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28 W. 23rd St, 6th Floor

New York, NY 10010

e: contact@usablenet.com

INTRODUCTIONLuxury brands are lagging behind customer expectations in terms of delivering mobile experiences that are complementary to their

brick and mortar counterparts, and that satisfy how today’s luxury consumers wish to interact with them. In a February 1, 2013,

Forrester report entitled “The Luxuryer’s Guide to Agile Commerce,” the three key takeaways are:

❖❖ Luxury consumers desire exceptional

experiences through digital touchpoints.

❖❖ Luxury consumers are in the forefront of

shopping on mobile devices, including tablets.

❖❖ Luxury brands aren’t keeping up with their

customers in the first two trends.

The luxury consumer, used to high-touch concierge

service in opulent stores and showrooms, is

younger, more active, and more tech-savvy than

previous generations. For the most part, luxury

brands have been slower to acknowledge or adapt

to the rapid growth and rabid embrace of mobile

technology among affluent consumers, preferring

to focus on providing the kind of impeccable in-

person experiences that have traditionally been

the best practice for this clientele.

It is imperative for luxury brands to catch up to

their on-the-go customers and invest in providing

integrated multichannel experiences that keep

them within reach at all times and in all places.

Which is not to say that there are not stellar

examples of brands that are effectively

mobilizing to meet luxury consumers where

they are. Digital think-tank L2 found that 57%

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Luxury

finds that the former group is more likely to

use their mobile phone to engage with brands,

research products, and make purchases, as the

table below illustrates.

Behaviors

Luxury shoppers

ordinary shoppers

Have used mobile to interact with a company

59%

45%

Made a purchase on mobile 25% 16%

Researched products on mobile 56% 40%

It is essential for luxury brands to leverage these

differences and close the gap between their

digital offerings and their customers’ lifestyles.

According to the Luxury Institute, 72% of mobile

luxury consumers do not consider there to be an

upper limit on how much they would spend in

a single mobile transaction. Additionally, 46%

of mobile luxury consumers reported that they

expect loyalty programs and 45% want early

access to sales through their mobile devices.

Of course, this doesn’t mean that the in-store

experience is no longer important. Rather, it’s that

the seamless integration of in-person and mobile

experiences should be the goal for luxury brands —

regardless of what stage of evolution their mobile

offers are. Research has shown that 65% of digital

luxury shoppers access a retailers website while in-

store, while 69% of shoppers reporting high levels

of satisfaction with the online channel are more

likely to buy from the same brand offline.

Usablenet // Luxury — June 2013 Page 2

of luxury brands currently offer optimized

m-commerce solutions, while only one-third

provide just a desktop experience.

At the same time, L2’s study found that only

10% of luxury brands had tablet-specific sites,

with only 23% utilizing “swipe navigation” to

make for a good user experience. As the luxury

consumer is more likely than regular consumers

to use both a smartphone and a tablet — 26%

of luxury shoppers own a tablet device versus

just 12% of all web users — the lack of mobile

and tablet optimization presents a significant

growth opportunity.

The 2013 ForeSee E-Retail Satisfaction Index

compares the use of mobile devices among

luxury consumers and “ordinary shoppers”, and

url: m.mbusa.com url: m.selfridges.com

Luxury

BesT PRaCTICes Based on our long experience creating multichannel

experiences for clients in a range of sectors,

Usablenet understands the best practices that

luxury brands need to undertake in order to reach

their mobile-active customers. Here are a few:

Design

❖❖ Keep visual design clean — go for refined rather

than opulent. A clear, compelling, and engaging

user interface will place the emphasis on your

offerings and improve customer satisfaction

and loyalty.

❖❖ Streamline and optimize your customer’s

journey in the mobile experience by making

each click count and delivering valuable content

from login to checkout.

Multichannel

❖❖ Seamlessly integrate channels — from store

(through kiosks or tech-equipped salespeople)

to mobile/tablet to desktop.

❖❖ Provide a range of complementary experiences

based on context, e.g., whether logging in from

home or in the store.

❖❖ Increase the level of personalization by

offering quick access to stores while on the

road, or requesting a conversation with a sales

associate within a store.

Enhanced experience

❖❖ Provide useful and relevant content that offers

a differentiated experience.

❖❖ Push mobile-specific offers and promotions

to your customers.

❖❖ Build in the ability for social media interaction;

this enables them to share the experience

with other customers and gain feedback from

your fans.

Usablenet // Luxury — June 2013 Page 3

Ritz-Carlton’s innovative use of QR codes offers guests the

opportunity to scan for bonus content such as signature

cocktail recipes, event calendars, or location-special travel and

historical information. Some of this extra content is triggered

automatically through geo-location technology. In addition,

Ritz-Carlton’s mobile experiences are deeply socially integrated,

including a FourSquare-based World Concierge service.

Usablenet // Luxury — June 2013 Page 4

url: m.mbusa.com

url: m.selfridges.com

With mobile traffic to mbusa.com having grown by 170% over

the last year, Mercedes Benz USA enhanced its mobile site to

allow customers to research its full line of vehicle offerings

with high-resolution scrolling image galleries, videos, and

dynamic user interactions. Users can also use a GPS function

to find dealers, customize their vehicles, and, post-purchase,

access owners’ resources.

Product display pages on the Selfridges mobile site each

have a social flyout, which enables consumers to share the

product via email, Facebook, Google+, Twitter, and Pinterest.

Selfridges also offers a “What’s On” section where users can

find information about in-store events, thereby forging a link

between the mobile experience and the in-store experience.

ClIeNT examPles

Luxury