Consumers are getting with the program when it comes to retailers’ mobile apps.
According to a new study by financial services firm Synchrony, more than two-thirds of shoppers (67 percent) have downloaded a retail app, and customers are using twice as many as they did one year ago.
Indeed, consumers regularly use an average of four retail apps, up from two in 2017, and nearly half are using them to make purchases, the Synchrony 2018 Digital Study showed.
Another 50 percent use mobile apps to access coupons, and 60 percent of respondents said they use them for browsing products.
Apparently retailers are doing something right, as fully 83 percent of shoppers said they’re happy with their mobile app customer experience.
“In today’s competitive landscape, a mobile application is not just another piece of technology for retailers, it is a vital tool to engage shoppers with their brand,” noted Maya Mikhailov, senior VP and chief marketing officer of GPShopper, a mobile app developer acquired by Synchrony in 2017.
Related: 5 Features Your Retail App Is Missing
“Done well,” she said, “retail apps engage both in and out of stores with personalized experiences and easy credit solutions. Consumers that use retail mobile applications are a retailer’s top shoppers. As such, they want their apps to be tailored to their unique shopping experiences and preferences.”
To that end, Synchrony offers the following tips as retailers shape their mobile apps:
- provide a consistent customer experience across all channels, and consider mobile the driver to bring together all the user experience opportunities;
- engage with customers in a personalized manner by leveraging data and analytics to provide unique mobile offers and discounts to further extend brand loyalty; and
- offer simple and easy payment solutions that are seamless and secure, including an in-app frictionless mobile commerce experience.
The study was conducted by RTi Research among 1,255 respondents.
