The full force of m-commerce is yet to be felt, says Saima Alibhai, managing principal consultant at Oracle Bronto
“Change with the times, or the times will change you.”
These words have never been truer, when you consider the demise of High Street giant House of Fraser. Mobile devices, especially smartphones, are changing the game for retailers. Mobile is more than just the way emails render; it’s the primary way people consume information. According to a recent eMarketer study1, the average adult now spends 3 hours and 17 minutes viewing media on their phone, while their TV time has declined to 3 hours and 58 minutes per day.
What does this mean for commerce marketers? Has this trend toward mobile been overstated? How quickly are things changing? Let’s take a look at what the industry has seen and how you can prepare for what’s coming our way
Ecommerce is not only growing but also taking an increased percentage of total retail sales.
According to Statista2, UK 2018 ecommerce sales are expected to account for 18%of total retail sales. That’s an increase from 2017, during which ecommerce accounted for 16.9% of total retail sales.
When we look at mobile commerce, sales are expected to rise by 14.2% between 2017 and 2021 (eMarketer3).
Once again, we see not only strong overall growth but the increased contribution of mobile to online sales.
It’s time to get serious about mobile.
Experts predict that by 2021, mcommerce will make up more than 50% of total ecommerce sales. Today, optimising for mobile is considered important. But in only a few short years, failing to optimise will leave you officially behind the times.
Prepare for the mobile explosion by analysing where you need improvement.
Here are a few things commerce marketers should consider as mobile continues to grow:
- Are your checkout pages optimised for mobile? Are they integrated with mobile payment solutions such as Apple Pay? The days of filling out long forms on mobile devices, manually moving from one box to the next, are on their way out.
- Is your website completely mobile-friendly from search to checkout?
- Are your emails designed for mobile?
- Are your communications relevant? If emails, recommendations and search results are not relevant, consumers will simply move on.
The bottom line: According to Statista, the average mobile user checks their phone 150 times each day. They can do whatever they want, wherever they want, whenever they want. They can find any product they are looking for, regardless of where in the world it’s located. If you don’t provide a frictionless, relevant, up-to-date user experience, someone else will.
1 https://www.emarketer.com/Article/eMarketer-Updates-US-Time-Spent-with-Media-Figures/1016587
About Oracle Bronto
Oracle Bronto arms high-growth retailers with sophisticated marketing automation to maximise revenue opportunities. The Bronto Marketing Platform powers personalised multichannel content that generates the higher engagement needed for retail success. Keenly focused on the commerce marketer, Bronto continues its longstanding tradition as a leading email marketing provider to the global Internet Retailer Top 1000 and boasts a client roster of leading brands, including Euro Car Parts, notonthehighstreet.com, Oak Furniture Land and OKA.
For more information, visit bronto.com.
