Mobile commerce is rapidly increasing in popularity. 56% of Americans own some form of a smartphone (Pew Research Center) and 35% 
own a tablet (ZDNet). Of these owners, 63% use their smartphone to shop while 37% use their tablet (mashable.com). By not tapping into this growing market, you are losing valuable customers. If you have already implemented mobile commerce, is your site up to what consumers expect? This blog will inform you how customers are using mobile commerce and how you can effectively cater to this market.
“According to a study, 57 percent of shoppers use their mobile devices to search for information while out shopping”(insidemobileapps.com). Based on this statistic, it is important that you implement either a mobile app or have your website be mobile-compliant/responsive so you can provide these potential customers with the information they need before making a purchase. In fact, of the 57% of mobile shopper, 63% use it to compare prices (insidemobileapps.com). Stay ahead of your competitors by offering exclusive deals to mobile users to make your pricing more attractive. Also, include important product details and images so that your potential clients will have all of the information they need in the palm of their hands.
It is crucial that your mobile site have a simple check out process. The fewer clicks customers have to make, the better. Having an “Add to Cart” button in your search results eliminates the need for a customer to click on the item and then add it to the cart. Including multiple checkout buttons, on both the top and bottom of the screen, eliminates the need for users to keep scrolling up and down to make a purchase. Enabling a ‘Guest Checkout’ option will be favorable for customers trying to make a quick purchase. Although it is good to have customers register with your website so you can create a customer database, customers do not like to be forces to register. Offering a guest checkout simplifies the checkout process and who knows, the pleasant experience could be enough for that customer to register when they return.
By playing into the desires of your market, you will increase your conversion rate. Often times if a mobile site is not optimized or the checkout process is too long, potential clients will simply abandon their shopping carts. Mobile sales are expected to surpass $25 billion by the end of the year (mashable.com), so if you are not making the most of mobile commerce, you’re losing out on sales with potentially big payoffs. Socialmediatoday.com found that mobile customers spend an extra 10% compared to all other customers. By neglecting to implement or optimize your mobile site, you are missing out on customers who spend more than average.
