Smartphones Help and Hurt Retailers

Smartphones increasingly are seen as opportunities for retailers to enhance the in-store shopping experience. But smartphones also are used by shoppers in ways that make retailing more difficult.

Vodafone UK chief executive Guy Laurence, for example, says retailers have "lost control of their shoppers," meaning they are able, in real time, to compare prices at other outlets that might be carrying the same merchandise, or similar merchandise, as the retailer whose store they might currently be in, and can check reviews and user feedback on those items, while in the store.

Shoppers can now use their phone to receive coupons for the very stores they are walking past, with their screen presenting a virtual shopping mall with a list of the local discounts before they even get off the bus.

Research from Motorola found 51 percent of consumers are using their mobile phones for in-store research while 61 percent want to be able to scan barcodes to access information on other stores' prices.

Smartphones changing the way we shop | Technology | The Guardian