According to recent eMarketer reporting, coupons are the main vehicle by which U.S. retailers have moved into mobile.
That’s according to April, 2016 research by mobile development firm PointSource.
“Almost 60 percent of U.S. retail marketing and IT professionals surveyed said their company used mobile coupons, the highest of any mobile tactic or technology,” reports eMarketer. “Another 51 percent offered mobile payments, and 40 percent said their company had a loyalty app.”
Retailers, however, are still experiencing “strategic uncertainty,” citing big challenges when it comes to implementing mobile.
“Retail marketing and IT professionals in the U.S. commonly said integrating mobile strategy into their company’s overall marketing strategy was one of the biggest challenges of executing mobile successfully,” notes eMarketer. “(More than) 50 percent cited strategy integration as the biggest challenge faced.”
Other hurdles? More than 40 percent also said uniting marketing and IT departments is difficult; another 24 percent found the lack of internal resources (staffing, for instance) were issues when trying to execute a successful mobile strategy.
Currently, eMarketer projects that this year 46.5 percent of U.S. retailers will offer mobile coupons, up from 42.5 percent in 2015. That share could reach 55.5 percent by 2020.
