If you want to increase customer engagement with your branded app, including a “store mode” is an excellent way to do it. According to a recent study by Point Inside, users perform five times as many interactions with apps that offer additional in-store functionality (aka “store mode”). What are examples of such functionality?
• Indoor map viewing. Users can view store layout, services available, precise product locations, and can even plan efficient shopping routes for purchasing all items on a list.
• Shopping list creation. Useful for customers, but also quite useful for analysis of shopping behaviors.
• Personalized offers. Suggest products, make special offers, and deliver other content in real-time based on a user’s profile and location in the store.
• Proximity alert. Alert users when they approach a location of a store to prompt a visit.
• Analysis. As user data accrues, retailers can analyze it and gain valuable insights into user behavior.
As you can see, in-store functionality offers many opportunities to keep customers happy and to learn about them as well. In addition, functions can be custom-tailored to each merchant’s offerings, and can be quite creative. Take J Crew for example, which just launched a personal styling app that makes use of current store merchandise to help shoppers find styles they like. Another example is Synqera, which has a mobile app solution that enables merchants to convert the downtime spent standing in line into additional purchases. The possibilities are truly endless, here.
In-store app functions don’t have to be limited to a user’s mobile device, either. New technologies involving cameras, touch screens, scanners, thermal printers, and the like, can be placed in-store. These technologies can be used in concert with mobile devices to expand the experience and deliver even richer functionality to shoppers.
The main point is to offer the customers multiple ways to engage, especially on mobile devices. Each customer is different, and may favor a different approach, but increased opportunities to engage mean increased revenue.
When customers walk into a store, they’re no longer unplugged, and savvy retailers will make sure that the mobile experience in store amplifies the real-life experience in store. At this point, the benefits are too significant to ignore!
