Smartphones and apps have permeated every aspect of business. But before you invest in mobile technology, make sure you understand what your customers want from mobile, says Senthil Arumugam, vice president of distribution, US LBM Holdings LLC in Making the Case for Mobile.

“Our app user base has continually grown over the last three years, and customers have clearly indicated this to be a time saver for them at the jobsite," Arumugam said. "Our investment in customer-facing technologies reflects this belief.”

While not every company needs to invest in mobile apps and other tools that help customers do their jobs away from the office, it is critical to know if mobile is something your customers want.

MRO or safety products, for example, lend themselves to mobile because they can be set up with one-click reordering. Even if ordering remains low, customers who know they can navigate to a mobile-friendly platform for other services will be less likely to start browsing elsewhere.

While a mobile app might not work for every distributor, gauging your customers’ demand for it is critical to keeping pace. According to a Google study, 52 percent of users are less likely to engage with a company if it has no mobile site. Does that include your customers?

Read more about how to make mobile work for you in Making the Case for Mobile.