This Christmas, consumers will be using their mobile devices to research and purchase more than ever before. Retailers must adapt to consumer behaviour in order to provide a positive experience for their customers. Learn how Argos and Media-Saturn are doing just that.
This upcoming Christmas season, shoppers will have plenty of intent-driven I-want-to-know, I-want-to-go, I-want-to-do, and I-want-to-buy moments.
These moments are big opportunities for retailers; 51% of smartphone users say that the last time they used their device while in-store, the information they found online about a product or service influenced the decision they were planning to make, and 50% of those who researched on their smartphone bought from a company or brand other than the one they intended to because of the information received on their device in the moment.1
So, how can brands deliver on these moments?
To understand how to be better equipped for the most mobile Christmas yet, marketers can take a cue from two retailers who are effectively meeting their customers' needs.
Deliver speed and convenience through mobile
European retailers Argos and Media-Saturn have both embraced mobile as a connector to the in-store experience. Argos, one of the U.K.'s best-known "high street" retailers with 750 stores and a successful catalog business, realised mobile was changing how its customers shopped. They expect things "faster and faster in a very convenient way," says Bertrand Bodson, the retailer's chief digital officer.
Argos now uses mobile to connect customers to its stores. So, for example, a working mom could search on her smartphone for a car seat and reserve that car seat directly through a Shopping ad from Argos. Then, on her way home, she could stop by one of Argos' many stores to pay for it and pick it up.
As a result of its digital-focused strategy, 46% of Argos' total sales came from online shoppers, and mobile commerce grew by 38% last year.
Customers of Media-Saturn, Europe's biggest consumer electronics retailer, often come in waving their phones with the products they want in mind, explains Martin Wild, chief digital officer for Media-Saturn. They're also asking about local availability and price. "Local is an important part of our strategy," Wild adds. "We brought our store inventory online and to mobile, and if consumers decide to buy, we can fulfill their needs immediately."
Media-Saturn reshaped its marketing mix, transitioning from TV planning to screen planning. It forged a strategy to reach customers who were researching online but buying in-store, using local inventory ads. Today, two-thirds of its sales are digitally influenced, and overall sales have increased by 5% in the last six months. For a business that did 20 billion euros in net revenues last year, that's quite impressive.
Being there in intent-driven consumer moments
Companies that are present on mobile in ways that are useful to their customers are reaping tangible returns from both mobile investment and overall marketing investment. Brands like Argos and Media-Saturn have figured out how to remove the friction for their customers in order to fulfill their wants and needs anytime and anywhere. Here's how you can be there in the moments that matter this Christmas:
- Take a cue from shoppers' behaviour. Argos started with the insight that their customers value convenience, so they made it as easy as possible for their customers to purchase on the go and pick up their items when it's convenient.
- Think of mobile as the new entrance to your store. Media-Saturn responded to a common customer behaviour (coming into the store with their phones waving) by making the experience on mobile even more relevant. They used local inventory ads to highlight to customers where the item they wanted to buy was available for purchase in a store near them.
- Connect the dots across channels and provide a fluid, engaging experience online and in-store. Media-Saturn adjusted its marketing mix to reflect their customers' behaviour of researching online and purchasing offline.
