Mobile Commerce

Shopatron announced today, based on initial analysis, that sales conversion rates on the Apple iPad are much higher than rates on other mobile devices. The results are based on an analysis of conversion rates across dozens of branded stores on the Shopatron platform. Initial analysis of data, collected since early March, indicates that average conversion rates for nonoptimized stores on mobile devices, including iPhone, Android, and iPod devices, average 0.37 percent. The iPad, however, performed much better, with an average conversion rate up to 2.04 percent. For some stores, the iPad conversion rate was as much as double the conversion rate from personal computers.

How Meijer, a regional American hypermarket chain based in Walker, Mich., uses mobile marketing was the subject of a well-attended session at the Direct Marketing Association's Retail Marketing Conference 2010 in Orlando last month.

The Golf Warehouse announces the recent launch of its iPad application, which provides golfers with easy and mobile access to the premier online golf superstore: TGW.com. Customers can experience and enjoy the visual richness of a true catalog combined with the ability to browse and buy TGW products anytime, anywhere — even on the golf course!

Apple is believed to be in the final stages of preparing a new retail application for the iPhone. Functioning as a mobile version of the Apple retail store, the offering in question will enable users to view products, place orders, schedule genius bar appointments in-store, and experience many of the same virtues native to an on-site visit at a brick-and-mortar location.

Tiffany & Co. says it's launching a new app for iPhones to make finding the perfect engagement ring easier. It includes a ring-sizing feature, which it claims is the first of its kind from a jeweler.

A new trend seems to be popping up in the world of retail: a greater 
emphasis on local marketing by national retailers.

In an early example of how a major fashion retailer is working with the iPad, Macy's is using the Apple tablet to turn its summer catalogue into a shoppable slideshow. Macy's 60-page print catalogue was converted into a two-page spread into which a 20-page slide show is embedded, with links to shop at Macys.com. The ad is running across the digital editions of 20 titles including Elle Decor and Marie Claire.

In publishing, they're calling it "the Moses Tablet." Such is the potential seen in Apple's recently released iPad, the bigger version of the iPhone — sans phone. But that potential extends to retailers too, and with its big, shiny, multitouch, high-definition screen, the iPad may be the best visual selling space since catalogs.

Will 2010 finally be the year of mobile commerce? While mobile has been the "next big thing" for at least the last five years, 2010 may actually be a banner year for the platform. Smartphone and iPhone usage has soared, and even older adults use phones to check the stock market, find the best deals at the grocery store and price insurance policies.

Vic Gundotra, VP of Engineering, demonstrated last December a preview version of Product Search for mobile with local inventory, which lets you see right in your search results whether items are in stock at nearby stores. We're happy to announce that as of today, if you're searching for a product that is sold by participating retailers, including Best Buy, Sears, Williams-Sonoma, Pottery Barn, or West Elm, you can just look for the blue dots in the search results to see if it's available in a local store. If you see a blue dot, you can tap on the adjacent "In stock nearby" link, and you'll be taken to the seller's page where you'll see whether the item is "In Stock" or has "Limited Availability" near you. You'll also see how far away the stores are from you -- as long as you've enabled My Location or manually specified your location.