By Christine Kern, contributing writer
MCommerce growth is still far outpacing ecommerce and brick-and-mortar.
e-tailing group and Astound Commerce’s 2016 Mobile Research Report has found that retailers are taking a mobile-first approach to desktop and are adding value through supporting content. The study also found that, in terms of discretionary spending, mcommerce growth is still far outpacing ecommerce and brick-and-mortar.
As U.S. smartphone users comprise just under 64 percent of the population, with 2020 numbers anticipated to reach 72.2 percent, savvy retailers are moving to leverage the mcommerce space. And U.S. retail mcommerce sales are rising significantly when compared to overall retail ecommerce sales as the growth projected for 2016 will reach 33 percent (up from 265 percent in 2015) and forecasts as high as 43 percent of retail ecommerce sales. And while the channel is still in its infancy, mcommerce sales now represent almost half of retail ecommerce’s penetration. And in Q1 2016, mobile app visits to the retail category finally surpassed mobile web visits, while desktop visits saw a slight decline in growth.
Key findings of the report include:
- Retailers are Taking a Mobile-First Approach to Desktop: 80 percent of retailers understand the value expandable navigation has in reducing page clutter
- Retailers are Adding Value through Supporting Content: 44 percent of retailers surveyed offered guides or tips to go along with products.
- Flexible Payment is Key: 45 percent of consumers said access to alternative payment options is very important.
- Mobile device usage is multi-dimensional, where convenience and speed are core to the behavior. Faster transactions, email efficiency, and in-store usage are critical to consumers who value convenience over everything else.
The report brings together an analysis of the state of the mobile commerce industry, a 1000-person consumer survey, and a ranking of the mobile shopping experience across 50 leading retailer’s mobile sites.
To meet the standard for mcommerce offerings, the report suggests:
- Be proactive, taking a 1-brand approach to your business while maintaining consistency across all channels and ensuring customers can connect with your brand via an 800#, email contact form or email address
- Create a multi-dimensional merchandising strategy that includes a combination of merchandising and promotional tactics on the home page and throughout the site to drive visitors deeper
- Provide sophisticated search that allows customers to quickly find product with filters and sorts that give customers control, labeling products site-wide to capture shopper attention
- Present a retail locator that includes comprehensive information - geolocation, driving directions/maps, store hours, and clickable phone numbers to ensure your customers arrive at their destination ready to purchase
- Embrace inventory lookup and the ability to reserve and pick up products to efficiently connect customers to your stores
- Enhance product pages with comprehensive product information, relevant recommendations, product photos that can be enlarged/viewed from other angles, color change, and provide rich media along with meaningful ratings and reviews
- Explore the right level of supporting category content to embellish the experience, tapping into video for optimal engagement
- Enable cross-channel access to lists and carts to save shoppers time
- The checkout process should be convenient and streamlined with a minimal number of steps including choice of payment options and ‘buy with confidence’ builders along the journey
- Customer service should be readily available as a destination and smartly integrated, and customers should have all the information necessary to make an educated buying decision (shipping, return policy, etc.)
