Tech - Battle for shopping 'eyeballs'
As we enter the peak
shopping period across some countries around the world, competition is
increasing to capture customer's attention. For the past few years, there have
been various techniques used in online, mobile trading channels to attract
customers. Companies have resorted to building widgets, affiliate tools, price
comparison websites/apps etc. The impact of 'showrooming' is only becoming too
apparent in markets around the world.
Recently, the 'pitch' to
the customer is getting even more aggressive. Some recent notable developments
-
- Windows 8 allows searching within applications (through the charms feature) - http://windows.microsoft.com/en-GB/windows-8/charms#1TC=t1
- Amazon Search now baked into latest version (12.10) of free operating system Ubuntu - http://www.omgubuntu.co.uk/2012/11/how-to-install-a-dedicated-amazon-shopping-lens-in-ubuntu
- In some countries, default homepage of Mozilla Firefox browser has link to shopping add-ons like Invisible Hand, CoupnHelper etc. Screenshot below.
While these recent developments are not path
breaking, they are subtle changes and more pervasive from a customer's
perspective. It is imperative for a retailer or brand to ensure
that their products and services are available in all these tools or features.
Integral to this would be, to have API's. API's will enable easy integration
into these apps and ensure companies capture customer's attention no matter where they
are.
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