Mobile help retail stores win sales

With big retailers such as Blockbusters and HMV going belly up and attributing this on people buying online instead, it is of no surprise that retail stores are concerned this Christmas, particularly as these sales can make up to 40% of retailers' overall annual revenue.

Good news? Retailers concerned about the negative effects of online shopping this holiday season can rest a little bit easier tonight as research by BuzzCity finds although 47% of shoppers around the globe expect to do their Christmas shopping online this year, this will not negatively affect the volume of customers shopping in retail outlets.

With multiple ways for customers to shop, retailers must focus on creating a consistent customer experience regardless of the channel chosen by customers to engage with retailers this holiday season. By doing so, this will help ensure retailers are competing across channels. If a customer's first point of contact with you is visiting your website via their smartphone, you need to ensure this is representative of your brand and creates an enjoyable shopping experience. Consider that one of your brand values is 'quality products and services' but your mobile website is ill-designed and difficult to navigate - is this truly demonstrating your 'quality' brand principle?

Mobile helping retail stores win sales

Make sure you have a mobile website to ensure you do not lose sales to others and integrate this with your store. For example, if a customer reserves items online, you can send a text message alert to notify them when the reserved product is available for collection at their nearest store.

Text messages can also be used for sending general alerts about accounts such as new statements, special events and promotions. This can prove very valuable when developing customer relationships as you can invite special customers to a fashion show for example, increasing the likelihood that they will become a repeat customer.

Retailers have a deeper understanding of their shoppers today including their buying habits and demographics helping them tailor mobile coupons and promotions to increase revenues. Using geo-location technology, you can even send specific deals to customers when they are nearby, making the likelihood that they will visit your store that little bit higher. If you are a restaurant for example, you can blast customers with a mobile alert or e-mail advising them of any deals making them not only aware you are nearby and putting yourself to the forefront of their mind, but also providing a direct reason for them to visit your restaurant over others. With UK shoppers becoming more cost conscious, this can provide the perfect excuse to spend money in your restaurant over others.

Retailers could consider equipping sales staff with tablets and custom apps so they can help customers in store and pull up information instantly on customers' past shopping behavior or to find information about merchandise. For example, they could find information about stock availability both within their store and other nearby stores enhancing the customer experience and helping secure the sale. QR codes can also potentially be used to allow customers to find detailed product information, add products to a 'wish list' and even suggest other associated products for example.

Mobile technology can be used to help retailers enhance customer service across channels and provide a more cohesive and consistent experience. Learn more about how retailers can enhance the mobile shopping experience or read our Retail section to find out more.

For further information regarding HSL Mobile, visit us at:

http://www.hslmobile.com

follow us on LinkedIn, @hslmobile, Facebook or Google+

or call us on +44 (0)1506 605 260

or email us at sales@hslmobile.com

UK struggles to stay warm this Christmas...smart meters here to help?

Across the UK people continue to struggle to pay energy bills and stay warm this Christmas as energy prices keep on rising. A recent survey found that there is a higher percentage of people in the UK struggling to pay their energy bills than elsewhere in Europe, ranking 26 out of 27 and only ranking higher than Estonia.

There has been much attention surrounding energy prices and profits accumulated by energy companies. A report by Ofgem found that profits from departments which supply gas and electricity, soared from £681 million in 2011 to a tremendous £1.19 billion last year when comparing the same period. With the publics' anger mounting, the Government has now stepped in to demand that utility companies explain the rise in prices and Ofgem is challenging companies to cut costs for consumers.

Smart meters are taking hold across the globe as governments, energy companies and customers realise that smart meters can help reduce energy bills. Customers can better manage their energy consumption by simply having an improved understanding of how much energy they use in real time. Customers can find out the differences in energy consumption during different times in the day, across various weeks and months of the year. By knowing this, they can try and reduce consumption of certain household appliances as they will know how much it costs to leave the heating on all night for example, or carry out two washings a day.

