Recognizing that smartphones are becoming the go-to device for making shopping lists and finding deals, Target recently beefed up shopping list features in its mobile application with a bigger focus on deals and offers.

The mass merchant updated its iPhone application with the new features last week as a follow-up to the app’s relaunch last fall, when lists were featured prominently. The latest update includes the ability to add Cartwheel offers directly from a list in the Target app.

“Target continues to update our app with new features and enhancements that we believe guests will love,” said Eddie Baeb, a spokesman for Target, Minneapolis, MN. “We recently added a deal finder to lists, which denotes items that are on sale in your store.

“Additionally, guests who use Target’s new digital savings app, Cartwheel, can now add Cartwheel offers directly from their list in the Target app,” he said. “Guests can also access product information — including descriptions, guest reviews and ratings — and add items to their cart for shipping or store pickup directly from the app’s shopping list.

“These updates make it even easier for guests to shop from their lists within the Target app.”

Shopping apps
The Target app update reflects how consumers are engaging with their smartphones for shopping, as searching for a coupon and making lists are two of the most popular activities.

According to a report from Gannett divisions G/O Digital and Key Ring that was released last summer, prior to visiting a store, smartphones are appreciated for their list-making capabilities, with 89.3 percent of respondents saying that their smartphone is the most convenient device for making a shopping list prior to visiting a physical retail store. In comparison, only 6.1 percent prefer to use their tablets and 4.7 percent their computers.

Additionally, 22 percent of mobile shoppers said they always create a shopping list before they shop and 39 percent said they often do so.

Other key findings include that 35.86 percent use their smartphones to search for a coupon and 10.32 to browse deals and sales.

The update helps meet the needs of Target customers by enabling users to add view relevant Cartwheel offers and store promotions for items on their shopping list in the Target app.

Cartwheel is Target’s offers and deals app that was launched in the spring of 2013 and surpassed 7 million users a year later (see story).

Interactive store map
App users can now also locate items on their shopping list faster by being able to see aisle locations and the view an interactive store map from the list.

Additionally, users can now tap on an item title to access product information, ratings and reviews directly from their list.

Items on a list can also be added to the cart so they can shipped to a user’s home or be ready for pick up at a store.

“We know lists play an important role in a guest’s shopping journey,” Mr. Baeb said. “When Target relaunched our iPhone app last fall, we featured lists prominently to make it as easy as possible for guests to build and manage their shopping lists at Target.

“Items can now be added quickly with type-ahead functionality or via the built-in barcode scanner,” he said. “And when guests are in a Target store, they can now use in-store maps directly from the list view to quickly locate an item.”

Final Take
Chantal Tode is senior editor on Mobile Commerce Daily, New York