In the last few weeks I have come across several headlines where a retailer is either doing one of two things – launching a mobile app or redesigning their mobile site or app. Doing these two things isn’t new. We’ve been hearing about the importance of mobile all year long because it is so crucial to the overall shopping experience, with consumers on their devices 24/7.
I recently spoke with Ryan Bonifacino, Chief Marketing Officer and Senior Vice President of Digital of Alex and Ani, who said they are at 50% to 60% year-to-date in terms of traffic from the mobile to AlexandAni.com.
This could be why the accessories brand launched a highly visual mobile app that not only aims to sell its products, but provides an exclusive personalized experience for each consumer.
Clothing and accessories retailer Express rolled out enhanced features for its mobile app. The app, available on iOS and Android, promises to offer consumers an improved mobile shopping experience and smoother navigation.
Elizabeth Crystal, Chief Marketing Officer for Express, said her company knows mobile devices are important for consumers. The main driver behind the app upgrade, she said, was to enhance the overall experience and present something that is relevant to its loyal customers.
Buying club DirectBuy improved the member experience with the launch of its My Direct Buy mobile app.
Ted Fay, Senior Director of Digital Marketing for DirectBuy said it is important to focus on mobile to further enhance the shopping experience since nearly half of its members are using mobile devices to shop DirectBuy merchandise.
Newegg announced it is redesigning its mobile site and mobile apps for both Android and iOS devices. Consumers will notice a new streamlined experience including improved navigation and improved functionality improvements to find products.
James Wu, Chief Operating Officer for Newegg, said rather than taking the iterative approach of updating individual components of the mobile platform, the company felt its customers would appreciate a complete redesign of Newegg’s mobile shopping experience.
Office Depot Inc. announced a major redesign of its mobile app with plans to drive new features and focus on convenience and personalization, while providing a better omnichannel shopping experience.
Kevin Moffitt, Vice President of Ecommerce at Office Depot, Inc., said the company involved customers in every phase of the process so the app would reflect what is most important to them.
Essential Hardware launched a new mobile-friendly site designed to be user friendly with even more advanced search for contractors and DIY enthusiasts.
Manny Salem, Director of Ecommerce for EssentialHardware.com., said with the amount of shopping done over mobile phones these day, the company felt it was pivotal to be at the “forefront of usability and technology” to make shopping an enjoyable experience no matter where the consumer is.