Consumer Behaviors Mobile vs Desktop
The year is 2013, AND You STILL haven’t implemented a Mobile Strategy for your brand? Consider this for a moment: mobile phones will surpass desktops as the most commonly used device to access the web (this year).
It’s also worth knowing that 57% of consumers will not recommend a business with a poorly designed mobile site. With that being said, there’s also a pretty big difference in consumer behavior on mobile vs. desktop and its critical to keep the simple stuff in mind (some of which we’ll cover in just a moment).
So, let’s go ahead and get into this sucker as there’s kind of a lot to cover.
4 Primary Differences of Mobile vs Desktop
1) Shopping Habits
Needless to say, Mobile commerce (mCommerece) is on the rise and shopping on mobile phones is going nowhere but up. In 2012, total sales of physical retail goods and services from smartphones was $8 billion (in the US) and this number is expected to grow 4x the size in less than 5 years.
Some simple action steps for this information would be to create a streamlined mobile checkout process to avoid common pitfalls like: shopping cart abandonment, high bounce rates, etc.. To do this however, you would need a mobile analytics tools, like Loyalytics for example.
2) News Consumption Habits
Mobile hasn’t just changed the way people shop either, but also the way they consume news too. Everyone knows that physical newspapers are in large decline, whereas news that’s consumed digitally is on the rise. Consequently, people haven’t stopped reading the news, they are just viewing it elsewhere.
According to the Financial Times, during the weekly usage on desktop and mobile are close to the same. Although, on the weekend mobile greatly passes desktop usage. This makes evident consumers are more likely to read news on the weekends on their smartphones vs desktops.
Without having to be tied down to a single location mobile devices allow users to access the news and stay connected to what’s happening.
3) Saving Habits
According to Emarketer, the number of US mobile coupon users will rise from 12.3 million in 2010 to 53.2 million in 2014. By rewarding your customers with coupons, they’ll have more incentive to stay engaged with your app. Users like to be rewarded when they use your app. If you see them really engaging with your app, whether they’re using it every day, checking in, or tweeting, then reward them with a coupon (or promo, to let tem know you appreciate their commitment to your app.
GFK reported 44% of advanced device owners are looking for coupon opportunities on their devices and 17% of which have already purchased a product via mobile platforms. If you make it easy for people to be able to use promos and coupons why wouldn’t they (especially if it’s in the palm of their hand)?
4) Sharing Habits
Seeing as smartphones owners practically take their device with them everywhere they go (even the toilet) it means they can connect with their peers wherever and whenever. This ability naturally prompts people to share their locations, thoughts and more whether it’s promoting an app publicly or inviting a friend to use it is a great way to promote your brand.
We all know the people who check-in 10x a day, or share pictures of their every-meal. Case and point – sharing is what makes apps popular. Sharing is what gets you discovered. Mobile is breaking down the walls of old communication barriers and allowing everyone to let people inside their lives.
While this is just a short list..
The key takeaways should be..
- Mobile is on the rise.
- Engagement is vital.
- How you increase engagement is important.
- Sharing is caring.
Kevin is an Online and Mobile Marketing Strategist who has worked with companies of all sizes over the last 6 years. You can follow Kevin on any of the social platforms below.
