Best Buy drove more than one million in-store visits after focusing on mobile to answer customers’ product-related questions via buying guides, video tutorials on YouTube and localized mobile ads.

As technology continues to advance at a rapid rate, consumers’ questions regarding their digital devices become more complicated and frequent, which means retailers such as Best Buy need to help in a manner that is convenient for them. Best Buy was able to streamline this issue through mobilized guides and YouTube tutorials that, paired with mobile local ads on Google, were able to drive a significant increase in return on investment and market share.

“It is almost immediate how quickly transitions are happening and how deeply ingrained in consumer minds it is that these devices literally move you from the digital to the physical world. But once in store the behavior doesn’t stop,” said Jonathan Alferness, vice president of Google Shopping & Travel. “We see people continue to use search.”

The case study was part of a presentation by Google yesterday to discuss recent reserch findings and upcoming new digital products.

Driving in-store traffic
The electronics retailer is focusing on bringing in users to its stores by equipping them with a wide range of information they are looking for on mobile through its guides and YouTube videos. For instance, one video from Best Buy features employees walking viewers through the three things they need to know about DSLR.

The video walks consumers through the benefits of owning a DSLR camera with comparisons to other camera models.

The mobilized guides allow users to read everything they need about the product they are buying. For instance, Best Buy created a guide to buying camera lenses that includes everything customers may want to know, such as types of lenses, advanced technology, accessories, features and where to buy one at Best Buy.

Local inventory ads on Google allow Best Buy to drive in-store traffic by displaying in-stock products nearby that are related to what users are searching on mobile. The ads also provide a function with which users can order online to pick up at nearby Best Buy stores.

The in-store pickup functionality increased traffic to Best Buy’s Web site by 44 percent.

While Best Buy is leveraging the local inventory ads, Google will be launching greater advertising capability by providing a wider range of inventory within its mobile ads.

Best mobile buys
Best Buy similarly enhanced the convenience factor for shopping on its application by allowing users to add items to their cart by simply holding an icon, reflecting how retailers are looking to drive conversion rates on mobile (see more).

The retailer also ramped up sales of classic horror films by celebrating Friday the 13th on Twitter, pairing the social media platform’s polling feature with a mobilized curated film list for easy purchase (see more).

“Mobile searches in-store have grown 30 percent in just the last year and increasingly those searches are leading to purchases,” Mr. Alferness said. “In fact 43 percent of shoppers at consumer electronic stores have purchased products on their phone while looking at the products on the shelf. So now our friends at best buy are using digital to drive visits to our stores.”