A recent article outlined six mobile shopping apps (An App for That,Too:How Mobile Is ChangingShopping). All the apps in the article offer benefits to shoppers,but how much of a benefit? Is it worth the shopper’s time to download the app? Are these apps more of a novelty that will be used several times and then forgotten? Is there a bigger “killer app”idea?
The apps outlined in the article were interesting. I could see the appeal how the apps would appeal to certain shoppers. However,I do believe there is a bigger idea out there. Albeit not an easy idea to execute,but if successful the application could define the category.
Before I paint a vision of what that could be,let’s first briefly review the mobile apps discussed in the article. I grouped the mobile apps based on perceived shopper benefit:saving money,knowledge,and convenience. Note that some apps may fit into multiple benefits.
Saving Money
Some people spend time to save money,others spend money to save time. When a person is driven to save money,they view their time as an investment to get the best deal. The lowest price,coupons,rebates,are priorities. These shoppers are willing to drive out of their way to get a deal. So it is not a question of ”if”they will drive out of their,rather it is a question of “how far”they will.
- Yowzadelivers coupons to nearby stores based on GPS-ing the shopper’s location.
- ShopSavvycompares store prices (through scanning the bar code) with online and at nearby retailer pricess. Also includes coupons and allows users to make online transactions.
- The Find will locate retailers,both online and offline,that carry desired products,will compare prices of the product,and even calculate the cost to drive to each store.
Shopper Knowledge
Making an informed decision is a desired benefit for many shoppers,especially on a high-consideration purchase. Achieving this goal is not always easy. It is not for lack of information —the internet provides an abundance of information on products,pricing,and product reviews. No the issue isn’t information. The issue is gathering knowledge to determine what is the right product. What product meets the shopper’s needs.
- RetrevoQ uses texts and tweets to provide shopper with information about electronics equipment including pricing information,reviews,and whether it is a good buy.
Convenience
Sometimes it is a manner of getting in and out quickly. For many shoppers going to a mall is an experience. A social journey where they explore stores and take in the ambiance of the mall. For others it is a task. They prefer not to waste time. Get in. Get out. Or get to where their desired location as quickly as possible.
- Fastmall provides interactive maps displaying the quickest route to stores and it can remember where their car is parked.
- GroceryIQ (now owned by Coupons.com) allows consumers to create grocery lists,organize them,access coupons and share lists with others.
By reviewing the list of apps one can see the inherent benefits of each app. However,I do think there can be more benefit. The true killer apps will get more personal.
Get Personal
Right now the apps listed are rather impersonal,and a bit pushy. Pushing coupons to the phone. Pushing prices to the phone. Pushing reviews to the phone. We need to be a little less pushy,and take a more empathetic view of the shopper. Make it more about them. Make it personal.
Mobile phones are digital wallets. Potentially,they have reams of personal data. Mobile phones know who we know. They carry our contacts,our social groups,our trusted advisers. Mobile phones also know where we have been. They can capture visually a place or the specific GPS location. Mobile phones can learn our tolerances. They can record how far we are willingto travel for certain items like shopping or dining. Mobile phones can learn our time-value relationship. By combining these factors and more we can match shopping information with our personal code will generate knowledge. If the app can fuse our personal information the shopper environment think of the possibilities.
My Meals
We don’t eat ingredients,we eat meals. We all have favorites meals. So,imagine GroceryIQ with a taste layer –finding and recommendingfood and recipes based on personal or family food genres like ethnic flairs (e.g. Thai,Italian),and then incorporatingthe recipes into your shopping list. Also, imagine a time layer –accessingyour calendar to determine how much time you have to cook and making meal recommendations (then pullingrecipes,coupons into the list). There are sites on the web that do aspects of this today. The challenge is combining the elements together in a seamless experience for the shopper.
My Money,My Time
Some people save pennies,some save dollars,some just spend. The variance is mostly explained by how we valuate our time. As stated prior some people will spend time to save money,others prefer to spend money to save time. There can be an app for both. Apps like Shop Savvy and The Find could be fine tuned to understand a shopper who is willing to wait a week (for shipping) to save ten dollars,while another shopper may willing to spend $30 to buy the product today. The Find is headed down this path with the ability to calculate the driving cost to each store.
My Purchase
Many marketers (and tech people) think what people need is information. This is a misconception. People do not need information,the internet,publications,and retail environment offer an abundance of information. No,what the shopper needs is knowledge. In the case of shopping,knowledge is the synthesizing of personal needs with product information to determine the appropriate fit.
Think about a high-consideration purchase like an HDTV. The mobile app can combine electronics advise from experts with your friends with your personal needs and home environment. The goal of the app is to not push the information,rather synthesize the information by fusing the data points into knowledge. Think of this as a three step process.
The first step would be to create a personal foundation. The app could capture a picture(s) of where the television is to be located including room lighting,distance from viewing area,and accessibility to cable,stereo and internet/wi-fi. The app would also ask the shopper questions like budget,primary television usage (e.g. movies,sports,gaming),and brand preference.
The second step would be to fuse this information with product data (e.g. specs,pricing,product availability) and expert reviews. This overlay would inform the shopper about product fit with their needs,product reliability through expert reviews,and where the television can be purchased (and for how much).
The final step is to fuse it with social information. Mobile phones are a gateway to our social network. For important purchases,most shoppers seek advice from someone in their social circle. Maybe the person is a tech geek or fashion savvy or just a friend whose opinion matters. From the shopper’s perspective the social circle could provide first-hand experiences from people who either bought the product recently or knows someone who has. Based on this first or second hand experience,the shopper would receive additional input.
It is not about My Phone,it is about My Life
Based on the last example,you get the idea of the depth and breadth of an app. However,the complexity of the app brings up a final point:the best apps should be integrated into our life –accessible from multiple access points and not limited to just our mobile device. Think about facebook,YouTube,or Twitter —they began as experiences to accentuate different aspects of a person’s life. Each began by fulfilling a need. Each has multiple touchpoints including a mobile app.
Generating an app solely for a mobile device is limiting. While there are merits of mobile,there are also restrictions. The more complicated the application,the more cumbersome the application usability within the limited screen realestate. The more visual the application,the more difficult it will be to shrink it to a mobile screen without compromising visual aesthetics. That is why the best mobile apps will transcend the device - the best apps will emanate from the shopper within the shopping experience.
