This may be the first true mobile holiday shopping season. While we've already examined some of the trends leading into the biggest season of the year for retailers, as the holiday season quickly approaches many have begun to examine just how big of an influence the mobile device will have on retail purchases. According to most projections, it's going to make a major difference. 

A Deloitte study revealed that at least 58 percent of shoppers will use their mobile device to help them make purchases this holiday season. Uses vary, ranging from using a phone to find a particular store location or item to scanning and comparing prices, making purchases from mobile eCommerce sites and using the phone to pay at a POS system with NFC technology. The results ultimately point to one prominent trend — consumers are using their mobile devices to facilitate all kinds of purchases, whether they are in person or online.

An article in Mobile Commerce Press addressed this issue.

"This means that it is important for brick and mortar shops to focus on mobile commerce not as its competition, but as a complement to its own ability to make a sale," the article says. "Smartphones and tablets are set to play a very important role in the complete process of both shopping and decision making. Consumers will use their devices regardless of the fact that they will still go to stores in order to buy what they want."

The retail market is always competitive, and those that can't capitalize on the latest trends, particularly during the incredibly important holiday shopping season, will find themselves falling behind the competition. Working with merchant service providers will allow retailers to obtain the tools they need to successfully accept and manage all forms of mobile commerce this season.