Mobile commerce broke numerous records during the 2012 holiday shopping season and is well positioned for a repeat performance this year, thanks to the growing number of consumers who own a smartphone as well as increasingly sophisticated mobile retail strategies.
“Right now, we are seeing 17.7 percent in terms of percent of transactions coming from the mobile device,” said Dave Haucke a strategist at IBM Enterprise Marketing, Armonk, NY.
“Mobile E-commerce is going to continue to grow this holiday season in terms of the transaction channel. That is good news, but it also means that it raises the stakes in terms of that customer experience because we are starting to see an increase in bounce rates and a decrease in time on site and page visits.”
As consumers become more comfortable with their smartphones, their expectations grow and they become less tolerant of bad experiences.
This means that not only do retailers have to have a mobile site and application, but they need to make sure that the experience is truly optimized for mobile from start to finish. Additionally, mobile is helping to drive the trend toward earlier promotions as users begin their product research via their smartphones when they have a few minutes to spare. The Baynote report found that 30 percent of retailers will begin promotions prior to Oct. 1, while over 40 percent wait until early November.
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