In a new piece of research Portaltech Reply conducted with Research partner, eDigitalResearch, 50% of Smartphone owners have now completed some sort of purchase on their mobile, increasing by 20% over just nine short months, with 11% of Smartphone shoppers now using the device to make a purchase on a weekly basis.
The study also shows that Smartphone owners are increasingly using their phones to shop, browse and research for products via their phones. Over one quarter (28%) of users now use their Smartphone to find product information on a regular basis and remains one of the most popular shopping activities to complete on a phone.
The study looked at the increasing role of mobile in retail commerce and surveyed both Smartphone and non-Smartphone users. The results clearly show the continuing shift in consumer behaviour as more and more shoppers are adapting to new technologies, browsing, shopping and interacting with brands on the move.
The results clearly indicate the growing trend that Smartphones are being used more and more as an essential lifestyle accessory, with almost a 15% rise in the number of consumers interacting with mobile applications on a daily basis.
The results also show that consumers expectations of mobile websites have dramatically increased since the first research results last year; 31% of users now say that quick browsing should be an essential feature of mobile websites, compared with just 20% who said the same last June. Other significant factors that people see as essential include security, fast loading images, zoom functions and a professional looking site, reaffirming that consumers expect to find the same coherent retail message across channels.
Smartphone users who said that they never shopped online reduced from 70% last June to 49%, echoing the overall trend of growing consumer acceptance of mCommerce. Similarly, Smartphone owners who said that they expected to browse and purchase more on their phones in the next 12 months more than doubled from 20% to 46% and firmly establishes the importance for retailers to continue to develop and invest in mobile.