No other place in the world has the retail power of New York City, with its iconic Fifth Avenue stores and the myriad of individual shops nestled within the city’s boroughs. However, the nature of retail has shifted quite radically within the last couple of years, and companies that managed to adapt by meeting customers in the virtual space are enjoying success. As a result, there has been a great increase in demand for digital competence, and the technology market of New York City is responding to the challenge in its own unique fashion.
Indeed, today, a top-notch mobile app development company in NYC is one of the key players when it comes to retail transformation projects. But this is not about developing another simple application for browsing through products. Instead, it is all about changing the approach to the relationship between a company and its clients.
The Retail Digital Gap Is Still Real
Despite all the buzz around digital transformation, more retailers than you would expect still operate on legacy systems. There’s no synchronization between the in-store experience and the online store. The loyalty program is managed through a spreadsheet. And the mobile presence consists of a website that is somewhat optimized for mobile access, but is painful to use nonetheless.
And that is where the expertise of the developers in NYC has been born. As opposed to peddling ready-made software, the best among the NYC-based companies have managed to specialize in retail solutions. They know how to manage inventory, integrate point-of-sale, work with customer data platforms, and meet the exacting demands of NYC shoppers.
What Retail Brands Are Actually Building?
The discussion begins not with “we need an app” but from the perspective of solving the existing business problem, like poor customer retention after the first purchase, poor foot traffic, or a newly launched competitive product stealing customers’ attention.
Based on such discussions, a set of similar types of solutions emerges again and again.
A loyalty or rewards program application appears to be the most popular point of start when developing an app for a retailer. Retailers need reasons to make their customers loyal, and a decently developed app offering valuable rewards may contribute significantly towards retaining customers.
The future trend to watch out for is omnichannel experiences for shoppers. That is when the customer visits the web shop first, checks the availability in the physical store inventory, reserves the item, picks it up in-store on the same day, and returns it through whichever medium he chooses.
Another development taking center stage is personalization engines that cater to mid-size to large retail organizations. With the help of purchase and browsing history, location data, and other such sources, the engine customizes the app experience for the individual user – offering him a set of unique recommendations and incentives.
Why NYC Developers Specifically Have an Edge?
That’s precisely why retailers, even those based elsewhere from New York, find themselves looking into the benefits of working with a mobile app developer in New York when it comes to entering the digital arena. Here are three reasons that make the developer environment in New York special.
First off, the developer scene in New York City enjoys an amazing level of talent concentration. There is hardly a place in America with such a high concentration of product designers, engineers, and digital strategists. The level of competition keeps the quality bar incredibly high.
Secondly, the developers operating in New York City have easy access to retail. They share a city with the flagship stores, pop-ups, concept shops, and other physical representations of the brands for which they develop mobile applications. It may seem like a small detail, but it makes a great difference for understanding UX issues.
Thirdly, the business culture in New York is very dynamic. Mobile application developers must deliver on-time products to survive in such a competitive market environment.
What Does the Next Phase Look Like?
The Mobile App Developers in New York are already venturing into the next wave of retail technology. Try-on capabilities using augmented reality technology, AI-driven inventory forecasting tools embedded in the associate’s mobile app, and personalized offers in real-time based on in-store behavioral analytics are all technologies currently being developed for our retail clients.
For those retail businesses still not embarked upon their digital transformation journey, it might be worth noting that time is rapidly running out when such a move could easily be achieved without any significant difficulties. Consumer expectations continue to rise, while companies that digitized themselves two to three years ago have already established an advantage.
The good news is that the maturity of New York’s developer community is high enough that a company starting its journey today can make rapid progress if they choose the right partner and remains focused on solving actual consumer pain points.
How to Choose the Right Development Partner?
As a retail brand interested in a mobile app development company in NYC, some factors will serve you well in narrowing down your search.
The first filter to consider is the retail portfolio of the mobile application development firm. Look for a detailed case study where they show the problem at hand and the solution they provided, in addition to an actual outcome. Also, inquire about their experience dealing with integration with your current retail system, such as Shopify or Salesforce Commerce Cloud, among others.
Inquire about their discovery process. Those mobile application development companies that take the time to understand your customers and business operations are those that come up with designs that solve your problem. Those who just dive into the wireframe stage without getting the hang of their problem first end up creating applications that have great graphics but not solutions.
Finally, consider their sales process communication strategy. Poor response from your potential mobile app developer during the sales process translates to the same when they sign your project.
Conclusion
The brands of retail in New York are at an intriguing junction. While the physical retail experience is invaluable in many ways – from the excitement of a great store to actually feeling the products or trying them out and socializing while shopping in such a vibrant place – the digital component wrapped around it is equally crucial.
With developers of mobile apps for New York, brands have a pool of highly qualified people with extensive experience and close to retail culture who can help create that digital layer effectively. There is an opportunity here for those brands that are willing to think and act accordingly.
Retail will not perish; it will just move locations. And one location today is your mobile device.