Mobilising Sales and Growth Through Mobiles

On 20th May, 1498, as the Portuguese armada arrived in Kappadu, near Calicut, little did the fleet commander imagine the profound impact his expedition had made and would continue to make in the world of commerce through the centuries that followed.

Vasco Da Gama, the famous Portuguese explorer's maiden voyage to India has been hailed as a pinnacle of world history.His discovery of an alternative trade route opened avenues for global multiculturalism for the first time.

History is a good teacher and it repeats itself. A few centuries down the line, the advent of internet, which essentially is a global network of networks, has revolutionized commerce by knitting the whole world into a global village.

This global system of interconnected computer networks has had an exponential impact on trade in recent times. Availability of accurate information and smart networking empowers one to carry out one's business from the comfort of one's mobile phone anywhere and anytime,without having to sail out on a voyage!

What is M- Commerce? Defining it.
The phenomenon of mobile commerce essentially encompasses the electronically powered flow or transfer of commercial products and their delivery directly into the consumers' hands,via wireless technology. Commercial transactions that are made by utilizing the services of mobile devices like mobile phone, tablets laptops and so on constitutes the world of mobile commerce.

Statistics
According to a BI Intelligence report, 29% of mobile users have made purchases in January 2013 using their phones.An estimated 40% of all visits to the Walmart internet shopping site in December 2012 was accessed from mobile devices. Moreover,Bank of America has predicted that by 2015 that there will be $67.1 billion worth of purchases made from mobile devices by U.S. and European shoppers.

Understanding M- Commerce
Mobile Commerce, or m-Commerce, is all about the explosion of services and applications that are becoming accessible from Internet-enabled mobile devices. It embraces new technologies, prompt services and revolutionary business models. As it is quite different from traditional e-Commerce, mobile phones impose their own set of different constraints in comparison to desktop computers. However, armed with robust applications and services they open up brightly lit avenues of opportunities. Mobile devices make it happen, whenever and wherever. With a mobile device in hand a person can not only look for a nearby restaurant but can also stay in touch with colleagues, or pay for items at a store.

How do multichannel platforms contribute?
A multi-channel platform or cross platform is a platform that is single handed able to support multiple operating systems and multiple deployment methods.In the world of M-Commerce, they play a crucial role by acting as highly automated online selling solutions which catapult sales and streamline the processes for smooth execution.
A multi-channel can end up being a solution to an enterprise's need to support PCs, kiosks,smartphones and tablets.

Interplay between M Commerce and Multichannel Platform
The multichannel platforms are generally compatible with various cell phones from different makes.It enables a shopkeeper to view one's eCommerce store, stock it, carry out orders and scrutinize inventory management.It's compatibility with iPhone credit card swiping devices allow a salesperson to make one's sales even when they are on the go. No delay in sales or payment. Consequently, it translates into more sales and an increase in business. One can sell anytime, anywhere.

Why it has become so popular?
Flexible options allow one to conduct business at one's convenience and easy connectivity ensures smooth operations.Easy accessibility for users through phones and messengers ensure constant connectivity. The multiple channel platform integrates facilitates to ensure smooth commercial transactions at any time and from any location with internet access.

Advantages
A multiple channel platform leverages a shopkeeper's sales vastly and enables one to communicate and distribute real-time promotions. Special mobile apps developed on this platform enable the seller to reach out to one's customers communicating offers and product information immediately and capitalizing on promotion which result in immediate sales.

Conclusion
While many may choose to think of commercial transactions over mobile devices as "having a retail outlet in one's customer's pocket.", the frontiers of it's scope are getting vastly expanded and silently the expedition voyage to explore new possibilities continues!

About Souvik Das Founder of Thedigitalmarketing.org, an SEO Analyst, Digital Marketing Executive & blogger expert. Follow him on Twitter, or befriend him on Facebook.

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Importance of Mobile E-commerce in Present Society

In order to understand the relevance of mobile ecommerce it is very important for us to first understand what it entails. It is a term that describes online sales transaction that uses wireless devices such as hand held computers, mobile phones or laptops. These wireless devices interact with computer networks that have the ability to conduct online merchandise purchase. Any type of cash exchanges that takes place during the online functions are known as e-commerce transaction. Mobile ecommerce can be broadly classified as one of the many subsets of electronic commerce.

Mobile ecommerce therefore can be defined as the endeavor to ensure complete mobile solution for ecommerce shopping carts. They are mainly integrated with the ecommerce portals so that users can access necessary information via their mobile phones and can access the same any time of the day from any location.

Mobile devices provide unique opportunities for ecommerce companies. Personalized communication and contents assume a whole new meaning when you consider the fact that the mobile devices unlike a personal computer are inherently personal in nature. The producers marketing via the channels of mobile ecommerce can explore better and increased opportunities to get through larger consumer base. Now the producers and retailers were empowered to gain access to the personal time of their prospective customers as well.

It is an undeniable fact that the future of retail industry depends a great deal on the innovations. Ecommerce significantly turned the entire world into a global marketplace. Mobile ecommerce is even bringing the different aspects of marketplace closer. With over 300,000 mobile apps and 10.9 billion worldwide, it is evident that the business today is rapidly adapting the latest features of mobile ecommerce.

There are different advantages of this innovation that accounts for its rising popularity. Firstly they have the advantages of providing a bigger appeal as the consumers carry their smart phones wherever they go. Hence, there is growth in opportunities for location based sales. Mobile ecommerce platform always ensures integrated payment solution. The ideas of One Touch Shopping from anywhere you want have revolutionized the idea of diversified shopping experiences. There are many companies who have integrated the support function into the apps to make it a one stop solution for both sales as well as services.

One of the most significant advantages is that it is very easy to build and maintain a mobile ecommerce app and it is more cost effective than other websites as well. The relevance and significance of mobile ecommerce is increasing with each passing day more because if you provide your customers information through multiple channels it will surely provide your business with a competitive edge. Mobile ecommerce indeed started getting importance and it will be intelligent for the business to ride the wave for extracting maximum advantages.

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