Mobile commerce : an insight into the consumer experience

Abstract

As the Internet finds its way into our pockets and wallets, the devices we use are becoming more personal than ever. Storing phone numbers of friends and colleagues is one simple way of looking at it. On a more advanced note, devices today are able to track our location and suggest places of interest. These devices will one day become our wallets and credit cards. There is no end as to how far this can continue to go on, and one would like to think that we have only just scratched the surface. But for all this to take shape and evolve, key issues such as usability, privacy and interoperability still need to be addressed. By means of online questionnaires directed at a specific target audience, this document will identify these key issues and highlight them as a point of reference for developers and marketers. It is the author's intention to truly understand the framework of the three stages of the consumer experience as described in the coming chapters. Tapping into a whole new industry, where recognized authors and published books are few and far between, represents the main challenge of what promises to be an interesting study. In a marketing oriented organization, the customer takes centre stage. The organization's goals are to satisfy the customers' needs and wants to the very best of their ability. Therefore, there could be no better way to satisfy these needs and wants than to explore the stages of the consumer experience and get a better insight into the current trends and happenings.