Mobile commerce continues to grow at a rapid pace and retailers have been tasked with figuring out exactly what the ever-evolving consumer wants. The idea is to provide better, integrated retail solutions to a consumer who flits seamlessly between mediums, the preferred medium of late being the smartphone.
The seventh annual Mobile Research Survey released by the e-tailing group, an Astound Commerce company, conducted a three-pronged study on m-commerce, which provides an analysis of the current state of mobile commerce in the retail industry.
The study also results a 1000-person consumer survey on mobile experiences to understand where retailers are meeting expectations, where they’re falling short and how to improve the mobile shopping experience.
The report gives an in-depth review and ranking of the mobile shopping experience via an evaluation of 50 top retailers.
According to the report, retailers in general are implementing a mobile first approach as far as their e-commerce sites go, and merchandising standards for the industry are beginning to emerge.
What’s more, the report says that the Omnichannel experience is becoming more connected and integrated to meet customer expectations.
Analysis found retailers have improved the mobile shopping experience in the following key areas:
- Cross-Channel Growth: 94 per cent of retailers offer the ability to save items from a mobile commerce site into another e-commerce experience. This is a direct response to the 75 per cent of consumers who feel Omnichannel capabilities are important.
- Omnichannel Transparency: 83 per cent of retailers offer in-store product locators, which reflects the nearly 50 per cent of customers who place value on this feature.
To identify the retailers providing the best mobile experiences in the industry, retailers were evaluated across 180 metrics and six top tasks consumers are likely to perform via mobile. They were also reviewed on the overall usability of the mobile experience on the home page, search results, product and shopping cart pages. The top performing retailers (listed alphabetically) are:
- Store-Based Retailers: Best Buy, Coach, L.L. Bean, REI, and Walmart
- Non-Store Retailers: Clarins, eBags, and QVC
The study also found that shoppers have become accustomed to the power of their phones to simplify their lives. Shopping is part of their smartphone vernacular and a majority of mobile users spend at least 10 hours per week in shopping mode.
Read the full report here
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