Mobile Apps Bringing Change in eCommerce Market

What if there were no shopping apps?

It sounds scary, right?

That’s the level of consumption of mobile apps in our daily lives. We are pretty much dependent on them, and one of the reasons is shopping convenience. Customer demands are changing, and they are bringing an upsurge in the mobile app development industry.

As an eCommerce business, you need to be aware of the emerging mCommerce trends. Having a mobile app such as Magento 2 native app can be a profitable option. Though you can accomplish the task with a website, having a mobile app would result in better ROI due to the trends such as:

1. One-Click Ordering

Unlike websites that consist of a plethora of information about the company/business, apps are focused. They help carry out a particular action like purchasing. Instead of surfing through the website, customers can directly get what they want with a one-click ordering feature.

Besides, they will be free of inputting information manually every time. They can hit the Buy Now button and make a payment using the saved data. This would bring down the cart abandonment rate by 20%.

It would be profitable for both. For you, it would result in a high conversion rate. Customers, on the other hand, can be free of the daunting task of adding information. They can shop instantly using the mobile app.

2. GPS

A GPS feature would detect customers’ location and show them products based on their location. It would even inform them about product availability and the estimated delivery days.

Moreover, customers can track their orders and know the products’ whereabouts in real-time. They can witness every activity, starting from order-confirmation to packed, shipped, in-transition, and delivery.

3. Voice Search

With Alexa and Siri, the way we search has changed. Initially, we used to type in the search section and find relevant information. Even playing a specific song required typing the name in the search box.

But voice search freed us of that unnecessary typing effort.

Mobile apps are now using voice search to fasten the order processing for customers. They allow customers to search for products without browsing the website or accessing the mobile app manually. Customers can search for their products while cooking in the kitchen or working. Voice search restricts physical appearance.

This demand for voice search will increase. By 2022, voice shopping might reach $40 billion.

4. Mobile Chatbots

Many of you might have leveraged chatbot technology in eCommerce websites. However, its integration into mobile apps would change it all.

Along with convenience, it would assist people in shopping and resolving queries in a shorter time. It would enhance customer support.

Though chatbots have not fully penetrated mCommerce, they would advance the level of customer support that websites can provide.

A smooth transition from website to mobile app would ensure more convenience and time-saving.

For that, you would need a mobile app – a Magento 2 native mobile app. For a quick launch, I would suggest using a Magento 2 mobile app builder.

5. VR and AR

VR and AR are not only expanding our virtual realms and imagination; they are revolutionizing eCommerce shopping. Many businesses use VR and AR apps to enhance the customer shopping experience.

For example, a business that sells apparel can use augmented reality to show customers how an outfit looks. This way, customers can choose the products, try different colors, and see if it fits what they want.

AR would make it easy for customers to try and buy. It would reduce the order returns, as customers would exactly know what they are buying and how it would look. Using such interactive apps would increase user engagement, making it evident that mobile apps bring in change.

6. Omnichannel Shopping

Omnichannel experience refers to the way of selling products through different mediums—for example, websites, mobile apps, and physical stores.

However, mobile apps act as the bridge between different channels providing a one-notch service.

Here’s how:

You have a mobile app and a user having it on their phone enters your physical store. You can send them a push notification with a discount/coupon that they can avail themselves of while shopping on their visit. The chances that the user might have browsed the app are high. If next time they visit the website, you can recommend the products based on their preferences.

Or let’s say that the user searched a product on your mobile app and the next day visits the store. You can send them a discount offer on the exact product providing them with an omnichannel experience.

7. Mobile Frauds

The increase in eCommerce has brought in a rise in cybercrimes. Customers are now wary of sharing their personal and payment details with third-party websites/brands that are not trustworthy.

This leads to the rise in frauds. However, building mobile apps can be a solution to prevent fraud. Apps are not susceptible to phishing and common attacks that occur via mobile web browsers. It means that they are more stable and secure than websites.

Customers won’t have to worry about storing their passwords and payment details, as they are safe and secure.

Besides, you can add two-factor authentication to add an extra layer of security.

Overall, mobile apps would need customers because of the extra layer of security that it guarantees.

8. Social Commerce

Marketing on social media is nothing new. Brands leverage social media to engage with customers and attract them to buy.

Well, that was the only thing possible until mobile apps came in. With them, social media is all about marketing and selling. It is a new medium of selling. Now, businesses can convert social traffic into sales directly from social posts to product pages. In a lot of cases, the social post acts directly as the checkout page.

With tag options, businesses can tag products and provide a shoppable option that directs customers to the final shopping stage.

Shoppable posts eliminate the pain points in conversion, and it’s possible only because of mobile apps. In fact, a study says that a brand used Instagram shopping and saw a 1416% boost in sales and a 20% increase in revenue.

9. Personalization

Mobile apps bring in a more personalized experience than websites. As it’s easy for the customer to browse through the app, they spend more time on mobile apps, resulting in more sales. To intensify it, mobile apps bring in a mix of personalization with features like – pop-ups, personalized searches, recommendations, etc.

They use push notifications to send customers a personalized message regarding deals and offers. For instance, if a customer’s search history were all about gadgets, they would be notified of deals on gadgets.

Coupons, discounts, cashback on ordering via mobile apps are other ways of attracting customers into buying their product.

To Conclude

Around 85% of mobile users prefer apps to mobile sites. They say it’s convenient and time-saving to shop via a mobile app.

So, you can’t deny the fact that mobile apps are changing the way we do business. They are bringing customers close to businesses, filling the gap that eCommerce websites couldn’t fill.

Mobile apps are giving customers the freedom of ownership and trust.

If you don’t have one yet, you must get it built today. (You can use a Magento 2 mobile app builder.)

Suggestion: Opt for a Magento 2 native app. It has all the qualities of the Magento 2 platform.