Another great feature of smart meters is accurate billing, meaning no more incorrect bills and having to call companies to rectify or dispute the matter. Meter readings are automatically updated on a regular basis resulting in no more visits to collect meter readings or having to log in online and wait patiently for the web page to load to enter meter readings manually. Or, if you're anything like me, having to receive multiple email reminders to enter meter readings before remembering to do so!

As well as facing pressure to reduce energy prices, energy companies are facing further challenges as consumer trust and loyalty remain low, partly a result of high energy prices and incorrect billing. A study by Opower found five consistent findings regardless of country which they termed the '5 Universal Truths of the Energy Consumer'. They highlighted that customers not only want lower bills and accurate billing but they also want utility companies to offer more than their existing services as they compare providers with their banks and as such, they are now rating energy providers based on their online services, personalisation, information and text message alerts.

Utility suppliers should ensure customers can visit their website and find information easily regardless of whether they are accessing the site via a laptop, PC, iPad or a mobile phone. Customers should be able to manage their own account 24/7 from wherever they are and set up personalised text message alerts which they want to receive such as a notification when funds are low. Utilities can develop apps that are tailored towards their end customers and focus on what they want to achieve.

Reduce the need for customers to call you and wait on hold by sending information to them or by allowing them to find the information themselves. By sending text message alerts straight to a customer's mobile phone ensures they are alerted immediately and builds positive customer relationships. Messages can be used to send valuable information such as when a bill needs to be paid, cheaper tariffs become available or offer tips on how to reduce energy.

Customers today value convenience and information, and by focusing on delivering what customers require will help energy companies bring back good customer service and help them secure long term relationships with their customers. Find out how energy suppliers use mobile communications to build customer trust or read our Utilities section to find out more.

For further information regarding HSL Mobile, visit us at:

http://www.hslmobile.com

follow us on LinkedIn, @hslmobile, Facebook or Google+

or call us on +44 (0)1506 605 260

or email us at sales@hslmobile.com

Mobile technology in retail - pass the bar?

Mobile technology in retail is no longer new as people continue to embrace the technology to make shopping that little bit easier as they recognise the convenience and benefits of mobile. 

No longer are shoppers restricted by stores' opening times, or where they are at that moment in time, you can shop 24/7 from wherever you are (well, as long as you have an internet connection and a mobile device)!

However, a poll by Populus into food and grocery shopping in the UK found retailers are failing to capitalise on the demand for new mobile technology. More than a third would like to scan their shopping using mobile phones to keep a track of spend and to quicken the payment process but less than 3% of retailers are currently offering this. A third of shoppers also indicated that they would like to use their mobiles in store for price comparison, and 28% would like mobile alerts regarding special offers when they are close by to a store.

New research by Verdict predicts spending online and via mobile devices will rocket over the next five years. This is partly a result of shopping via tablet devices becoming more commonplace as consumers become more secure with using mobile devices. At the moment, spending using a mobile phone and tablet device is expected to rise from its current level of £7.9 billion this year to hit £23.1 billion in 2018.

So how can retailers take advantage of the mobile opportunities available? What should they be doing?

3 tips for retailers going mobile

1. Apps

Everybody loves a good app, but if your app is poor quality or not delivering what a customer needs, expect to be deleted. You need to ensure that you have researched your target customers and understand what they are looking for within an app before building one. It is also important to allow customers to provide feedback and take this on board. You need to understand the purpose of the customer using the app - are they simply looking for information or are they likely to want to buy, get in touch, create a wish list and so on.

The best apps focus on what customers want to achieve when using the app, simple to use and make it easy to find what you need.

2. Mobile Sites

It is - and I can't stress this enough - vital that you remember the key differences between viewing a website on a computer to viewing a website on a mobile. Screens are smaller, buttons are fiddly and it is much more difficult to navigate your way around a site. How many times have you clicked on the top navigation menu bar such as 'contact us' and you've successfully hit the correct option first time?

