Today Myntra moves from being a desktop / app based ecommerce business to completely app based business. Flipkart has announced that they will move in the similar direction. Is this the beginning of the end of website as the key marketing tool?
What supports such a decision? Well few developments in recent past may endorse this move:
- Network Led Developments:
- Mobile networks and payment companies entering into partnerships enabling them to become semi banking entities.
- Mobile payment is catching up fast to become a key mode of money transfer esp smaller denomination (volume value at the bottom of the pyramid)
- Agent outlets now outnumber bank branches in 3/4th markets where mobile money is available (GSMA). This remarkable fact shows just how the mobile money ecosystem is identifying and meeting the needs of the unbanked.
- Technological Changes:
- Change in Google’s algorithm to enable better ranking to mobile-friendly sites
- Mobile driving traffic and revenues
- More than 70 percent of Facebook’s revenue now comes from mobile
- Financial Inclusion:
- According to GSMA 47 out of 89 markets, offering mobile money both banks and non-banks are allowed to provide mobile money services.
- Most markets will witness mobile apps taking over ( US happened last year) PC web usage in future.
However for this initiative to be successful more questions need to be answered first
- Will the app become lighter and faster?
- Will mobile network be ready to support the explosion in data/video using app?
- Will devices continue to improve memory and processing power?
- How many apps are people going to use for day to day living? (From our study last year of enterprise end users average no of applications used were 25 or just over) (See Featured Image)
- Will mobile drive preference to making final decisions?
- Will IoT influence this app based business model?
- Data challenges, will still push consumers away?
- Will presence /absence of net neutraility be a boon in this segment – paid for services ?
- Cost of developing and maintaining a desktop /mobile ready website vs mobile app?
Do share your thoughts comments on girish.trivedi@monkconsulting.co.in