Proportion of Sales Transactions Completed on Mobile Devices to Grow 58% by 2015 in North America, TCS Global Trend Study Reveals

MUMBAI, India, Dec. 13, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- Consumer sales transactions completed on mobile devices will grow by 58%, as a proportion of overall interactions[1], between 2012 and 2015 in North America, according to research commissioned by Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) (BSE: 532540, NSE: TCS) the leading IT services, consulting and business solutions firm.

The New Digital Mobile Consumer report highlights the criticality of developing a corporate strategy for interactions conducted with consumers specifically through mobile devices. In a similar trend to that seen in sales transactions, customer services and mobile-specific market campaigns will experience substantial growth as a percentage of overall consumer interactions – growing 74% and 76% respectively between 2012 and 2015.

The companies reporting the greatest success with digital mobile consumers are those that are quickest to adapt to new platforms such as the tablets. Globally, the leading companies had an average of 25% of their mobile apps designed specifically for tablets; in contrast, the companies with the least success had just 17%. Rapid adoption of multiple mobile devices by both consumers and employees, however, is demanding that mobile strategies evolve further still.

Businesses increasingly need applications designed to run on both smartphones and tablets. The leading companies within the study recognise that this strategy allows them to scale out their applications more effectively across user groups and mobile device types. In North America in 2012, less than half (47%) of companies have apps running on both smartphones and tablets. But this is set to increase by 23%, with over three in every five apps (61%) planned to be usable on both types of devices by 2015.

"Consumer facing businesses need to develop strong, well-executed digital mobile consumer strategies in order to capitalise on the tremendous sales, marketing, and service opportunities that are now unfolding via the mobile devices of consumers," comments Dr. Satya Ramaswamy, Global Head of Mobility at TCS. "Smartphones are becoming the preferred computing devices for consumers while they are out-and-about, whereas tablets are taking an increasingly central role for these consumers while they are within their homes. As a result, these mobile devices are transforming customer experiences into anytime-anywhere contextual interactions, and are becoming the new battlegrounds for attracting and retaining profitable consumer segments."

"In The New Digital Mobile Consumer study, we found that across several industries - transportation, travel, entertainment, media, telecom, retail and others - top executives expect sales, marketing, and service interactions via mobile devices to increase dramatically over the next few years. Businesses that fail to adequately address these interactions via mobile devices risk being side-lined by competitors, and will be missing precious sales opportunities."

Companies are also beginning to understand the need to diversify their approach to applications to improve the way they work internally. In 2012, the typical North American company will have the most apps developed for salespeople (13 apps), with apps designed for consumers (12) on a par with those for customer services reps (12). However by 2015, customer services will be overtaken (19), with apps for consumers (18) matching the number developed for salespeople (18).

Tata Consultancy Services is an IT services, consulting and business solutions organization that delivers real results to global business, ensuring a level of certainty no other firm can match. TCS offers a consulting-led, integrated portfolio of IT, BPO, infrastructure, engineering and assurance services. This is delivered through its unique Global Network Delivery Model™, recognized as the benchmark of excellence in software development. A part of the Tata group, India's largest industrial conglomerate, TCS has over 254,000 of the world's best-trained consultants in 45 countries. The company generated consolidated revenues of US $10.17 billion for year ended March 31, 2012 and is listed on the National Stock Exchange and Bombay Stock Exchange in India. For more information, visit us at www.tcs.com.

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[1] This trend relates to volume of transactions conducted by consumer using mobile devices, as opposed to revenue from sales.

SOURCE Tata Consultancy Services