Accenture research: 4 in 10 consumers make purchases from mobile devices

According to new research from Accenture Consulting, retailers aren’t meeting consumer demand for improved convenience when shopping on their mobile devices. The Accenture Adaptive Retail report, which is based on surveys of 10,000+ consumers in 13 countries, highlights a growing need for mCommerce retailers to improve the user experience on mobile.

The number of people shopping on their smartphones whilst on the go increased from 36% in 2014 to 40% in 2015. An additional 27% said they expect to shop more on mobile this year. However, only 58% of retailers are adapted to the challenge and provide smartphone apps with mShopping capabilities.

The amount of mobile shoppers on the go is rising

Source: accenture.com

It comes as no surprise then that shoppers are demanding more services for their mobile phones whilst using them to shop. 47% of respondents said they would like to receive real-time promotions. However, only 7% of retailers currently feature this function. 42% also would appreciate the ability to auto-credit coupons and discounts, but right now a mere 16% of retailers can do so. 37% expressed a need for integrated shopping lists and the ordering of out of stock items. It seems retailers are aware as a larger percentage of them have already implemented these functions.

Services which shoppers would like to see on mobile

Source: accenture.com

mCommerce features that used to be ‘nice’ to have are now fast becoming ‘must-haves’. In 2015, 27% of mobile shoppers thought stock checks to be an improvement to their experience. In 2016, this number has drastically grown to almost half of all mobile shoppers. However, retailers aren’t prepared as only 28% of them provide such information. The ability to order out of stock items is also growing fast on consumers’ wish lists of mStore capabilities.

Nice-to-haves are becoming must-haves

Source: accenture.com

Patricia Walker, Senior Managing Director, Accenture, explains:

“Retailers must make every effort to improve their mobile commerce capabilities and keep up with consumers expectations. To be an adaptive retailer, the experience needs to be seamless experience for consumers who expect mobile devices to ease the shopping experience, both online and in-store.”

mCommerce retailers have been busy customising their websites for smartphones (93%) as well as tablets (89%). However, just 58% offer smartphone apps with purchase capabilities.

Over half of shoppers were generally happy with overall interaction of sales staff, delivery options as well as return policies, but there’s room for improvement. Just 1% of retailers allow sales staff tablets to more easily access customer history and just 3% offer additional sales staff time for customers. Same day delivery options are fast growing in demand, as UK retailers Argos and Amazon have expanded their options, but just 11% offer this feature.

Room for improvement

Source: accenture.com

Trust seems to be an issue of growing (not lessening) concern. This year, 57% of shoppers are concerned their personal information could be stolen, compared to 49% in 2015. Retailers need to ensure they offer methods to safeguard a shopper’s personal details.

Trust is an issue of growing concern

Source: accenture.com

Walker adds:

“This year’s survey confirms that retailers have begun to adapt to the evolving needs of their customers. However, the challenge they face is investing in building the important digital elements of their channel strategy while remaining focused on driving profits which in many cases is still primarily driven by stores. Retailers need to understand however, that they are actually involved in a race that will likely accelerate as consumers continually seek more value, greater convenience, and better customer experience across all channels.”

Mobile shoppers are somewhat torn between retailer features they consider to be ‘cool’ versus ‘creepy’. A majority (75%) agrees that it would be a bonus for items in their shopping carts to be automatically discounted for loyalty points and discounts. Another 55% prefer mobile-optimised sites and 56% would like to receive personal offers sent to them based on their search history. However, 37% would find it ‘creepy’ to view a friends Facebook comment on a product they are interested in. A majority of 41% also believes that sales associates who are able to view their online wishlists or baskets are ‘creepy’.

Shoppers want retailers to improve customer experience without invading their privacy

Source: accenture.com

According to retailer benchmarks by Accenture, a growing number of them are preparing for the mobile shopping revolution. 27% now have loyalty programmes, whilst 21% allow shoppers to create profiles of dis/likes. 41% of retailers enable shoppers to specify marketing preferences and 10% try to collect personal information such as names and email addresses. A majority of 88% allow shoppers access to Facebook through their website.

When it comes to sites that have the most significant impact on consumers’ lifestyles, Google (57%) and Facebook (41%) rank top. However, this varies geographically. In the US, Amazon is a top influencer (59%), whilst Google scores highest in UK, France and Japan. Chinese consumers are relying on Weibo (74%) and Alibaba (72%) predominantly.

Major consumer lifestyle influencers

Source: accenture.com

The study concludes:

This year’s survey confirms that while retailers have begun to adapt to the evolving needs of their customers, they are actually involved in a race that will likely accelerate in the future as consumers continually seek more value, greater convenience, and better customer experience. As the digital elements of the retailer’s channel strategy become more important, companies need to step up the pace at which they adapt these channels to customer demands.

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