GRAPEVINE, TX - Senior executives from Godiva, Kenneth Cole and Lacoste explained why mobile is critical to their marketing and retail plans during a panel at the National Retail Federation?s Shop.org conference.

While luxury brands are slowly gaining comfort with ecommerce, evolving shopping habits point to a growing trend of searching and shopping on Web-enabled mobile devices. By 2012, one out of two mobile subscribers nationwide will have smartphones ? with Web access, search, applications, GPS and other functions normally associated with computers. 

?Luxury brands need to be customer-centric and show up wherever our customers want us, and if we don?t, it?s a missed opportunity,? said Kareen Balsam, ecommerce manager at Godiva Chocolatier, Brussels. ?Would I like people to transact via the mobile channel? Yes, but I absolutely need to be present for them on their handsets if they need to locate a store or get other information.

?Back in 2006 we started with a Palm app, then we were one of Digby?s first clients?we?re in the Digby mall?and in 2007 they built our BlackBerry app, then our iPhone app in 2008,? she said. ?Godiva Direct is very focused on corporate gifting?corporate clients can purchase mobile gifts via the app while on the go.

?Mobile is still small but it is growing like crazy.?

Godiva
In fact, Godiva?s mobile revenue is up 57 percent year-to-date compared to all of last year, and that is without including the fourth quarter of this year.

Godiva?s biggest mobile sales volume occurred in February, driven by Valentine?s Day. The monthly mobile revenue was up 1,156 percent from 2009, or 12.5 times greater.

In addition, Godiva?s mobile store locator traffic has increased more than 8,000 percent since last year.

Taken together, Godiva?s mobile applications for iPhone and BlackBerry notched download totals of 1,400 in December 2008, which grew to 22,000 in December 2009 and reached 50,000 by August 2010.

However, Ms. Balsam said that Godiva?s mobile site is by far a bigger driver of traffic and revenue than the applications.

From December 2009 through August 2010, the mobile Web site accounted for 62 percent of mobile sales, while the iPhone application accounted for 23 percent and the BlackBerry application accounted for 13 percent.

?We?re seeing better conversion from the apps but more usage from the mobile site,? Ms. Balsam said.

?One area where there?s room for improvement: We are not advertising our mobile presence enough?currently we?re only promoting the mobile site and apps on the Web site footer and in the Corporate Holiday catalog,? she said.

?Also, we need to add an input field for promo codes so that mobile users can take advantages of current Web promos.?

Kenneth Cole
Retailers must fit mobile into their multichannel mix, using the medium to drive transactions on the device or traffic to stores.

As in ecommerce, execution is key in mobile commerce ? so getting the customer experience right is essential. 

Kenneth Cole tapped Usablenet to launch its mobile commerce site at the end of July, and the portion of mobile sales went from less than 2 percent to 4 percent without any marketing to drive people to the mobile site.

The retailer is converting consumers much better by providing a mobile-optimized platform.

Smartphones are going to ship more units than desktops and laptops combined by 2013, according to Mary Meeker, managing director and head of global technology research at Morgan Stanley, New York.

By 2014, more people will access the Internet via their mobile phone than via desktop or laptop computers.

?That thought is staggering?many people [without a computer] will jump right to the mobile phone and they will take part in commerce,? said Tom Davis, vice president of ecommerce at Kenneth Cole Productions, New York.

?I?m a big believer in mobile?whether you?re a luxury brand or selling hotel rooms or showcasing your wares, it should be part of your strategy,? he said. ?We?ve put it rapidly into deployment at Kenneth Cole.

?Most people think mobile commerce is a mobile site, apps, a really cool store locator, a simple-to-use interface, a search bar?utilitarian, and it must be fast?and it is those things, but it is so much more than that.?

Examples include consumers using the RedLaser application to scan a product for in-store price comparison, texting friends or family with a URL link to a product, bragging about a recent Zappos purchase and taking a picture for GEICO via its application.

Mr. Davis shared a story about going to Yankee Stadium, opening his StubHub application, finding the seats that he wanted, buying via the application and immediately scanning his in-application bar code to be admitted to the game.

?This summer has been an awakening for me about mobile commerce,? Mr. Davis said. ?Talk about mobile education, my three-year-old can buy apps using the iPad.?

Mr. Davis said that mobile phones are a gateway to consumers via the Internet, camera phone, video phone, live chat, applications, GPS, credit and debit cards, text messaging, email and social media.

?Think about mobile commerce as not necessarily driving transactions via a mobile Web site or app, but a gateway to consumers,? Mr. Davis said. ?Mobile is going to change retail, so you have to be very quick and agile in this space.

?Cross-channel integration is important,? he said.

Lacoste, David Yurman, Marc Jacobs
Digital agency createthe Group powered a commerce-enabled iPhone application for luxury jewelry and timepiece brand David Yurman.

The application provides consumers with the ability to browse the latest collections of David Yurman men?s timepieces, with detailed technical descriptions and view real-size images.

Consumers can buy via the application.

Createthe Group also helped Marc Jacobs launched its first ecommerce site for Marc Jacobs last week. The luxury fashion brand wanted to launch its first ecommerce site in conjunction with an iPad-optimized site.

The mobile site is using HTML5 to replace Marc Jacob?s Web site Flash experience. It featuring streaming fashion week video optimized for mobile devices.

?Luxury has been a bit behind the eight ball, but luxury brands are realizing they have to be at the forefront of the mobile experience as well,? said Maryssa Miller, New York-based vice president of ecommerce at createthe Group and former director of ecommerce at Lacoste.

?My mobile philosophy, regardless of platform or browser, is that the mobile experience should offer a medium-specific value-add for consumers to experience the brand, luxury or otherwise? she said.

?Stay relevant and create meaningful tools that encourage repeat engagement.?

Ms. Miller worked on the launch of Lacoste?s first mobile shopping application for the iPhone, which is an integrated brand experience with easy shopping features.

So what lessons has she learned?

Sales through iPhone applications appear to be incremental to generic mobile sales.

Mobile applications provide another access point in addition to mobile site visits, and the rate of purchase through all mobile devices, including the iPhone, continues to increase.

Ms. Miller said that conversion rates for iPad users through regular ecommerce sites is between that of the PC ecommerce site and the iPhone application.

As the iPad functions more like a laptop, an iPad application may not be necessary, per Ms. Miller.

Mobile integration into offline channels also offers a great opportunity for retailers. An iPad could replace an in-store kiosk, enabling an event experience such as live-streaming fashion shows, as well as integration into existing marketing channels.

Luxury brands should also be aware that their customers are increasingly accessing search engines via mobile devices.

Despite the wealth of opportunities, challenges remain.

Ms. Miller said that tracking from mobile devices is still fairly limited.

In addition, customers change their devices often, so the shift in the adoption of the user base is difficult to keep up with.

?Mobile commerce is not the same as ecommerce,? Ms. Miller said. ?Looking ahead, by 2012 more smartphones will be shipped than desktop PCs, and this will change mobile commerce the same way that broadband availability changed ecommerce.

?In terms of building a business case for mobile, use existing analytics for mobile users to your Web site to determine your target audience and whether an application makes sense,? she said. ?Use ROI simulations and tap location-based services, which encourage consumers to get into the store.

?For the brands that we?ve helped go mobile, so far the early results look good.?

The panel was moderated by Mickey Alam Khan, editor in chief of Mobile Marketer and Mobile Commerce Daily, New York:

Final Take
Create the Group's Ms. Miller

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