The shopping habits and desires of mobile-empowered consumers, or m-commerce, are an emerging group who are narrowly focusing and hunting down what they want from the billions of choices out there. Anyone who has seen an episode of Extreme Couponing will attest to that.
A recent survey of 1,500 US adults at the 2011 Internet Retailer Conference & Exhibition revealed mobile shoppers’ most common purchases broken down by percentage:
- 16% bought apparel
- 15% bought food and beverages
- 11% bought toys and games
- 8% bought home goods
- 4% bought sporting goods
- 3% bought jewelery
- 8% bought all other products
M-commerce shoppers also tend to spend less time perusing websites or apps and more time hunting for a specific product. Here are a few ways m-commerce consumers can hunt better and help their fellow man focus on the best mobile shopping opportunities:
- Since a smartphone’s screen size is smaller, shoppers focus on the task at hand and not lose attention to the numerous websites available for surfing.
- Browsing for price comparisons while in a store is an effective tool for m-commerce customers.
- Mobile shoppers also tend to use social media to share experiences and direct friends to certain links and mobile marketing promotions.
- Location-based services creates awareness of in-store opportunities immediately available.
According to Deloitte’s 2011 Annual Holiday Survey, more than a third of 2011 mobile consumers also enjoyed the benefits of social media – using the technology to share their buying experiences with their friends and to gain tips for their own future purchases. Consumers in large numbers used their mobile devices to find store locations (67%), compare prices (59%) and more than half (51%) researched product information.
To learn more about mobile trends impacting the retail industry, download our free report, Beyond the Crystal Ball: Forecasting Mobile’s Impact on the Retail Industry in 2012.
