UK M-Commerce Stats for 2013

We live in an increasing digital world with the differences between the offline and online world becoming blurred, which explains the massively expanding M-commerce. The number of smart phones on the planet passed one billion last year, that’s one for every 7 people on the planet. It is estimated that there will be two billion by 2015! Businesses don’t be foolish; only 1 in three advertisers have a mobile site at the moment according to statistics released by affiliate window http://blog.affiliatewindow.com, but this has got to change sooner rather than later. Affiliate window also recorded more sales through iPhone in August 2013 than they did the whole of 2012. 135 sales were generated through the iPhone every hour throughout August 2013. Mobile searches don’t just happen on the move. 77% of mobile searches take place at home even where a PC is nearby and readily available. 2013 will see Tablet sales over take laptop. But why? The main reasons would be the simple and less convenient process, technology is easy to use and the experience is a lot better than on a PC.  Mobile devices are a lot more personal and tailored to the consumer’s needs and wants, therefore it is important that companies develop their responsive websites to meet these needs and wants, otherwise the traffic to the site will decrease in time. Internet retailer published a report (2012) https://www.internetretailer.com with statistics showing the importance of having a web responsive site, 49% of users stated if they experienced a problem with a web site from a Tablet they are less likely to visit that site again, 46% would visit a competitors site, 33% say they are less likely to purchase from the company due to the poor site, 28% said they would have negative perception of that company and 21% will tell others of the problems they experienced with 12% relaying this problem through social media. It is just as important to get your website operating correctly as it is to have a web responsive site in the first place; failing to get this right could result in loss of business and also relaying poor company image. The latest E Consultancy Blog http://econsultancy.com revealed that having analysed the statistics from IMRG and Capgemini; mobile devices now account for all online sales growth since 2011, figures excluding mobile have seen a steady decline. For the first time IMRG and Capgemini reported separate statistics for mobile sales as this clearly is creating a large difference in sales. 23% of all online sales came from mobile devices (including Tablets) in 2013. Google has seen 400% increases in the number of mobile searches within a year according to Icebreaker’s recent blog http://icebreakerconsulting.com. 70% of mobile users will act upon a search within an hour of making it. 45% of mobile users access the internet search daily, the statistics show 40% searches are performed via Tablet devices and also 60% on via mobile phones. Those using mobile devices other than mobile phones should not be ignored as this is a growing industry, the importance of creating a site which is responsive for both tablets and mobile is just as vital. It’s almost certain that M Commerce will continue to grow because there’s so much growth potential among existing smart phone users, we are only touching the surface at the moment; Fingerprint identification available on the latest smartphone will increase trust and personalisation of these digital services and also the development of mobile payments will increase the need and also convenience of mobile devices. One thing for sure M Commerce is set to continuously grow, tapping in to this market should become an integral part for all online retailers.