In a recent post, we recapped some statistics just out at the Internet Retailer 2010 Conference: "It is expected that mobile spend will increase even more in 2011. Online retailers who don’t have a fully functioning mobile site and a way to manage customer experience on those sites will suffer."
This view is supported by new research out last week from analyst firm Ovum, who reveal that whilst sales made via mobile phones accounted for just 0.6% of total online UK retail spending in 2009 — £122.9m out of total online retail spending of £21.2bn — they will more than double by 2013.
The analyst leading the study suggests that despite these relatively small revenues, mobile retail sites are still quite important, but for other reasons. Malcolm Pinkerton, senior analyst at Verdict Research, said, "Consumers are not spending significant amounts via mobiles and, for now, we believe the true potential for m-commerce is to provide consumers with a valuable tool for research, comparison shopping and retailer interaction."
This begs the questions, what is the true role of m-commerce and how does this impact customer experience management strategies? Should a mobile website focus on sales or providing more effective browsing capabilities? Can a mobile site achieve both?
Understand User Behaviour
The only way that any online retailer can answer these questions is by having real insights into customer behaviour. Both quantitative and qualitative data will help businesses identify patterns and then take steps to improve the multi-channel customer experience and/or look at ways to generate effective business returns as a result.
In the same way that many retailers struggle with the relationship between web site, call centre and offline store, the relationship between the web and the mobile web is perhaps equally as confusing. The answers are out there; they just need a bit of pinning down.
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