Anyone designing a mobile website needs to remove any unnecessary information and try and ensure content is as concise as it possibly can be. It is also important to consider the time it takes to load your website as if it takes too long, visitors are most likely going to go elsewhere. A good way to reduce load times is reviewing images on the site as this can attribute negatively to load times.

3. Text message alerts

Simple and easy and yet a very effective tool for engaging with customers. Often we receive a text message from retailers about reserved products available for collection, special promotions, account details and any other information they wish to send. A great benefit of text messaging is the high read rate of 97% and because customers have opted in to receiving communications by text, they are less likely to view the text as invasive and obtrusive. It can help strengthen relationships whereas sending unsolicited emails is more likely to damage a relationship.

Retailers should also think outside the box. Apps, mobile websites and text message alerts are just three technologies that can help you capture customers and enhance relationships. Retailers can also offer mobile coupons, enable mobile payments or provide iPads for sales assistants to name just a few. Retailers should consider the shopping journey for their customers and target customers and come up with new and innovative ideas to engage with customers as this can help them stay ahead and compete against others.

Learn more about The future for retailers in a mobile environment or read our Retail section to find out more.

For further information regarding HSL Mobile, visit us at:

http://www.hslmobile.com

follow us on LinkedIn, @hslmobile, Facebook or Google+

or call us on +44 (0)1506 605 260

or email us at sales@hslmobile.com

The retail showrooming effect on stores this festive season

'Showrooming' is a well known term amongst retailers and is causing some genuine concern for brick and mortar retailers that revenues will be hit as a result of customers being able to access online sites from mobile devices. As traditional brick and mortar stores continue to compete with online sites this Christmas, they now have additional concerns as customers go online and compare prices whilst in their shop!

Research by Foolproof found showrooming affected retailers in the run up to Christmas in 2012. During the festive period last year, 24% of all UK shoppers engaged in showrooming with 40% buying products from a competitor after comparing prices via their mobile whilst in-store and 20% simply went into a store in the first place to review a product they later planned to buy online.

Retailers must not forget that showrooming not only heats up the competition with online retailers, but also with other traditional brick and mortar stores. Foolproof found that customers that went online via their smartphone to check prices whilst in-store, would also go on to buy from other retail stores. Customers can now find a volume of information online via their mobile about products and services, and store reviews making them a much more intelligent shopper and making it that little bit more complex to compete today.

What does 'showrooming' mean for retailers this festive season?

As discussed in another article How can retailers combat showrooming? there are many ways to ensure your retail store competes successfully with online websites and other retail stores, overcoming the threat of 'showrooming'. As much as price matching would appear to be the obvious answer, it is seldom a long-term solution as traditional retail stores are more likely to have higher overheads such as rent/mortgage, utility bills and staffing.

Retailers should focus on enhancing the in-store experience they offer and make sure customer service is a top priority as well as finding ways to engage customers and develop long-term relationships. Tablets can be used by sales assistants to allow them to quickly find product information and stock availability at the touch of a button, restaurants can reduce paper production and enhance brand image by using iPads instead of menus, staff can offer personalised service for customers who would like further help and advice. Loyalty cards and targeted promotions can be used to foster long term relationships and stimulate repeat business.

At the end of the day, people like to speak to other people and be able to see and test products and services before they buy making it doubtful that retail stores will become no more. It’s also important to note that not all purchases are reviewed and planned ahead – how often have we went out to ‘have a look around’ or visit a supermarket to buy 'just bread and milk’ and come home with an armload of shopping?  We mustn't forget those alluring impulse buys!

The retail store will remain an important part of the shopping experience and mobile technology such as sending a text message to a customer when they are nearby to the store with an enticing promotion will help improve sales and equipping staff with mobile devices will enhance customer service as they are able to find information more readily. 

Learn more about how retailers can enhance the mobile shopping experience or read our Retail section to find out more.

For further information regarding HSL Mobile, visit us at:

http://www.hslmobile.com

follow us on LinkedIn, @hslmobile, Facebook or Google+

or call us on +44 (0)1506 605 260

or email us at sales@hslmobile.com

What does mobile mean for UK retailers this Christmas?

