Mobile Shopping Apps: Shop from Anywhere

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Mobile Shopping Apps: Shop from Anywhere

Over the past month we’ve taken a close look at the retail industry, and a variety of usage scenarios contained within. Today we’ll continue the conversation by diving into the world of mobile shopping apps.

New Opportunities for Retailers

Through the ubiquity of mobile devices, retailers have a new opportunity to connect with consumers on a global scale, bringing their own unique shopping experience to any smartphone-carrying consumer. The mobile smartphone has effectively condensed the marketplace into a pocket-sized storefront, creating a massive new sales channel and an opening the door to new markets around the world.  These mobile shopping apps are used in a variety of ways including in-store showrooming to compare prices, shopping from home and remote locations or building a shopping list from anywhere.

Here’s a look at a basic mobile shopping process:

    1. User browses a catalog to search for or discover products
    2. User can search a product title or scan an item to:
      – find out more information about a product in a store or at home
      – to add a product to a digital shopping cart or to make a purchase
      – to add a product to a shopping or wish list
    3. User can check out through stored payment information.

The mobile shopping process is intuitive for smartphone-carrying consumers and simplifies the act of shopping.  The camera on the phone replaces the traditional laser scanner used at the point of sale, and can provide consumers with the detailed product information they need to make a purchase decision.

Mobile Shopping using Scandit Technology

With Scandit’s innovative Barcode Scanner SDK and Product API retailers can create simple and elegant mobile shopping apps. Our fast and reliable barcode scanning technology ensures consumers will be able to quickly interact with any product, and through our product data services retailers can provide access to all sorts of valuable product data. Watch the video:

Existing Mobile Shopping Apps

One of our customers, Ex Libris, created an innovative mobile shopping app which capitalizes on the above trends in mobile commerce. As a leader in Swiss media sales, Ex Libris recognized that more and more consumers were shopping through mobile devices and decided to create a multi-channel distribution strategy with a heavy focus on mobile. The result was a sleek and quick shopping experience that allowed consumers to interact with any product on the fly.  Another valued customer, Coop@home, provides an innovative shopping app that lets consumers place grocery delivery orders for grocery products they scan in their homes or on street posters.  For more detailed information about Scandit-powered apps see our mobile shopping page. Moreover, make sure to watch this video (in German), which showcases the Coop@home shopping experience:

Building a Mobile Shopping App

So you’re convinced, it’s time to build a mobile shopping app. What needs to happen next?

1)      Decide if you want to hire a solution provider to build your app, or build one in house.

2)      Decide which platforms you’d like the app to run on.

3)      Assess which systems you need the app to work with. Do you use an integrated retail system? What kind of database does the app need to connect with to provide users with product information?

4)      Identify the features you need, and find the best software components for the job.
(Our Barcode Scanner SDK and Product API are perfect for mobile shopping solutions).

5)      Build and test your app (watch the Scandit integration video)

6)      Deploy and enjoy.

Need help making a decision? Our sales staff is here to help. Contact us for more information.

Stay tuned for more retail usage scenarios including loyalty and list making coming soon!