Brief:

• Retailers are generating 42% of their online sales from mobile devices such as smartphones, with 65% saying mobile technology has increased revenue, according to a study from messaging software company Quiq.
• Almost three quarters (74%) of retailers said mobile technology has made them more accessible to customers, while 66% said it has led to higher customer satisfaction. Other benefits of mobile technology include greater efficiency (cited by 62% of retailers) and lower customer-service costs (33%). Only 18% of retailers said mobile technology makes it hard to service customers.
• While almost two-thirds (62%) of retailers said they're integrating mobile technology into e-commerce and operations, only 14% described themselves as a "mobile-first organization," the survey found. Another 19% said they're in the early stages of their mobile strategy. Quiq commissioned researcher Sapio to survey more than 200 retailers for the study.

Insight:

Mobile technology has become a vital part of retailing as consumers increasingly use mobile devices for online shopping instead of desktop and laptop computers, Quiq's survey suggests. That means retailers must have a comprehensive mobile strategy to stand out both online and among brick-and-mortar stores. Smartphones provide a key point of contact for consumers that not only drive online revenue, but support customer service interactions, as the survey found.

The growing importance of mobile technology in retailing was a key theme at the NRF's Big Show conference this month. Mobile platforms are the main gateway to shopping on social networks like Facebook and Instagram, which have added more transactional features to convert viewers of ads into paying customers. Buy online, pick up in-store services are also is seeing greater adoption among online shoppers. BOPIS may help retailers fend off Amazon by providing quicker, personalized service.

Quiq's findings support other research that indicates how much online shoppers now depend on their smartphones, especially during the key holiday season. On Black Friday last year, consumers spent $2.9 billion through their smartphones, breaking mobile shopping records, per Adobe Analytics. Its research found that 39% of online sales came from a smartphone, a 21% lift from 2018. Almost two-thirds (61%) of online traffic to retailers were from smartphones, a 15.8% gain from the prior year, per Adobe.