Mobile has already shown that it is about to dramatically change the way that we buy and sell, and as of the holiday season, it has become quite clear that smartphones and tablets are becoming increasingly important to the lives and shopping behaviors of consumers.
With mobile devices available to them, consumers have come to expect to have large amounts of information, products, services, and communication available to them at every moment, no matter when or where they are. With this new perspective, it is obvious that the smartphone will become central to the commerce of 2012.
Retailers have not failed to notice this shift, and have made m-commerce a hot topic that has caught there interest, and into which many have already been dabbling in order to try to find their place and establish their strategies. M-commerce has already converted mobile devices into a trusted method for performing product research, making purchases, and even conducting in-store transactions for ticketing and purchase payments.
The use of these services, and the implementation of new ones, will only continue to grow in 2012. American consumers are already on the way, and British shoppers aren’t far behind. As penetration of the smartphone rapidly increases, so does the rise of mobile shopping.
That said, consumers have become accustomed to the traditional web experience and expect that same speed and reliability from the mobile web. Retailers that want to maximize their mobile potential will need to cater to this expectation.
It has been predicted, by many within the industry, that by the close of 2012, Android will have reached the 50 percent mark of the market share. Equally, though, Apple will continue its steady leadership over the marketplace in innovation. Non-voice communication will be led by SMS.
