Research conducted by Mobiquity found that if a retailer’s site and app does not meet consumers’ expectations if could affect their brick-and-mortar business.
The Mobile Shopping Satisfaction Report, which surveyed 1,000 smartphone and tablet users about their mobile shopping experience in the last six months, found that the retailers who delivered the “most satisfying mobile shopping experience” besides the top three were Target, Wal-Mart, CVS, Sears, Lowe’s and Macy’s.
But half of those surveyed, the report found, “complained that smartphone apps were too slow and 67% said that tablet apps were also too slow.”
According to the report, 41% of smartphone owners and 43% of tablet owners claimed that they would be less likely to shop at a store if they had a poor experience using the company’s mobile app or mobile friendly website.
Of those who cited “unsatisfactory experiences” in the survey said the main reason was due to slow loading and poor checkout functions on apps and mobile websites. Thirty-five percent said it was “problematic” on smartphone mobile sites and 39% said the same for tablet use, the report said.
Retailers should look into how effective their checkout process is on tablets since more than half (57%) said the “checkout process was complicated or did not work at all,” according to the report.
While Apple, Best Buy and Kohl’s scored the highest “for delivering satisfying mobile shopping experiences,” Wal-Mart was the most browsed and shopped retailer by consumers using mobile devices, according to the report. In fact, 23% said they used their smartphones to make a purchase from Wal-Mart, while 24% percent used their tablets.
Coming in second and third was Target and Best Buy for smartphone shopping, while Best Buy and Apple ranked second and third for tablet purchasing, according to the report.
Even though a majority of tablet and smartphone users said they browsed retailer’s sites through the perspective devices, it’s a mixed bag in terms of where they actually end up making their purchase. “Today’s consumer has multiple paths to purchase and their mobile shopping experiences not only drive revenue through mobile channels, but also influence in-store and online sales,” said Andrew Hiser, Chief Creative Officer at Mobiquity a press release.
“It is the retailer’s prerogative to build seamless and consistent offline, online and mobile shopping experiences, so that wherever and however the customer chooses to shop, it is a positive experience,” Hiser said in the release.
According to the report, after browsing a retailer’s site with a tablet, 33% made the actual purchase using that device, 27% purchased in store, 21% purchased on a smartphone and 19% purchased online via computer.
Of the 41% of those who purchased via their mobile devices after browsing in-store, 31% cited cheaper prices as their motivation, 19% said the product was not in-stock and 13% said because lines at checkout was too long.
Hiser said in the release, “Because so much of customer loyalty is tied to the brand experience, it’s key—especially during the holiday season where so much attention is being paid to mobile commerce—that retailers deliver the best possible mobile shopping experience and ensure the sale.”
Erin Lynch is the associate editor at Multichannel Merchant. Erin can be reached by emailing her at [email protected]. You can also follow her on Twitter at @LynchMCM or on LinkedIn.