If reports published across newspapers in the recent times are to be believed then m-commerce is here to stay. What is m-commerce you ask? Well, it’s just e-commerce via your smartphones. Did you know that India stands 2nd in the list of countries when it comes to the number of mobile phone connections? And if anything, this figure is only going to increase exponentially. With that, thus, comes the phenomenal surge in smartphone usage as well across the country. Therefore, is it really a surprise that mobile internet traffic trumps that through computers? I think not. And mobile internet for any user is, well, internet mostly through apps. With that established, the transition to m-commerce actually makes sense. In fact, it wouldn’t be too far-fetched to say that in the future, travel and fashion websites would most likely transition to the app-only world.

Source : freedigitalphotos.net by ddpavumba

Addiction to apps!

Imagine you are on a holiday and you get to know of a sale on your favorite travel website. Now, your only access to internet is via your phone. Yes, there are no desktops around. Imagine that long awaited holiday to Italy has an extremely attractive offer on it. And that too, valid for just a few hours. What would you do? Would you miss out on booking those tickets just because you don’t have access to a computer? Or, would you just open the app on your mobile and do what needs to be done? The latter, right? So, you see how apps are needed?

What, still not convinced? Alright. What about when you are travelling and suddenly recall that it’s the last day to pay your electricity bill? What would you do? Would you wait to reach your destination, maybe after two days, and risk getting your connection, well, disconnected? Or, would you do it via the app? The app right? No two ways about it.

Hence, you see consumers, like you and I, do anything and everything via apps because of the felxibility on offer. Booking travel to cinema tickets, ordering groceries, banking, shopping, fixing doctor’s appointment and more. When time is of essence, apps provide access anytime, anywhere. Thus, could you blame this addiction to apps?

Why consumers prefer apps?

A smartphone user, who is your typical consumer, is one who wants everything to be available at his fingertips and also on-the go. Waiting to have access to a computer is no longer an option. One of the many reasons why every business is investing in apps today and if it isn’t already, it most definitely is planning to do so. Yes, the consumers not only want apps but better performance of apps.

A few reasons, among many, for this bend towards apps are :

• Convenient
• Faster access
• Better Interface
• Anytime, Anywhere Use
• Easier to Shop from
• Attractive Offers on booking through apps

Why businesses should go the app only way?

Business diverting their attention from websites or mobile websites to apps makes sense, especially in India because we are a country of over 300 million internet users, with an overwhelming majority of that number via mobile. The consumers, mostly millennials like you and I, are changing the way businesses think today. When accessing internet via smartphones, on any given day, a user would undoubtedly prefer the app over even the mobile website. Thus, evidently the future of websites, travel or even fashion like Myntra, is in the area of apps, at least going by the latest trends. With businesses focusing their energies solely in the area of apps, the consumers can also expect improvement in service quality. So yes, apps are here to stay and business through apps is the next rational step.

Conclusion, well, going app only is a win-win situation for both businesses and consumers.

Businesses and Consumers share a symbiotic arrangement. And in that sense when one prefers using apps, the other can’t help but chose to move to that platform. With that in mind many e-majors like Myntra are believed to be contemplating going app only. And it makes absolute business sense as well because of a surge in smartphone usage, internet traffic & purchases via apps.

Tell me what you think though. Share your views on twitter with the hashtag #itspersonal.