Mobile Retail Data Governance Drives Data Value

According to Mastercard, online retail sales growth accelerated through December 2021, up 61 percent from 2019. Now, up to 73% of consumers do omnichannel mobile shopping. The resulting explosion of mobile retail data presents both a challenge and an opportunity for retailers who implement mobile retail data governance.

Convenience Drives Growth

Mobile commerce, or m-commerce, encompasses the buying and selling of products and services via mobile devices such as tablets and smartphones. From a handheld device, shoppers order dinner, pay for tickets, deposit checks, or purchase a new kitchen sink.

Convenience tops the list of m-commerce benefits for purchasers. They choose to shop anytime, from anywhere that offers their mobile network or internet connectivity.

By spanning the gap between online and in-store purchases, m-commerce powers the highly sought after omnichannel retail experience.

Hence, retailers stealthily deliver contextual marketing based on a customer’s location and online behavior. Mobile data insights and technology then help retailers deliver a powerful in-store experience.

For retailers, m-commerce offers an incredible growth opportunity. Indeed, Statista projects that global mobile purchases will exceed $3.56 trillion for 2021.

Mobile Retail Data Valuation

Information about customer’s mobile buying behavior drives marketing activities that generate increased sales. Some successful retail companies, like Amazon and Walmart, manage to monetize mobile data, using it to sustain company growth. Many others have not yet realized the value of their data.

To quantify the worth of mobile data, business leaders must first classify the data and outline specific use cases. With a map of mobile data assets and a clear picture of how to use them, several methods to determine data value may be applied. Across the organization, data governance becomes a prerequisite to obtaining the greatest value out of mobile data.

Accuracy, Security and Legality of Mobile Data a Challenge

Rapidly expanding m-commerce generates a large increase in mobile retail data. Not only do consumers purchase products and services from their mobile devices. They also request returns and support, interact with loyalty programs, track deliveries, research product alternatives and more. Each of those interactions produces data that informs marketing campaigns.

But along with numerous marketing benefits, the massive increase in mobile retail data also brings challenges such as:

Redundant, Fraudulent, or Inaccurate Data. A consumer may interact with a business from multiple devices, often creating duplicate accounts. Moreover, mobile devices increase the risk of “click spam” (fraud) and “slips” (accidental clicks), which cloud marketing metrics.
Mismanaged Data. Mobile devices deliver a swarm of data points with the potential to inform business strategy and marketing. However, data analysts must be able to interpret the data with appropriate context to gain value from it. Mismanaged data offers no value and often creates a hefty liability.
Data Security Risks. With convenience prioritized over security, mobile platforms deliver new types of information and increased payment-related data. The information collected often includes real-time customer location data.

Phishing attacks also leverage buyer “slips” and social engineering to drive unintentional clicks on phishing links.

Thus, retail cyber security requires increased attention and resources.

Compliance – At least 38 states introduced consumer data privacy laws in 2021. And the federal government may finally pass federal privacy regulations in 2022. Thus, m-commerce data adds complexity to an already thorny regulatory landscape.

Mobile Retail Data Governance Increases Data Value

Retailers that implement mobile retail data governance strategies are better positioned to overcome the challenges and realize the inherent value of mobile retail data. Data governance activities include crafting data retention and access policies, identifying data sources, data cleaning and categorizing, and securing customer data.

With comprehensive data security, data governance, and compliance monitoring in place, retailers protect sensitive mobile data to build consumer trust. Likewise, with data properly vetted and organized, decision makers access the data they need to inform business strategy. Moreover, marketing becomes more efficient while the customer experience improves.

The data governance experts at Messaging Architects provide the tools needed to customize an effective mobile retail data governance strategy. They help to locate and categorize data, store and transport it safely, and automate policies to facilitate privacy and regulatory compliance.

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