Aisle411 Launches New “Shops” Mobile App

Mobile in-store shopping app Aisle411 has released its new local search-focused “Shops” mobile application on iOS and Web that helps shoppers find more than 2 million unique consumer products in more than 200,000 retail stores across the U.S. Aisle411 is an indoor navigation app designed to help a customer find his or her way through large retail stores.

“The Shops app by Aisle411 showcases how online to offline optimized product data can help connect shoppers locally to the products they want to buy in an elegant and easy-to-use mobile solution,” said Aisle411 CEO Nathan Pettyjohn. “Eighty percent of shoppers use smartphones in the purchasing process and more than 90 percent of retail purchases are still made in a brick-and-mortar store. Aisle411’s location data platform connects mobile shoppers to in-store products and purchases that, over the next few years, will influence how billions of dollars are spent in stores.”

In fact, Aisle411 calculates that retailers can expect to see between 5-11 percent net margin improvement on shoppers who use the Aisle411. In 2014, one national retail customer of Aisle411 offered Mobile Deal Maps, allowing shoppers to select and map a list of all the deals they wanted in-store. The result was an average ticket increase of 34 percent by the “Mobile Deal Mappers” vs. the average shopper ticket, according to the press release.

The app works a bit like a treasure hunt. The customer inserts a product they are looking for. The app reveals in which retail store it is available providing a map for direction. And then it gives the user the precise indoor location. This bit is important for the 16 percent of shoppers who can’t find a product while shopping and who, according to a survey by Aisle411, decide to either go to another store, or not buy that item at all.

Precise location of a product is possible through partnerships with major retailers like Toys R’ Us, Walgreen’s, Hy-Vee and Marsh supermarkets or The Home Depot. It also uses technology from Google Project Tango which develops 3D maps of indoor spaces with the ability to show a user’s precise location and orientation within centimeters of accuracy.

By removing the friction, retailers can encourage shoppers to discover more products (in the store at aisle level) and build a bigger basket. According to Google research, two in three shoppers who tried to find information within a store say they didn’t find what they needed, and 43 percent of them left frustrated. And 71 percent of in-store shoppers who use smartphones for online research say their device has become more important to their in-store experience.

“What we’re seeing is that by removing friction in the buying process for shoppers in-store, our solutions can drive the discovery of special offers and increase the conversion of those offers by making it easy to find and buy the product,” Pettyjohn added.