M-Commerce Business Strategy: Establish a Voice
A LinkedIn question got me thinking this morning about m-commerce, and where the strategic focus should be. I think the future of m-commerce in terms of business strategy involves establishing a credible social voice relative to a given category or product/service domain.
M-commerce offers a tremendous advantage to the consumer who is in any given retail context and can find best options instantly in terms of product selection, pricing, brand, service, repair records, availability, etc. If a product or service provider wants to speak to that audience of one (a million times a day) it will require an established voice at the point of inquiry (since any location can be a point of sale).
The amount of customer-generated content related to any given product is increasing to the point where vendors are losing the verbal platform they once dominated. Fellow consumers are the virtual associates who, for the most part, have no vested interest other than to share what they know about a given product, service, or vendor. To present and manage that voice in context of your own offering gives you a seat at the table.
With respect to presenting an m-commerce offering that consumers can consult anywhere, that is a very basic extension of e-commerce that all e-retailers probably have in the works. The differentiator is being present when consumers are in a given shopping or product discussion context and are seeking their best options.
Copyright 2009, Paul Bryan, Usography Corporation (http://www.usography.com)
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