On March 2, 2011, I will be moderating a panel, “Mobile Commerce: The Tipping Point is Here.” The event, which is part of the Vilna Shul Speakers’ Series, organized by Doug Levin, will feature some of the greater Boston area’s best mobile visionaries.

I posed some questions about mobile commerce to Mike Grimes, CEO of Modiv Media, (@modiv).

Mike Grimes, Modiv Media

Q: Mobile commerce is…

MG: Poorly defined. There’s a profound difference between buying something via a mobile-enabled commerce site, mobile-initiated payment and an actual mobile payment. They get increasingly more complex with the latter two requiring integration with the POS. It’s also just one part of the mobile engagement picture. Commerce is cool, but passive. It waits for the customer to do something. When you add targeted marketing and personalized promotions to a mobile commerce experience that adds value for the customer while in-store, now you’re onto something.

Q: What has in-store mobility scanning revealed about consumer habits that will inform the mobile community?

MG: They will use their mobile devices to scan and buy! Not just price comparisons, but actual purchases. However, like commerce, scanning is not enough to get customers to keep an application open. Saving time is good. Saving money is good. Saving both is better. And, saving money on the products I like, need, want, desire and actually purchase is even better. Scanning is cool, but it alone isn’t enough to get real customer traction.

Q: How do you counter the viewpoint that mobile shopping puts people out of jobs, i.e., grocers will need fewer cashiers?

MG: Look at the Apple store. Find a “cashier” or register there. You can’t. By removing the “register” and checkout counter, they changed the experience. Retail will go through a similar transition whereby retailers will take “reactive” employees and turn them into “proactive” evangelists and customer advocates. They will get out from behind the register and engage customers in a way that further increases sales, satisfaction, loyalty and brand value. It will become a competitive weapon against the price-focused apps and websites that are trying to wedge themselves between retailers and their customers.

Have a question for Mike?  Want to learn more?  Join us on March 2.

– Nitzan

@nitzans
@highstartgroup