Gilt, with a young, affluent customer base, launched its mobile app in 2009. It has multiple mobile

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Email this Print Reprints ARTICLE TOOLS SPONSOR Receive the latest articles for free. Click here to get the Mobile Commerce Daily newsletters. Gilt, Rue La La update apps to satisfy 2015 s mobile-savvy shoppers By Michael Barris
Gilt shopko and Rue La La are retrofitting their applications with new features and functionality such as free early access to sales and pre-sellout notifications that reflect big expectations from the platforms in the year ahead.
The brands flash-sale apps have been updated in the past month, a check of the Apple App store reveals. Besides reflecting an attempt to respond to customer feedback, the changes speak to an effort to satisfy shoppers who have become more comfortable shopko with mobile spending and expect even greater shopping convenience.
Flash sale mobile apps are very popular and now very competitive, said Sheryl Kingstone, Toronto-based research director for Yankee shopko Group. Many of these companies find that more than 50 percent of their revenues come through mobile.
Free access At Gilt, insider shopko members now enjoy free early access to shop Gilt sales, eliminating the need to redeem points. Select shopko members shop five minutes before sale begins while premier members get a 15-minute head-start shopko and noir members a half-hour head-start.
However, I would recommend a wish list feature also in addition to add to cart for reminders of sales and potentially out of stocks, she said. Other areas of improvements would be a dedicated shopko area for personalized recommendations either based on stated or observed behaviors.
Gilt operates from a mobile-first shopko philosophy, thinking first about how a new feature will look on mobile shopko and then building it for desktop, rather than the other way around to ensure fast, simple and fun for consumers, said Jason John, vice president of online, mobile and social marketing, at Mcommerce Summit: State of Mobile Commerce 2014 last spring.
Gilt, with a young, affluent customer base, launched its mobile app in 2009. It has multiple mobile platforms, including apps for iPad, iPhone and Android as well as a mobile Web site for Gilt. It has also developed an iPhone app and mobile Web site for Gilt City.
At ecommerce boutique retailer Rue La La, users now can get notified when items in their carts are about to sell out so they don t miss out on that must-have score. The app also makes it easier to add items to a cart.
Rue La La s new notification feature fits with the brand s history of going social. For instance, in November, Rue La La leveraged Twitter in a holiday campaign that used pet photos and held a giveaway when users reposted images.
The app has received several upgrades in attempt to respond to customer feedback that Rue La La has collected. As Rue members shopko become more comfortable spending via their mobile devices, the brand is prepped and ready for a hopeful and profitable season.
Whether it s for concert tickets or to get the first of a limited product supply, early access has clear benefits. Many mobile users crave exclusivity, plus this enhancement by Gilt makes the process more appointment viewing rather than something that a consumer will check out when and if he or she has time, he said.
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