The rate of adoption of smartphones around the world has put mobiles at the top of the retail agenda. Shoppers use their phones more than any other device to visit a digital commerce site. Smartphones claimed 45.1 per cent of web-shopping traffic as against the 45 per cent traffic absorbed by computers during the first quarter of this year, stated a study by Demandware. The study also suggests that the percentage of web traffic would increase in the favor of smartphones to a projected percentage of 60 per cent by end of the year.
Retailers have been grateful to the increase in the shift of web traffic from personal computers to smartphones as it helps them better connect with their customers and the study claims that mobile-checkout completion is 11 per cent lower than the combined rate from all other devices. Mobile shopping gives retailers insights to tap potential customers and data analytics. Users prefer quick and seamless ease of transactions and smartphones help them browse and shop while on the go.
“If they can get it right on mobile today and tomorrow, that’s where they’re going to see a lot of value going forward,” said Rick Kenney, author of the study and head of consumer insights for Demandware. He also said that online shopping will soon move into a “mobile only” space.
The key metrics used to analyse the report was order, basket and visit share, checkout starts and completes, site search usage and device model performance.