Smart Phones are Treasure Chests of Consumer Data

The question that I ask myself these days is, would you rather lose your wallet or your iPhone?  Without hesitation, it is my wallet.  Yes, it is a hassle to call several different banks and cancel credit cards, and I would dread another trip to the DMV to stand in line for the inevitable ugly driver license photo, but really, I have more irreplaceable information on my iPhone than I do in my wallet.  My smart phone is like losing my address book, my rolodex, access to my e-mail, internet connection, Thomas Guide map book, CD Player and 50 of my favorite CDs, my notebook for mileage and tax receipts, my envelope full of grocery store coupons, laptop computer (with a small hard drive), and knocking over my Scrabble game all at the same time.  Yes, my credit cards and ATM cards are in my wallet, but soon enough, those will be in my smart phone, too.

The Progression of Data Mining

We have all heard about data mining by retailers and marketing companies and with the recent presidential elections, even political parties are refining the art of data mining for each and every undecided voter out there.  Way back when data mining started, large companies like credit bureaus started gathering huge troves of information from scattered sources to create a consumer profile.  As more information became available online, and more large companies and websites could collect information about a consumer through there web browsing history, the amount of data available increased and details for each consumer profile could be filled in.  Then, with the advent of the social networks such as Facebook or LinkedIn, the consumer profile was expanded to include not only information about me, but information about who I was friends with, common interests, etc.  Smart phone apps just extend the reach of data mining from just the laptop or desktop the customer is using to their smart well, too.

Your App is the Key to Unlock Data

Continuing with the need for a retail company to  have an app.  In Christmas 2011, retailers worried about lost revenue as consumers stood in their store, selected the model computer they liked or style of shoes that fit best, and then used a bar code scanner app on their smart phone to order it cheaper from an online store.  This year, retailers developed apps of their own to combat the bar code scanning consumer, but they have discovered other benefits in addition to customers purchasing items from their stores.  Every retailer with an app has a direct link to each consumer that downloads that app, and by downloading that app, consumers are giving retailers access to all the information on their smart phone.

I listened to Morning Edition the other day and "according to ComScore, which tracks Internet traffic, the Monday after Thanksgiving is expected to be the biggest online shopping day ever, with something close to one and a half billion dollars in sales, 20 percent more than in 2011."   Retailers will track each consumer with their App to determine their location and which store they frequent.  The Wal-Mart smart phone app uses your location information to know which store you're in, will check and see if the item you are looking for is out of stock, and if it is, will direct you to their online store.  There are other stores that "actually keep track of how long you have been in their stores, and they'll send you coupons for every few minutes you're there."  I included the link to the entire article if you would like to read the full transcript on the NPR site:  http://www.npr.org/2012/11/26/165945317/tech-week-ahead-cyber-monday

An Overall Strategy

Apps are more than a sales tool today.  A smart phone app for your business can be the key to knowing who your customers are, what their spending behaviors are, what their favorite store is, and so much more.  Not only should your App be driven by the need to increase sales, but also to increase the effectiveness of your marketing campaigns.