise performance, we can help you achieve increased sales. No matter the challenge, Kibo powers your success.

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