Smartphone with white gift on the grey background. Eps 10 vector file.With only a limited amount of time to capture shoppers’ attention, retail is looking to mobile to cash in this holiday season. Fewer number of key shopping days means that retailers must be strategic in spreading their message across all their channels and appropriately engaging customers. This year could be the year that mobile marketing breaks out to increase sales.

According to the research firm eMarketer:

There are about 20 million more shoppers armed with smartphones this holiday season compared with last holiday season. And phones have become the command center for consumers’ lives.

This digital disruption is affecting the way traditional retailers view marketing, Hallmark, for instance, is ditching its television advertising campaign in favor of new cheeky digital-only spots. The card and gift giant is also partnering with Snapchat to provide users with holiday-themed filters for images.

Here’s a look at more mobile-influenced marketing trends for the upcoming holiday season:

Access to Product Inventories and List-Making Capabilities

Not only are more and more customers using their smartphone in-store but a larger percentage are using them to check store inventories and add items to their wish lists or personal shopping carts. As stores become more crowded and inventories scarce into the holiday shopping season, this feature will become integral.

New Social Buy Buttons

Earlier this year, Facebook announced it was testing an in-app shopping space where users can browse and purchase directly from their mobile device. Social buy buttons have also appeared on Pinterest and Twitter allowing customers to see something they like and purchase it instantaneously through their smartphone. Other brands may want to take notice and add this functionality to their apps.

Mobile Purchasing

Similar to buy buttons, mobile purchasing from retail apps is up from last holiday season. This gives customers the ease of purchasing items on their holiday lists while on the go. More retailers will likely want to improve their mobile sites to add or enhance this capability.

Exclusive Promotions Enhance Engagement

Black Friday, longtime known as the most important shopping day of the holiday season, may become superseded by Cyber Monday in number of purchases. Because of this, retailers need to create promotions unique to shopping days but also to specific customers based on mobile data. While it’s essential to engage customers during the holiday season, ongoing engagement should be the goal so that retailers know their customers well enough  by the time holiday shopping comes around. This knowledge will help them to provide unique promotions to each customer.

In-Person Service

Customers have become accustomed to relying on their smartphone in-store for information on products. To keep customers happy, retailers must train staff to be as well versed on product knowledge as a smartphone. While a daunting challenge, retail store associates need to provide customers with the information found on their smartphone and more to keep them satisfied.

As the holiday season quickly approaches, marketers need to be aware of the mobile opportunities that customers are expecting and use them to their advantage. They also need to realize that the holiday season is no longer just a campaign but part of a larger, ongoing process to engage and energize customers all year round.

Need help with your mobile marketing and engagement strategy not just during the holidays but all year long? Contact us.