The service includes mobile commerce, product content management functionality, order management and cross-channel fulfillment. In addition, there are improved search and navigation capabilities.

“Hybris understands mobile as the missing link between different customer communication channels,” said Stefan Schmidt, director of ecommerce strategy and practice at hybris, London. “Mobile will help customers to migrate effortlessly from one channel to another and back.

“Our strategy is to provide mobile services which fully support the idea of cross-channel commerce,” he said. “Hybris mobile is fully integrated with all other modules of the hybris platform, which allows users to create content but reuse it consistently in various channels.

“We also want to provide services independent from the actual device. Although the iPhone is important it hasn’t yet been decided which device will eventually win or if there even is one.”
 
Mobile commerce features
The service features applications and a mobile commerce function, including a mobile Web site, device detection and optimization to location-based services.

There is also a text-based service that lets consumers receive order-status updates. They can send a text to an advertised number and receive a link to the offer or a voucher code.

Additionally, the company plans to integrate mobile payment solutions such as twitpay. The service currently has a critical mass to be part of a standard solution, hybris claims.

“Customers expect retailers to have a mobile Web site,” Mr. Schmidt said. “With the arrival of flat rates for mobile Internet, people are less concerned about using their phones while out and about.”

Multichannel content
Hybris offers a location-based service that determines the nearest store, or the nearest store with a given product in store.

According to the company, content and context need to flow across all sales channels in a uniform and consistent way, recognizing and following consumers on their journey across channels and providing them with the right information and incentives to enable a purchase decision.

“Consumers compare prices while being in the store or want to get more information about the product than the packaging or the store can offer,” Mr. Schmidt said. “If a product is not in store they use the phone as an extended aisle.

“Some customers also shop in a way that they take pictures in the store or scan the bar codes just to order then everything online and the challenge for high street stores is to direct this behavior to their very own online mobile offering,” he said.