Groupon is fueling engagement with its iOS mobile application by incorporating 3D Touch to further highlight daily deals and offer more user interaction.

The online coupon marketplace is introducing several new app improvements as it gears up to maximize sales in 2016’s first quarter. The recent addition of 3D Touch in its iPhone app underscores the growing demand for this functionality, which has already been adopted by many top food and beverage brands.

“Groupon’s mission is to help our customers discover amazing local merchants and unforgettable experiences at great prices,” said Devdatta Gangal, product lead of iPhone Apps at Groupon. “3D Touch is a fun way to interact with the app and get faster access to amazing things to eat, see, do and buy in your neighborhood.”

Entering new dimensions
Consumers with iPhone 6 and 6s Plus devices will now be able to enjoy a multidimensional experience when browsing through the limited-time deals offered on Groupon. The marketplace provides exclusive offers from a variety of sectors, including food and beverage, specialty retail and travel, which can be filtered based on region.

IOS users can leverage the new 3D Touch feature to peek at specific deals’ details with a hard touch, and make the page pop out if the deal interests them.

This functionality is likely to drive more impulse purchases, as consumers will be able to view snippets of offers more easily. A streamlined browsing process, followed by an optimized checkout, can certainly result in an uptick of sales.

“Mobile apps that have in-app purchases would love nothing more than to give their users a quicker, more seamless way to purchase in the app,” said Hung Truong, product strategist at Appster. “By implementing the 3D Touch peek and pop feature, developers can now let users peek at items or pop suggestions and buy them immediately rather than the user needing to go through a few more screens to get to the store.

“It would be very similar to how Amazon created the one-click ordering button to cut the buying process time.”

A plethora of other marketers have begun realizing the power of in-app 3D Touch, especially when used to ramp up commerce.

3D Touch is shaping up to be the next big tool in mobile commerce now that Starbucks has launched an update using the peek and pop features for paying, ordering, reloading cards and store location (see story).

Quick service restaurant chain Chick-fil-A is also modernizing its app in an attempt to stay competitive in the crowded mobile-ordering field by integrating 3D Touch (see story).

Groupon’s mobile focus
Additional iOS updates include an enhanced experience for users who deep-link their daily Groupon email to the app. Offering mobile-optimized email reminders of limited-time promotions is a strategy that has worked remarkably well for Groupon, which lends credence to its decision to tap deep-linking functions.

The coupon service has also forayed into the hot sector of mobile ordering, proving its dedication to compete with the likes of Seamless and GrubHub.

Over the summer, Groupon acquired on-demand mobile ordering and delivery platform OrderUp as local commerce marketplaces competed to grab a slice of revenue from food enthusiasts’ smartphones and wallets (see story).

Apple Watch owners may access Groupon’s exclusive deals on their wearables as well, thanks to the marketplace’s decision to roll out a proximity-based app that targets consumers with relevant deals in their vicinity.

Groupon also increased engagement on social media over the holiday season by teasing a Starbucks treat on Twitter, advising followers to continue checking its feed for a gift.

“I believe app developers are studying all the data points to see what is the best way to include 3D Touch to create the best user experience while increasing revenue,” Mr. Truong said. “When the iPhone screen got larger with the 6 [model], it took almost a year for developers to update their app to fully fit.

“Same goes when they released Touch ID. So I expect the same with 3D Touch in mobile apps.”