Mobile Commerce – Will it Flourish?

Mobile commerce has always been a hot topic of discussion ever since its introduction in the market. There have been numerous theories regarding the different mobile commerce applications and m-commerce services. Some have criticized the apps saying that they will not last long and yet others have claimed that certain apps were here to stay and will continue to rule the roost.

Retailers have taken a keen interest in mobile commerce because that has played a big role in helping sales to rise significantly. But even then, there is much more that needs to be done. The mobile marketing scenario holds loads of opportunities but it has not been fully explored as of yet. So what can we expect in the mobile commerce market? Here goes:
• Consumers will soon go for technology rather than direct interaction with a shop owner when it comes to shopping or enquiring about a certain product.
• Did you know that Amazon and eBay are generating a turnover of over 1 billion US dollars in sales via their mobile websites? This is due to the fact that consumers are spending a considerable portion of their time surfing mobile websites.
• Quick Response (QR) codes are going to pave the future of retail as it has the capability to churn out interesting content. The QR code is a 2D bar code that integrates the physical world with digital content. These codes will be placed in t-shirts, billboards, receipts. So consumers can connect to a mobile website, video or image from an offline mode – all it requires is a snap of a camera equipped phone.
• Mobile coupons offering discounts would go a long way as is quoted by the report released by Sterling Commerce and Demandware in the year August 2010. Coupons give a personalized approach to the entire shopping process. Therefore, these are not viewed as advertising mediums anymore.
• The concept of using Short Messaging Service (SMS) for marketing is not unknown. But the current scenario speaks of other developments. Banks are now sending alerts to customers on overdraft; feedback is being gathered through short surveys, and so on. The reason for the popularity of SMS marketing is that it does not intrude into the privacy of people like phone calls.

You can see how mobile commerce is all set to move forward in the coming years. And why not? A huge chunk of the market is in the nascent stage so retailers are expected to strike gold here!