The Dawn of Mobile Influence

Today's retail executives are grappling with a highly disruptive and rapidly shifting business environment. Many retailers are struggling to drive incremental growth, and some don't have enough capital to fund all of the initiatives they want to pursue. Meanwhile, customer behaviors are changing profoundly — particularly due to the ways that technology is now being used as part of the shopping process. Consumer adoption of mobile is growing at an exponential rate, and your competitors are exploiting this trend to invade the four walls of your store.As a retail executive, there are several specific questions you should consider when assessing the importance of mobile.How can mobile drive value and incremental revenue for your business? What market impact is mobile expected to have — now and in the future?How quickly do you need to move?And perhaps most important, how do mobile-related opportunities stack up against other potential investments that are competing for your company's limited resources?When it comes to mobile, many retailers focus primarily on sales transactions conducted through mobile devices, or mCommerce. But recent research conducted by Deloitte Consulting LLP shows that there may be a more effective approach for determining the impact of mobile and how it influences and drives sales in other channels — particularly in-store sales. According to our analysis, mobile (defined as smartphones for this analysis) influences 5.1 percent of all retail store sales in the United States — which translates to roughly $159 billion in forecasted sales for 2012(1). That projection far overshadows the $12 billion(2) forecasted for mCommerce sales in 2012. And it's just the beginning. Based on our research, the next four years are going to be huge for mobile. Its influence is anticipated to grow exponentially to 17-21 percent of total retail sales, amounting to $628-$752 billion in mobile-influenced store sales by 2016.Adoption of mobile devices by consumers is growing by leaps and bounds. According to our study, roughly half of consumers surveyed currently own a smartphone(3). This can give your competitors and other outside influencers an easy entry point into your store — and there is nothing you can do to stop them. However, you can take proactive actions to reduce the threat and start using mobile to your advantage. For example, investing in enhanced mobile apps can help you retain control of the customer experience and proactively support what information consumers have access to at each stage of the shopping process. This helps insulate your customers from outside influences and can significantly boost your in-store conversion rates. According to our study, the conversion rate in the store for shoppers who use a retailer's dedicated app is 21 percent higher than those who don't — most likely because such apps can provide a more relevant and tailored shopping experience that helps people make an immediate buying decision.Download the full report from the Attached Files section at right.

The Dawn of Mobile Influence

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