The What And Why Of Mobile e-Commerce Applications

Today’s world is primarily driven by e-commerce, with mobile retail sales projected to exceed $400 billion by 2024, almost double the amount achieved in 2021. The pandemic established online purchases through e-commerce apps as the pinnacle of convenience, making smartphones and computers the most preferred shopping avenue, and significantly contributing to the e-commerce app development boom. More than ever, it is now time for stores, brands, and other businesses to adapt to this new market and further enhance their customers’ experiences. Quite simply, if you have a retail business and want to reach more customers, you cannot afford to stay offline anymore. In fact, even if you’re just starting out and do not yet own a physical store, e-commerce can give you the kind of market and brand recognition you need in the very first stages of setting up your business.

What is an e-Commerce Application?

With an e-commerce application, users can purchase a store’s products on any compatible device through an internet connection. It’s different from an online store that simply lists items with photos and descriptions. An e-commerce app lets brands enhance the way users engage with their products, allowing detail and nuances in the level of interactivity, visualization, and functionalities.

Types of e-Commerce Applications

To accurately define what you wish to achieve from your app, it’s important to understand the different types of e-commerce applications developed by mobile app development companies in Kuwait.

Manufacturing e-commerce apps use digital software and can potentially incorporate Artificial Intelligence (AI) to streamline the entire production to distribution process, including collection, storage, and processing of raw materials. These apps are prominently used in the government and industry context.
Retail and wholesale apps facilitate selling of products to customers. They typically require virtual shopping carts and catalogs.
Now that e-commerce is more closely associated with financial services, financial e-commerce applications utilized by businesses and banks facilitate simpler banking for users by allowing online checking of bank accounts and electronic payment methods. Stock trading apps that involve electronic transactions also fall under this category.
Ticketing and booking e-commerce applications enable ticket purchases to shows, parties, travel destinations, etc. It is a type of online shopping that helps people create new experiences with ease.

E-commerce apps can yet be classified by the type of business model they feature.

B2C (Business-to-Consumer) e-commerce apps are the most common and are designed by app developers in Kuwait to help customers directly purchase products/services from the app. E.g: H&M
B2B (Business-to-Business) e-commerce apps are primarily useful for businesses that offer wholesale prices to retailers, or sell to other businesses, as they are made to ease business-to-business transactions. E.g: Alibaba
C2C (Consumer-to-Consumer) e-commerce apps, typically used for secondhand items, allow consumers to sell products/services to other consumers. E.g: eBay
C2B (Consumer-to-Business) e-commerce apps, although rare, have great potential in Kuwait’s mobile application development industry. This model allows businesses and consumers to maintain a mutually beneficial relationship wherein consumers offer products/services to businesses in exchange for payment or other benefits.This includes independent workers and freelancers who complete paid tasks for businesses. Businesses that are seeking to recruit skilled service providers or unique product sellers visit C2B online platforms to find what they need.
Businesses that offer a wide range of products and wish to reach a larger customer base, can choose to be a part of a marketplace e-commerce app, a platform where multiple sellers can sell their products/services to buyers. E.g: Amazon
Subscription e-commerce apps are based on a regular offering of products/services. For instance, streaming services use a monthly subscription model to offer their content to interested consumers. E.g: Netflix

Why Develop an e-Commerce Application?

There are over 6 billion active smartphones in the world today, and most people make online purchases through mobile devices. Today, the success of widely known e-commerce apps like Amazon prove that mobile e-commerce apps have the ability to attract new customers and increase revenue growth across different devices. Moreover, the COVID-19 pandemic exponentially increased the dominance of the e-commerce market in a way that has never been seen before. Total e-commerce spending in 2020 (a whopping $82.5 billion) increased by 77% from 2019. A number that would have typically taken 4-6 years to reach, was achieved in a single year.

Furthermore, e-commerce apps allow businesses the possibility to reach users via push notifications, and offer better ways to track user behavior, more effective collection of analytics, and faster testing of new features.

Here is a brief list of some of the many benefits of developing an e-commerce mobile app for your business through mobile app developers in Kuwait:

Better brand presence - Whenever someone downloads your e-commerce app, it will remain visible on their device at all times, never really leaving their sight and improving your brand presence.
Better shopping experience - From the customer’s end, mobile e-commerce apps make product search and payment far more easier, streamlining the buyer’s journey. Moreover, features like push notifications allow you to communicate with your customers in real-time. This helps them be notified of products they’re interested in, which in turn helps build a better relationship with your brand, encouraging them to come back.
Omni channel experience - With a mobile app for your store, users will have the same look and feel regardless of the device they’re using. This consistency eases navigation and makes it convenient to reorder items and check out new ones as well.
Increased accessibility - Mobile shopping apps let users shop whenever and wherever they want. By increasing accessibility to your products/services, shoppers will be able to explore and purchase things on the move, consequently expanding your audience and boosting your revenues.
Cost-effective marketing - Any Kuwait digital marketing company will acknowledge e-commerce mobile apps as a cost-effective marketing tool, as they open up a direct channel of communication with customers. Instead of spending resources on expensive advertising campaigns, customers can easily be alerted about new products and promotions, and retargeted through their app behavior.
Increased conversion - According to research, mobile apps have the ability to convert users to customers 130% more than websites. In fact, people using mobile apps have an 85% chance of adding desired products to the cart. Mobile apps simply drive higher conversion rates.
Increased retention - It is commonly known that mobile users have the habit of frequently returning to their applications. However, even research shows that 38% of users return to an e-commerce app 11+ times after downloading it. And there is a 50% chance that they will return to the app within 30-35 days of buying something. Plus, if you don’t see the kind of activity from users that you would like, you could always notify them about a flash sale or an exclusive deal to bring them back, something you cannot achieve from a website alone.

To put it simply, the present and future of e-commerce is mobile. Ranging from improved customer service to increased brand loyalty, the benefits of e-commerce apps are far and wide. A well built mobile e-commerce application will have all the elements needed to maximize your business’s potential and create an engaging and interactive shopping experience for your users. With the help of a reliable and experienced mobile application development company in Kuwait, like Design Master, you can build a customized mobile e-commerce app featuring a secured payment gateway that is tailored to your business objectives and expectations.

Take a look at our extensive portfolio of e-commerce apps we’ve created across various industries, and contact us today to make your business a mobile success!

Tune in next week to learn about the most essential features of a successful mobile e-commerce app….