Looking back now, I find it difficult to comprehend life without a smartphone and eCommerce without mobile shopping. In just a short amount of time, online shopping changed the retail environment forever and then, not long after that, mobile browsing changed it yet again.
There’s an incredible little documentary by 60 Minutes on YouTube, which follows Amazon founder Jeff Bezos around his burgeoning business in 1999. One scene focuses on Jeff explaining how to shop on the website using a desktop computer – which by modern standards looks like it should be on display in a museum of technology.
I can remember 1999. It wasn’t that long ago, honest. Yet the online retail landscape has changed so much in a relatively small amount of time. From the primitive days of Amazon 20 years ago, to today, where I can buy something from a different country within minutes while on a train, all thanks to my phone and mobile data.
I believe online retailers who focus on the mobile experience are set to flourish even further in the coming years. I’m sure many of you already know that mobile is important. There’s a good chance many of you have seen from articles, and even your own analytics, that page views from mobile have increased over the recent past. But there’s no room for complacency. In fact, you could argue that we are still at the beginning of a wider, more expansive, trend.
While it is predicted that by 2021, online sales will have grown from $1.3 billion to $4.8 billion, proving the potential for continued growth, it’s the shopping experience on smartphones that is worth keeping a very close eye on.
Did you know that 55% of all time spent on eCommerce websites is now done via mobile devices? The potential is huge, but recent research by Rigor also highlights a fickleness to the mobile shopper, with abandoned basket rates up to 27% higher than desktop users and a negative mobile experience leading 43% of users to a rival website instead.
This suggests to me that there is still work to be done for a lot of mobile website retailers.
If you visit ASOS’s website on your mobile, you will find quick loading times, easy filtering options, smooth animations and luxurious imagery. The smooth user experience is a clear differentiator over and above similar eCommerce fashion websites. So often we think of the price, product design and availability – and I’m sure ASOS has too – but it is clear to me that there’s been a concerted effort to make their website mould around mobile visitors’ wants and needs.
This study by the Baymard Institute ranks eCommerce websites across every facet, including on-site search, product pages and mobile eCommerce. Interestingly, although a huge amount of investment and innovation has taken place, there’s always room for improvement – very few websites receive a glowing report for the mobile criteria. As mobile visitors increase over the coming years, this will continue to be a key priority.
I believe that reducing friction is crucial to mobile success. Lower loading times, easy to navigate menus, relevant search results, and quick and flexible payment options are all key to this. Services such as our Buy Now Pay Later offering can help reduce barriers to entry and could assist in ingratiating new customers.
In fact, eCommerce sites which implemented Laybuy have seen order values rise by 60%, online & in-store conversion rates increase by 50%, and new customer acquisitions rise by 30% – plus we assume all non-payment and fraud risks.
As the battle for the busy, on the go, mobile customer continues to heat up, being innovative online will become more of a USP than ever before. I for one cannot wait to see where this competition will lead us and I know for sure that so long as smartphones dominate our daily lives, eCommerce departments will continue to push the boundaries of technology. We live in exciting times.
Get in touch today to find out more and see how we can help your mobile customers.