Converting mobile perusal to purchases continue to challenge retailers and e-commerce. A new report released by Bronto Software, a Netsuite company that offers cloud-based commerce automation platforms, analyzed consumer behavior in Australia, the U.K. and the U.S. in order to capture an accurate portrayal of how mobile devices — smartphones, tablets, laptop, desktop and wearables — are being implanted in spending habits.
The survey found that Australians lead the charge in smartphone ownership — but they are the least likely to make a purchase on the device.
Smartphones were the most popular device across regions; with the exception of the U.S. where 75 percent owned smartphones (however, 80 percent of them owned laptops). Australians led the charge of smartphone ownership, 88 percent of those surveyed owned one while 82 percent of the U.K. participants owned smartphones.
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Mobile device usage has proven to be an ongoing obstacle for retailers and brands to address. “Consumers in all countries own an average of three, or nearly three, of the five devices in the survey, but they do not use them all for online purchases,” the report said. Analyzing specific geo-patterns of habits will likely help break down key challenges — and where to invest in tapping local social influencers.
The opportunity already exists in these cases — consumers in each of the locations are already active on their mobile devices. “Eighty-eight percent of [Australian] adults own a smartphone, but only 30 percent have made a purchase using it. Contrast this with the U.S. where 75 percent of adults own the device and 38 percent have used it to purchase and the U.K. where 82 percent own the device and 30 percent have used it for purchasing,” said researchers in the report.
Failing big might work here. Concerted efforts to play within the space consumers spend time such as tapping local social influencers — bigger isn’t always better here — or local loyalty initiatives will resonate well. The report said, “Commerce marketers must ensure that the shopping and purchasing experience for their brand is appropriate for their target audience, both in terms of demographics and preferred device(s).”
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