Mobile coupons are playing a definitive role in affecting purchase decisions. Impulse buys have gone up considerably over the last couple of years thanks to increased smartphone usage. On average, people check their phones every 5-6 minutes.

1. Mobile coupons: the key to effective marketing
Mobile coupons are playing a definitive role in affecting purchase decisions. Impulse buys
have gone up considerably over the last couple of years thanks to increased smartphone
usage. On average, people check their phones every 5-6 minutes. They also spend close
to 90 percent of their mobile time checking and downloading apps. It isn't surprising,
therefore, that businesses are now targeting consumers on-the-move with a variety of
retail and shopping apps. If you need proof, just check the number of apps in popular app
stores: Android and Apple both have close to a million apps each.
What is mobile merchandising?
Mobile merchandising is the new trending topic – creating artificial demand for products
and product categories – and marketers are increasingly resorting to this tactic to increase
conversions and in-store purchases. Imagine you receive a mobile discount coupon for a
coffee maker you may not have immediate need of but your interest level will be
considerably higher, especially if you are near the consumer appliances showroom which
sent you the offer in the first place. In all probability, you will want to check it out as you are
in or near the store, and in the process, may actually buy it. Apps use mobile locationbased services to identify your coordinates and push the most relevant deals and offers at
an opportune moment.
Touchpoints are key to brand recall
In marketing, creating maximum touchpoints with the audience is of prime importance.
Every minute, a prospective buyer is bombarded with atleast ten different marketing
messages from online and offline channels. In order to ensure you are not being left out, a
retail mobile app sits in a user's smartphone and helps in instant brand recall every time
you have a new deal you want to promote. A native app further augments the user's
experience by using different phone features like the camera for scanning QR codes,
calendar and contacts.
Mobile apps help in targeted marketing

2. Targeted communication is not only more effective but also more desirable than mass
marketing. How do you ensure your message is able to generate enough interest to make
the recipient want to read it; or better still, act upon it? You need to target it according to
his/her age, gender, location, income and other demographics if you don't want him to take
only a cursory glance. For example, you use mass mailing to send out discount mobile
coupons to your entire existing database. While you may think it's more cost-effective and
efficient, you are doing some irreparable damage to your brand. Let's see how.
You are sending coupons for the latest running shoes to your entire mailing list. But what if
there is a considerable number of retired, 60 year olds in your database? Will they respond
to your offer? They won't, nine out of ten times. But another far-reaching effect of this kind
of one-size-fits-all marketing approach is that these users will be more averse to your
future marketing efforts, unless your next offering is a magic potion that helps them age
backwards. On the other hand, a retail mobile app displays highly customized offers and
deals at just the right moment when the user is most likely to buy, thereby, improving your
return on investment considerably.