It may seem a little early to be speaking about Christmas but for retailers, the festive period is a crucial time to increase sales and attract customers with many UK shoppers beginning their Christmas shopping already and for a happy few, the mammoth Christmas list has been completed and they can put their feet up. 

With mobile making waves for UK retailers, can retailers afford to ignore this channel or not fully utilise the mobile opportunities available?

A recent survey by VoucherCodes.co.uk revealed that over half of the shoppers in the UK are turning to their mobile when shopping, not only for browsing or comparing prices, but also to buy via their mobile with a fifth of shoppers reported as buying via their phone and 10% only using mobile as their main way for shopping.

According to Adobe’s Online Shopping Forecast they expect that 12.4% of all online sales during this festive period will be from mobile devices - a whopping 68% increase from last year. Mark Phibbs the vice president of EMEA marketing of Adobe stated: “The rapid growth in mobile shopping across Europe should be a very clear signal to retailers that a sound mobile strategy is not a luxury, but a vital part of their future success".

John Lewis received 50% of all online traffic on Christmas day last year from a mobile device and have launched a new iPad app as they hope to capitalise on this mobile opportunity. They themselves predict that mobile phones and tablets will be the main route of online traffic on Christmas day, overtaking desktops for the first time in what they term the UK’s first ‘mobile Christmas’.

It is clear that UK consumers are becoming more comfortable with using their mobile as part of the buying process. They can quickly compare prices using their mobile phone to find the best deals, browse online to find possible gift ideas and they can even buy online wherever they are, at any time. No longer are shoppers restricted to the opening hours of traditional brick and mortar stores, or using their PC or laptop at home, they can now make purchases whilst travelling on the bus or standing at the train platform making shopping more accessible and convenient.

As shoppers face the daunting task of buying all the presents for their loved ones this Christmas, they are quickly recognising the benefits of using their mobile devices to buy their gifts this year. As retailers continue to face difficult times, they cannot afford to lose out on mobile opportunities and not cater for mobile shoppers. Think about it. Would you stay long on a website that does not display well on a mobile device or tailored to make the buying process as easy as possible?

Learn more about how retailers can enhance the mobile shopping experience or read our Retail section to find out more.

For further information regarding HSL Mobile, visit us at:

http://www.hslmobile.com

follow us on LinkedIn, @hslmobile, Facebook or Google+

or call us on +44 (0)1506 605 260

or email us at sales@hslmobile.com

Self-service travellers taking over...or not?

Travellers - whether it is travelling by bus, train or air - are quickly recognising the benefits of serving themselves and using technology to ease the travel process.

Self-service machines have become more common place and allow travellers to book and print travel tickets rather than waiting in a queue for a member of staff to carry out this transaction. This is hugely beneficial for travellers with time pressures and helps make the journey more effortless and relaxing.

With the introduction of the Internet, travellers flocked online to book travel as this provided a new channel for accessing high volumes of information and to easily compare pricing making the process quicker, more informative and convenient compared to visiting the nearest travel office or speaking to someone on the phone. Mobile technology complements this even further by making it even easier and more convenient for consumers to book travel as they can do so from anywhere, at anytime.

It is therefore not that surprising to discover that mobile travel bookings are expected to reach $26 billion by 2014 as more companies begin to cater for mobile customers searching for travel options online via a mobile device. Travellers are also becoming more accustomed to searching online using their mobile and travel apps to find the best prices, deals and information. For example, the Skyscanner mobile app quickly identifies all available flights enabling travellers to find the best flight available and book their flight on their mobile.

