Best Reading of the Day - Entry 0182 Retail Apps Blast Off

Around the offices here in Quincy, MA there has been a lot of discussion around mobile and its impact on retail.  I've said for much of the year this is the moment when the retailers struck back at eCommerce.  After a decade of bad news, mobile provides the tools retailers need to provide an "Amazon" experience in the store.

New mobile usage data by Yahoo! owned analytic company Flurry indicate retail is embracing mobile in a big way and the consumer is following.

http://www.flurry.com/blog/flurry-insights/shopping-productivity-and-messaging-give-mobile-another-stunning-growth-year#.VKwMwNLF_9Y

Here is a snippet from that piece:

In the six years that Flurry has been reporting on our mobile app usage, and in some cases addiction, we’ve seen stunning growth. This last year was no different. According to Flurry Analytics, in 2014 overall app usage grew by 76%. In this context, Flurry defines app usage as a user opening an app and recording what we call a session. In 2014, Shopping, Utilities & Productivity, and Messaging experienced triple-digit growth and were the key drivers. As our mobile devices become more and more a part of our everyday lives, we are increasingly using them for always-on shopping, working, and communication. Where years past have seen massive growth in games and entertainment, 2014 was the year apps got down to serious business.

Every app store category has again seen session growth in 2014. While 2013 was the year messaging apps took off, 2014 was the year retail came to mobile in a big way.

What will 2015 bring?  Will the Apple Watch have an even greater impact on retail?

Happy Reading,

J.W. Gant