by Dr. Brandi Watkins and Ariel Fink; presented at ICA May 2017

New technology, including mobile apps, allow for more personalized communication between consumers and brands. As such brands have incorporated mobile apps into relationship marketing strategies. In this study, the authors posit that the availability of features on branded mobile apps that provide utilitarian, social, and emotional value for consumers are useful for enhancing the consumer-brand relationship. A content analysis of retail apps found that retailers seem to focus mostly on providing utilitarian value for consumersFeatures that provide social and emotional value for consumers were present in about half of the apps in the sample. Based on these results, it is evident that brand apps try to incorporate features that make shopping easier.