Tag: smartphone shopping

IBM report shows that mobile traffic and shopping is on the rise in the US

Mobile now accounts for nearly half of all online retail traffic in the United States, according to the latest IBM Digital Analytics Benchmark. The report highlights the growing importance of the mobile space and how it is having a major impact on commerce in the digital world. The report makes note of the mobile commerce activity on Valentine’s Day, showcasing an increase in mobile shopping over what was recorded on the same day in the previous year.

Mobile traffic accounts for nearly half of all online retail traffic this year

According to the report, online shopping, as a whole, grew by 10% on Valentine’s Day. This may be due to numerous factors, including cold weather and powerful storms in some parts of the country. The report shows that mobile traffic accounted for 46.5% of all online traffic, highlighting the fact that many consumers are now using their smartphones and tablets to shop online. Higher traffic does not represent more sales, however.

Mobile commerce still represents a small portion of digital sales when compared to PC

The report shows that mobile commerce represented 23% of all online sales, which is a 35% increase over mobile commerce sales last year. Mobile still represents a relatively small portion of online retail sales, however, as sales made from PCs remain the most significant force in online retail. The report shows that tablet users typically spent more than their smartphone counterparts. Tablet users spend an average of $98.56 per order, whereas smartphone users spent an average of $92.37 per order.

Mobile commerce continues to thrive because of its convenient nature

While PC still dominates the online retail space, mobile commerce is beginning to become a more prominent force. Many consumers are opting to shop for and purchase products from their mobile devices because of how convenient such a practice is. In the coming years, it is likely to become more common for consumers to participate in mobile commerce, especially during the holidays, when they want to avoid crowds and enjoy a convenient shopping experience.

Gartner has recently released a prediction that says that revenue will be driven by smartphone based behavior.

The Gartner research firm has released a forecast that stated that by 2017, the engagement behaviors of smartphone users will have a powerful impact on mobile commerce revenue, sending it to reach 50 percent of the online shopping incomes generated in the United States.

This is an important and significant growth, considering that the current figure is 22 percent.

According to Gartner research director, Jennifer Polk, “Some sectors will migrate more quickly than others to accepting mobile payments and promoting mobile commerce.” She also went on to provide the example to illustrate her point, saying that big-box stores might not need to move as rapidly as stores in other industries, since they can still fall back on their in-store experience, which remains “a critical part of their value proposition and the customer experience, making digital and mobile commerce a smaller portion of their overall revenue.”

Certain industries must clearly work harder to focus on mobile commerce than others.

That said, Polk added that new standards for credit cards will lead to a liability shift when it comes to cases of fraud, this year. This will make it important for retailers to adapt their point of sale systems for credit card transactions that are more secure. “This opens the door for point-of-updates to also accept mobile payment,” said Polk.

Gartner explained that marketers with mobile commerce and digital shopping initiatives must concentrate on building cross-functional teams, such as in sales, IT, legal, and customer support. This will make it possible to form a seamless experience throughout the length of the purchasing process in addition to the relationships with customers that can develop following a sale.

The Gartner statement expressed that if mobile marketing teams look into ways to better leverage wallet apps with a focus on revitalizing the interest that consumers have in mobile commerce as well as smartphone based payment transactions. Furthermore, the research firm said that by the close of next year, over $2 billion in e-shopping will have been generated only over smartphones or tablets.