Mobile commerce’s got a new tech – it’s called deep linking. That’s right. All of us know that using smartphone applications is not the same as say, using Web apps. For starters, mobile apps do not link to each other.Which means you do always need to exit an app to use another.
This New York, US-based mobile app Button’s trying to change all that buy introducing a method called “deeplink commerce”. Button says it’s technology platform “extends mobile experiences across the app economy utilizing valuable connections enabled by intelligent deep linking.”
When you use Button, you can book a restaurant as well as movie tickets from 1 window (app) on your smartphone. Button enables “smart” connections between the apps to drive installs, increase user engagement, & thus, facilitate mobile commerce. It’s like the “mother of all apps”.
Though Button has been around from last year, it hit the headlines in January this year when it raised US $12 million in Series A funding after engaging in partnerships with Resy and taxi service Uber, a tie up that allowed customers to choose a restaurant with the former & get there too. The bookings for both could be done from 1 stop. Earlier this week, Button announced it had created a link between Uber & local search & discovery app Foursquare, again, at the touch of a single button. Suddenly, the mobile world has woken up to the potential of deep linking.
Image Credit: ButtonCEO Michael Jaconi told New York Post in an interview of how apps were all over the place, & that they simply wanted to connect & integrate with each other.
So essentially, deeplink commerce extends rich functionality beyond the single app silo into a network of complementary apps. That single app for now is Button.
But unlike our day-to-day apps, using Button is slightly different. It’s not just – download & start using. For starters, each app has to be geared for Button. Developers who want to get started, can integrate the Button SDK (a matter of minutes) by following Button’s ‘DeepLink Commerce Integration Guide’, for iOS & Android.
Apps can connect to the Button network of complementary commerce apps in order to enable rich cross-app functionality, increase user engagement as well as attract new users. Developers have the option of build app connections with their own partners, or tapping into the existing Button network of partners.
For end-users, they can seamlessly connect between apps or services, & enjoy the mobile commerce opportunities in a better & of course, faster manner.
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