Airlines are becoming heavily involved in using mobile to streamline journeys and improve efficiencies allowing them to not only save money but also deliver better customer service. A SITA survey found that 100% of airlines surveyed intend to offer mobile check-in and flight status alerts by 2015. Travellers can now legitimately queue jump using mobile check-ins reducing the number of staff required and time spent waiting around leading to quicker journey times and more happy travellers. Flight status updates received to travellers' mobiles alert them immediately of any changes to their flights, removing the need to speak to a member of staff and allow them to adjust plans if necessary. Additionally, mobile boarding passes are also being adopted by airlines such as Ryanair to provide a secure way for travellers to store ticket information and remove the hassle of printing boarding passes.

However, a more recent SITA survey found that although more than 90% of airline passengers are using technology to ease the travel process, only a small percentage use their smartphones to help them when travelling. They found that although travellers have mobile services available to them, as 76% owned a smartphone, most did not use them due to worries over usability and limitations of the device.

It would seem that self-service travellers are not yet taking over. Although there are undoubtedly benefits for both transport companies and the traveller to use mobile services, there are still some concerns about usability which need to be addressed. SITA recommend that companies focus on making it as easy as possible for travellers to adopt and use mobile services and we expect if this is carried out, self-service travellers will increase in numbers.

Discover more about how travel apps can make a difference or read our Transport section to find out more. As part of our mobile communications portfolio for enterprises, we are now supporting Apple Passbook for boarding passes, tickets and coupons.

For further information regarding HSL Mobile, visit us at:

http://www.hslmobile.com

follow us on LinkedIn, @hslmobile, Facebook or Google+

or call us on +44 (0)1506 605 260

or email us at sales@hslmobile.com

The benefits of effective enterprise communications: Part 2

This is the second and last installment in a series of posts about the benefits of effective enterprise communications. In today's post we will look at the importance of external communications and the difference mobile communication services can make.

 

Enterprises must communicate with people and systems external to the organisation – customers, suppliers, partners and other stakeholders. Its absence, or done poorly, can have a negative impact on the performance of the enterprise.

As touched upon in part 1, mobility is also adding another layer of complexity to enterprise communications. People move around. Fact. This makes them less accessible and more difficult to reach. By recognising and addressing this dependency on mobility, enterprises are able to perform better as they are able to communicate with people on the move, whether it’s a customer travelling on the bus or a supplier away from their desk at a meeting.

Mobile communications enable enterprises to reach more people and in turn, they are more likely to respond to messages. Think about it. When was the last time you did not have your mobile phone within 5 feet of you? We live in a society where more than half of people in the UK say they suffer from ‘nomophobia’ – the fear of being out of contact with mobile phones such as no signal and dead battery. For businesses, this is great as it means people are more accessible as they have their mobile in sight and studies show SMS messages have read rates as high as 97%. 

Communicating effectively with customers is an essential part of all businesses. The Department of Health published figures last year showing a total of 5.5 million missed patient appointments across the UK, potentially causing delays of treatment to others and wasting taxpayers' money. However, communicating with customers through text messaging has helped reduce the number of missed appointments. Records show that between April and December 2011 missed appointments fell by over 12,000 compared to the same period the year before.

NewVoiceMedia found UK businesses stand to lose a huge £12 billion every year as a result of poor customer service. Customer service was rated as the biggest influencer in customer loyalty by 34% of consumers. Enterprise (text) messaging can be used by customer service centers to increase efficiency and responsiveness as it reduces waiting times leading to higher customer loyalty and retention rates as well as reducing staff and resources required.

Logistics companies can also use enterprise (text) messaging to inform customers of the status of their deliveries. Such communication not only gives customers a greater certainty over the order, but it can also significantly improve the management of the logistics chain, since the logistics firm can give a more detailed time frame for the delivery. This reduces the number of failed delivery attempts which from the carrier’s perspective wastes both time and shelf/van space and from the customer’s perspective improves the overall experience.

Read part 1 to find out about the importance of effective internal communications or learn more about how businesses are using mobile communications services by visiting our case studies.

For further information regarding HSL Mobile, visit us at:

http://www.hslmobile.com

follow us on LinkedIn, @hslmobile, Facebook or Google+

or call us on +44 (0)1506 605 260

or email us at sales@hslmobile.com