Retail mobile apps have turn into indispensable to consumers, transforming how they shop. While mobile apps still capture significant attention, all-in-one web services in mobile wallets are emerging as an important complement to individual mobile apps.
Alex Campbell, CIO and co-founder of the mobile marketing platform Vibes, notes that mobile wallets can drive app downloads for users hesitant to put in full-featured apps. They present a considerable marketing opportunity through Apple and Google wallets integrated into iOS and Android devices.
“It was once regarded as facilitating mobile payments or storing event tickets. But marketers have come to see it as a real engagement channel that unites the physical and digital worlds,” he told the E-Commerce Times.
Other research suggests that mobile apps don’t necessarily need a complementary role. A study published in April by custom mobile app developer Bryj highlighted strong consumer demand for firms to update their apps somewhat than phase them out.
Competitive Mobile App Marketplace
The Bryj survey of 1,000 U.S. consumers revealed that the rise of mobile apps has revolutionized how firms engage with customers, providing convenient access to products, services, and data anytime, anywhere. Nonetheless, researchers said businesses must prioritize user experience, personalization, interface design, and security to avoid customers deleting apps lacking those features.
Quite a few mobile apps can be found, and competition is heating up for coveted home screen space. So, firms that don’t modernize their customer contact strategies could struggle with sustained retail app use, customer retention, and sales goals.
“Whether through uniquely tailored recommendations or customized privacy settings, this level of customization enhances user engagement and fosters a deeper sense of connection and loyalty to the brand,” Lawrence Snapp, CEO of Bryj, told The E-Commerce Times.
“Firms that leverage data-driven insights to deliver hyper-personalized experiences gain a big competitive edge in today’s highly competitive market,” he observed about what’s going to keep retail mobile apps at shoppers’ fingertips.
Adapting Retail Apps for AI and User Expectations
Consumers now depend on mobile apps for shopping, work, entertainment, and communication, expecting flawless user experiences.
To remain relevant, businesses should consider integrating AI into their mobile apps, with a recent study showing that just about three-quarters (72%) of Gen Z and millennials are open to AI-driven features.
“To stay competitive, mobile apps must reflect the newest trends and technologies, like AI integration and enhanced user interfaces. This ensures firms provide exceptional experiences and meet consumers’ evolving needs and expectations,” he said.
Nonetheless, the appeal of modernized mobile apps could also be waning. A Vibes study released in February revealed that digital wallets, which store loyalty cards, tickets, boarding passes, gift cards, and more, are increasingly replacing individual brand apps.
The research also found that 54% of consumers aged 25 to 54 currently use or plan to make use of mobile wallets for storing items like digital offers and loyalty cards.
Bryj’s survey found that 62% of respondents, especially younger generations, have 10 to 30 mobile apps on each of their devices. Nearly 1 / 4 (20%) of younger generations download about one app per week.
Consumers seek apps that save them time and offer simplicity. The margin was close between those that listed time savings as their primary consideration when downloading an app (68%) and people who sought to simplify their lives because the second top consideration (65%).
The Bryj survey also reveals the vast majority of consumers (64%) usually tend to use a business’s mobile app than its website through a mobile browser.
Attraction of Mobile Wallets
Mobile wallets bridge the engagement gap as persistent, contactless engagement channels that help unite the physical and digital worlds for marketing, commerce, service, and loyalty without app downloads. These features provide brands with two distinct benefits over traditional mobile apps.
Retailers can easily update mobile wallet pass content and send timely, relevant wallet notifications to a user’s lock screen. This capability gives them a strong channel for continuous engagement with their customers. It drives those customers into stores to redeem coupons, offers, and points.
In keeping with Vibes, 75% of consumers said that text messages routinely drive them to buy from brands. Sixty percent of respondents have used a mobile wallet-stored loyalty card when making an on-site purchase. A bit greater than half (54%) said they’d made an on-site purchase when a brand made a suggestion available via a mobile wallet.
Campbell noted that digital wallets play a vital complementary role by allowing consumers to store and access shopping essentials — like coupons, loyalty cards, tickets, and gift cards — in a single place. Their ability to dynamically update in real time helps brands address a key challenge: encouraging customers to download and consistently use their mobile apps.
“It’s what we call a ‘low-reach, high-engagement’ channel. It’s unbelievable when a loyal customer downloads your app, but most won’t. Mobile wallets bridge the gap between high-reach, low-engagement email marketing, and low-reach, high-engagement mobile app marketing,” Snapp offered.
Mobile Wallets and SMS as Promo Tools
The shift to mobile wallets is driven by the incontrovertible fact that mobile wallets have gotten a much bigger a part of consumers’ lives. Moreover, Campbell observed that each Apple and Google are developing and promoting mobile payment wallets.
He explained that it’s a “combination of consumer demand and an awakening of marketers to the restrictions presented by each email and mobile apps, in addition to to only how easily Mobile Wallet integrates with their SMS marketing.”
For instance, brands can boost revenue through the use of SMS combined with mobile wallets to drive foot traffic to retail stores and restaurants. A brand might send a text with a link to a $3 mobile wallet coupon, double loyalty points, or similar promotional offers.
This strategy allows brands to trace each downloaded pass and measure the success of SMS/wallet campaigns with clear attribution.
AI’s Role in Shaping the Way forward for Mobile Apps
AI is significantly impacting the mobile app industry and can proceed introducing latest tools, making it more accessible to consumers, noted Bryj’s Snapp. As technology advances, consumers now expect progressive features like AI.
“Our recent consumer survey on mobile apps found nearly three-in-four Gen Z and millennials are open to those features,” he offered.
Snapp added that AI-driven features like chatbots, virtual assistants, and predictive analytics can transform the user experience by making it more personalized, intuitive, and efficient.
As an illustration, personalization inside mobile apps isn’t any longer a luxury but an expectation. Customers now expect experiences tailored to their specific preferences and requirements.
Snapp noted that the digital native generation is transforming the mobile experience as we realize it. This shift makes it much more competitive for mobile apps to win a distinguished spot on shoppers’ phone screens.
“As younger generations proceed to view mobile apps as indispensable, we’ll find continued growth inside the industry,” Snapp said.
Bryj’s survey noted that poor user experiences, akin to software bugs and slow loading time, are the foremost reasons consumers delete mobile apps on their devices. Other reasons are poor user interface and poor security measures.
“This is very important to notice as many retailers are vying for consumer attention and engagement in-app. Moreover, consumers are most thinking about the power to customize privacy and security settings inside mobile apps,” disclosed Snapp.
He concluded that to compete on this increasingly crowded market, retailers must invest now in delivering top-notch experiences and personalized touchpoints at every point within the buying journey.
