MCommerce is like ecommerce, except more specific. It is the act of purchasing or selling of goods and services through mobile devices like smartphones, tablets, or even smartwatches. It works when businesses target mobile device users with optimized websites, social media platforms, native apps, and web apps for mobile shopping.
With the global smartphone market expected to expand to over seven billion users worldwide in 2027, according to Statista, MCommerce is growing rapidly. It’s also altering the E-Commerce industry in unique and interesting ways.
MCommerce can be broken down into two categories.
- Mobile Shopping: This is the act of shopping for goods through mobile devices, such as ecommerce giants like Amazon or eBay or your local retailer’s Shopify store.
- Mobile Payments: This category covers different types of mobile payments, such as money transfers, mobile banking, contactless payments, in-app payments, electronic ticketing, and more.
The Benefits of MCommerce For Your Business
1. Market Reach
MCommerce empowers businesses to reach a wider audience than traditional ecommerce. With MCommerce, businesses can target mobile users who are on the bus, at the office, at a shopping mall or airport and lack time or ability to sit down at a computer to shop. MCommerce also allows businesses to reach users across the globe.
2. Customer Engagement
MCommerce enables businesses to improve customer engagement. With MCommerce, businesses can send push notifications to customers’ mobile devices to remind them of special offers or sales. MCommerce also makes it easier for customers to provide feedback, leaving reviews or ratings for products they’ve purchased. You can capitalize on this customer engagement to improve your products, services, and brand.
3. Sales and Return on Investment (ROI)
MCommerce can lead to more sales and ROI for businesses. Customers who shop on their mobile devices are more likely to make impulse purchases than others. In addition, MCommerce can help businesses reduce costs like shipping, inventory, etc.
4. Customer Loyalty
MCommerce can foster greater customer loyalty. Customers who have a positive MCommerce experience are more likely to return to a website or app to make future purchases.
MCommerce allows businesses to create more personalized shopping experiences for customers. Businesses can use purchase history data to recommend similar products.
Customer loyalty also improves as businesses optimize the user experience. Customers with a positive experience are more likely to return to a website or app for future buys.
5. Brand Visibility
MCommerce can help businesses increase visibility and brand awareness. With MCommerce, businesses can send push notifications to customers’ mobile devices to remind them of special offers or sales. MCommerce also makes it easier for customers to provide feedback, leaving reviews or ratings for products they’ve purchased.
6. Social Media Engagement
MCommerce can also promote customer interaction and social media engagement. Customers who shop on their mobile devices are more likely to make impulse purchases than others. In addition, MCommerce can help businesses save on costs, such as shipping and inventory.
7. Sales and Conversions
MCommerce can help businesses drive sales and conversions. Customers who have a positive MCommerce experience are more likely to return to a website or app to make future purchases. In addition, MCommerce can help businesses save on costs, such as shipping and inventory.
8. Location-Based Services
Businesses can take advantage of MCommerce to offer location-based services. For example, companies can track a customer’s location to send them targeted offers.
9. Growth Potential
While MCommerce already boasts a big user base, the sector is expanding rapidly. For example, Statista states that by 2025, over 10% of all retail sales in the United States will be generated through MCommerce. There’s a lot of growth potential for a business investing in a long-term MCommerce strategy.
The Challenges of MCommerce For Your Business
While the benefits of MCommerce for your startup or enterprise are clear, there are some challenges involved.
1. Optimized Experience
Developing a cohesive MCommerce ecosystem for your brand across mobile devices, the web and social media require resources and prudent planning. But whether Canadian businesses need native or web app developers in Montreal and Toronto — they can rely on an experienced team like Guaraná Technologies.
Users also expect their MCommerce experience to be optimized and up to date with the latest trends. Your developer should create software that loads quickly and is free of bugs. A team that offers support throughout the development process, including post-release, can ensure that your MCommerce apps have high retention rates.
2. Security and Privacy
Mobile devices that are lost or stolen can be susceptible to hacking, fraud, and other forms of corruption. Moreover, MCommerce software, such as apps, must be highly secure. At Guaraná Technologies, we adopt many security techniques and protocols during different stages of the Web, Android, and iOS app development process to improve safety, especially for MCommerce.
3. Compatibility
Mobile devices come in a variety of shapes, sizes, and operating systems. For example, compare the size, resolution, and OS difference between a large iPad and a small Android phone. Businesses must ensure that users have an optimal MCommerce experience whether they’re using apps or websites on their mobile devices.
A team like Guaraná Technologies ensures that users have the same experience on different devices and operating systems. We are considered one of the best iOS and Android app developer units in Canada due to our experienced and skilled design team.
We’re proficient in developing cross-platform mobile apps and web applications too. And we ensure the web app has the same app-like experience as its mobile variety, regardless of whether it’s iOS or Android.
4. Payment Options
The final common challenge with adopting MCommerce for your business is implementing payment options. Different users have different preferences and expectations. At Guaraná Technologies, we offer multiple revenue solutions to ensure our clients are satisfied.
- Credit Card Payment: Integration of payment processors for charging clients. Single payments or subscription model implementation.
- In-app Purchase: Premium model. Enables users to unlock specific features with a one-time in-app or monthly subscription.
MCommerce and UI/UX Design
Top user interface (UI) and user experience (UX) design are essential for mobile shopping. With good UI/UX design, your business improves customer experience, converts more users into customers, gains positive reviews, and enhances brand recognition and royalty. Good UI/UX design can also help your mobile apps rank higher on search engines and mobile marketplaces. Some characteristics of good design for your MCommerce apps:
- User-friendly: Quick and easy to navigate your platform with a simple and easy to understand design language.
- Sleek And Intuitive Design: The software should be easy to use and understand, with every frame, icon, text, and notification where users expect it to be. It should also be well-designed and visually appealing.
- Easy Navigation: Users should easily navigate your software through clear navigation cues.
- Responsive: Should be responsive on all devices, desktop or mobile.
- Cross-platform Compatibility: Your MCommerce experience must be accessible and easy to use on both desktop and mobile devices.
- Checkout Process: The checkout process should be easy and secure and induce confidence in your users. You should have a robust security system in place to shield users’ information.
- Customer Support: Users must have support if they need it. AI-powered chatbots should solve immediate answers while also easily connecting users to live agents if necessary.
- Branding: Your platform should positively reflect your brand’s values and identity. The design should be consistent with your brand across mobile and desktop platforms.
At Guaraná Technologies, our highly skilled and talented UX and UI developers will bring maximum conversions and benefits to the user and help take your business to the next level. We will offer a quality user experience that earns and retains customer loyalty through an engaging UI design.
Our professional UI/UX developers ensure that every user need is optimized, enhancing the potential for maximizing client revenue. We also optimize resources for a cost-effective development journey.
What Is the Future of MCommerce?
MCommerce has expanded rapidly in recent years due to the growing popularity of smartphones and tablets, as well as the widespread adoption of mobile payment systems such as Apple Pay and Google Pay. It is the future of shopping — it’s convenient, fast, and easy to use. And with the click of a few buttons, users can purchase anything they want, anytime, anywhere.
MCommerce also allows businesses to enhance their market reach, augment their brand, reduce costs, and generate more revenue. But to stay competitive, companies must stay current with the latest MCommerce trends. They should invest in mobile-friendly websites, native apps, web apps, and relevant in-app features like push notifications, order tracking, loyalty programs, mobile-specific deals, and more.
Mobile commerce sales are expected to hit several trillion dollars by the end of the decade. Is your business ready to capitalize on MCommerce? Get in touch with Guaraná Technologies to learn more.
