Tag: mobile shopping

New report shows that online retail sales are growing due to mobile shopping

Mobile commerce is powering growth in online retail sales in the United Kingdom, according to a new report from IMRG and Capgemini. The report shows that online retailers are beginning to see a surge in mobile traffic and sales. Consumers are using their smartphones and tablets to do their shopping more regularly, which has lead to an increase in mobile commerce and has opened new opportunities for retailers to engage mobile consumers.

40% of online retail sales are coming from mobile devices

According to the report from IMRG and Capgemini, some 40% of online retail sales are being made through mobile devices, up from 37% that was reported in the previous quarter. Mobile spending is growing quickly, as more online retailers take steps to accommodate the needs of mobile consumers. The report notes that 25% of mobile commerce sales are completed through smartphones, while 75% of these sales are made through tablets.

Tablets are favored among mobile shoppers because they offer a more enjoyable shopping experience than smartphones

Tablet devices appear to be favored among mobile shoppers. This could have to do with the larger screens of tablets. A large screen allows for more control and is more aligned with the design features of mobile retail sites. This provides a more enjoyable shopping experience for consumers, many of whom have shown favor for mobile commerce because of its convenient nature. Retailers are taking steps to be more accommodating to smartphone users, some of whom have suggested that the shopping experience on some mobile sites is subpar.

Demand for in-store mobile commerce support is growing among consumers

While online sales are growing quickly because of mobile commerce, in-store mobile sales are lagging behind. Relatively few retailers support mobile payments at their physical locations, but this could change in the coming years. New services are making it possible for retailers to accept these payments in their stores, and demand for such support is growing quickly among consumers that are interested in mobile commerce.

The results of a PayPal study are suggesting that people are smartphone shopping trends are quite similar.

PayPal, the online payments giant, has released the results of a recent study on mobile commerce, which showed that the use of smartphones and tablets for shopping in Russia is almost popular as this trend in Europe.

The results of the study were put out in a PayPal press release which compared the mobile shopping trends.

According to the head of PayPal Russia, Vladimir Malyugin, “Russian internet users are no different from other consumers in the major e-commerce markets, and they are increasingly using [mobile devices] to purchase goods and make payments — it’s faster and more convenient.” The survey was conducted in conjunction with Ipsos, a market research service. It looked into the behaviors of 17,500 consumers throughout 22 different countries, in terms of their shopping behaviors. Among those respondents were 793 people who resided in Russia, as of October of last year.

The research found that mobile commerce was used by Russians for an average of 2.6 purchses per month.

In Western Europe, the average number of purchases per month was quite similar, at three. When it came to sales completed specifically by way of tablets, Western Europe was only just slightly ahead of Russia, at 2.4 sales per month, compared to 2.38 sales per month, respectively, said the report.

Furthermore, the users of mobile devices in Russia were willing to purchase a broader range of different types of product and service when using those gadgets. Among smartphone owners, 25 percent said that they would be willing to purchase something within a brick and mortar store through the use of their device. Another 22 percent said that they would be willing to make reservations, or that they would order a meal ahead of their arrival, through their smartphone.

As a part of the mobile commerce trend as a whole, using smartphones to complete payments transactions was also appealing to many Russians. In 2010, mobile payments represented only 1 percent of the full e-commerce market in the country, whereas last year, that figure had made it to 20 percent, said the report.