Will Mobile Apps Transform The Way We Shop On Ecommerce Websites?
We’re in the midst of a shopping revolution, as more and more people increasingly choose to shop from home and their phones over visiting crowded physical stores. mCommerce has played a big role in this shift. According to an eMarketer report, sales through phones were a paltry $56 billion in 2014 – about 19% of eCommerce sales. This figure will shoot up to a staggering $2.4 trillion by 2020, at which point sales originating from handheld devices will be 41% of all eCommerce sales.
From Web to Mobile - The Revolution Is Here
It’s a known fact that 30% of customers will abandon a transaction on a website if the experience isn’t optimised for smartphones. Also, 57% of all customers won’t recommend an online store to their friends if it doesn’t have a well-made mobile website or an app. Customers want to be able to browse their favourite brands during their free time when they are on-the-go. This preference has triggered the advent of responsive design (making websites compatible with small-screen browsers) and mobile apps.
Mobile Apps Vs Websites: What’s Winning?
The statistics speak for themselves - customers prefer apps in general. According to a recent survey done, users spend 286% more time browsing on an app than on a mobile-friendly site.
Here are some reasons why buyers prefer apps:
• Can Be Accessed On-The-Go: The biggest advantage of a smartphone application is that it can be accessed when a customer is travelling. ‘Offline’ modes also allow them to be used when there’s no net coverage.
• Faster Transactions: It only takes a couple of taps, at the most, to carry out transactions. The process is also optimised for small-screen devices.
• Personalised Experience: It’s easier for brands to gather analytical data about buyers. That allows them to offer a more personalised experience to shoppers.
• Faster Loading: Apps load much faster than a responsive site ever could. Web pages get sluggish, especially if there are a lot of products to be displayed on a page.
Mobile Apps Are the Future
With the shift in user behavior clearly tipping the scales in favor of mobile apps, it is expected that an increasing number of online retailers will adopt the ‘mobile-first’ strategy – and more importantly, the focus will be on making the strategy, an app-driven one.
For an eCommerce business, there has never been a better time to build an app. Openwave’s experienced app development team can build custom applications with outstanding features and design that will drive lead generation and sales.
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