M-commerce. Motivations & Barriers.

Lately I have given quite a lot of focus on the mobile commerce industry. And it is definitely worthwhile since m-commerce is gaining momentum and soon it will become very common. If the estimates stating that mobile commerce will grow 300% faster than its traditional counterpart are correct, then the future will become a reality much faster than we think.

Very recently the Interactive Advertising Bureau (IAB) has released a research analyzing the mobile commerce industry. Their findings pretty much summarize and confirm my previous insights and writings. However, I would like to take a look at the motivations and satisfactions behind the mobile shopper. Basically, what drives and influences one’s behavior, and what is holding one back from buying more on a mobile device.

8/10 of mobile buyers are satisfied with their m-purchase experience.

6/10 of mobile buyers plan to purchase more products or services via their mobile device in the next 6 months.

So, what drives these numbers? 49% of the people from Europe, North and South America, and APAC state that it is the convenience that they like the most in terms of the mobile shopping. 46% of the polled ones stress that they prefer m-shopping due to the time saved. Both of these reasons are quite obvious, and I would argue that we may merge it to one. Since in most of the cases it is time (which is our most valuable resource) that makes the mobile shopping convenient. When you can order your favorite author’s book via your iPhone on the way back from work, why bother yourself visiting the physical store? Especially taking into account the fact that probably tomorrow it will be already delivered to you.

Of course, there is always a place for growth – both regarding the buying experience, and the mobile commerce in general. So, what stops people from buying more on their phones and tablets? Nearly half of the surveyed ones indicated that trust is the KEY issue at stake. In fact, in any transaction happening in this world TRUST is the building block. People will not buy from you, neither they will do business with you unless they trust you 100%. There is no other way. That is why during my presentations or business development ventures I always stress the importance of local payment methods and the seamless experience they must deliver. Also, another interesting point that the survey revealed is that about a third of people do not buy more via their smartphones simply because they have no need to.

This brings us directly to the question – why people have no need for buying on mobile? And more importantly – how to develop/trigger that need? There is definitely no correct answer here but there are some points that need to be taken into account. Many merchant websites are not adapted to mobile, which makes the purchase on one’s phone or tablet painful or even impossible. Also, often customers do not know that they can buy online instead of making a long trip to the supermarket, and get the same product with the same quality. Finally, if we would take mobile payments into account, the infrastructure here is still at its development stage, and there is still not so many places where you can simply tap your phone and go. So, how can we talk about the demand side when there is barely a supply side?

Mobile purchases will be worth more than $700 billion by 2017. Retailers should consider this as soon as possible.

Read more about m-commerce and m-payments:

Mobile Commerce. The Rising Giant.

Forget the New iPhone – Apple Pay is the BIG Thing

Online Shoppers – To Buy or Not To Buy?

How Mobile Payments Are Doing?