Indian e-business latches onto mobile

E-business companies in India have started using mobile commerce, apps, and self-service features, which now form a major part of their mobile strategy, writes Telecom Yatra.

These companies have also started providing customer service from within mobile Web sites or apps. However, it is still in nascent stages, but picking up fast. Such a service is very important as customers need immediate and contextual assistance, as per a report by Forrester Research.

Compared to customer service on a Web site, mobile customer service is accompanied by urgency. The capability to quickly answer customer service questions via a mobile device can support consumers, who will not need to be in front of their computers.

Two hi-tech support groups have joined forces with Digital Rochester, a US organisation promoting and assisting technology-related businesses, says Democrat and Chronical.

E-Business Association (EBA), a 300-member group involved in IT and Web-based merchandising, and the upstate chapter of the Association for Women in Computing (AWC), which supports women in hi-tech fields, have created a joint membership and a single board of directors with Digital Rochester.

Digital Rochester president Josh Bouk says the reason for the convergence is to absorb into the company the skills and relationships that EBA and AWC provide in niche areas.

Footwear brand FitFlop is entering the direct selling market with a new e-commerce Web site, reports Catalogue E-business.

Currently, the site is transactional only in the UK, but FitFlop plans to extend its e-commerce reach to Belgium, Germany, Italy, and the Netherlands early next year.

Managing director Scott Thomson says a US site is also in the planning, but as the company is still in the process of setting up its US office, a date for the site going live was at least eight months away.