Why Indian e-commerce sites are moving to Mobile App?

Why Indian e-commerce sites are moving to Mobile App?

With the increase in Mobile Apps, slowly Indian e-commerce sites are moving from mobile websites to mobile apps. In some cases they drop not just their mobile websites but desktop as well. Already companies like Flipkart, Mynthra, Snapdeal, Ola, Reach CRM, and Makemytrip have come out with their own Mobile Apps. Some more companies like Zomato, Jabong, OLX and Quickr will follow suit.

The main reason to this shift is due to the growing number of Smart phone users in India. Another reason being more than half of the users come to their site through mobile app. Apart from this, the companies itself want their users to come to their sites through the mobile app. That is why we could see lot of these companies giving special discounts for their app users.

Actually the step to move the users to Mobile App is a conscious decision made by the companies rather than the user. From the companies perspective they wanted to streamline their cost in technology. But the actual fact is companies are forcing this change for their own benefit. Firstly, when the user starts using the App it makes it difficult for him to do the comparison with other offers available. The choices will also be limited because one cannot keep downloading every company”™s app. This will also take away the phone space of the user. Eventually this will push the Smartphone makers to increase the memory space in their upcoming new releases.

Another valid reason which I felt behind moving to App mode is to make shopping available any time anywhere. In a general scenario, a shopper will do online shopping on an average approximately 2 hours in a day. During a normal working day a shopper will not have much time to browse his laptop/desktop to do the shopping. So this makes the shopping time lesser and as a result sales will be less. Since most of the ecommerce companies spend lot of money in advertising they wanted ROI at a much higher rate. Mobile App benefits these companies by making the shopper to buy products 24/7. As everyone carries their smartphones everywhere it makes shopping really easy for the customer. Even when travelling they can shop with ease. As a result shopper will spend more time shopping and sales will increase multifold. So the theory behind this move by companies is to ultimately multiply their sales revenue. In other parts of the world, web versions and app versions co-exist. We will have to wait and see whether this move will be received well by the Indian shoppers.

On the other hand companies like Ola, Reach CRM, Zomato etc have moved to App versions purely for the convenience of the user. These companies can continue having both the versions. Mobile apps will be very crucial for these companies as their services are needed more when the users are on the go. When this type of companies has their own mobile app the user benefits the most. So they should come out with their own apps to make life easier for the user. Overall we can only see more apps coming to the market. Ultimately a user will become more confused on which app to be chosen for what. Only time can tell us which apps will survive and which will not. You can read more about Reach CRM app here.

Bhavana Nagendra

I am a Chartered Accountant with 5 years of experience in both Consulting (KPMG) and Industry (Tapzo).

I am currently assisting various Organizations in understanding the impact of GST on their businesses to help them with a smooth transition.

Key areas of experience include:
– GST
– Developing SOPs and Process Implementation
– Identifying and Implementing Internal Controls as required by the ICFR Framework
– Training and Development of staff in various Finance/ Audit functions
– Statutory Audits