Why The Customer Journey Is Key To Mobile Payments Success

Retail March 10, 2016

Mobile ecommerce is no longer a secondary concern for retailers. M-Commerce is  set to soon overtake web-browser based online shopping.mcommerce

In November 2015, Adobe’s Digital Index found that 49% of ecommerce visits came from smartphones and tablets. Mobile now accounts for 45% of retail ecommerce sales. This trend is only set to continue.

For retailers aiming to increase that figure, and the value of sales that come through mobile channels, it’s all about the user-experience. Every positive interaction can lead to a transaction. Whereas every negative experience can drive customers away, to competitors who have invested more time and resources into creating, testing and improving each aspect of the customer journey.

More people are shopping on smartphones and tablets, any yet cart abandonment rates keep increasing. In January 2016, the Baymard Institute’s summary of 33 different ecommerce studies found it is now 68.63%. This figure has consistently risen since the first study in 2012, when it was 65.23%. Not that it is entirely the fault of retailers: only 39% of web/mobile visitors intend to buy.

However, 38.5% of users plan on spending money but leave. Poor usability is often the culprit, an issue many retailers are still struggling with.

How To Improve And Enhance The Mobile Shopping Experience

#1: Responsive design

According to beauty brands, responsive design can increase conversions 54%. Less than two years ago, 46% of the top 500 mobile retailers were using HTML5; a trend that has increased since.

#2: Don’t ask for the same information twice

Really. Just don’t. Remove friction as much as possible, with the caveat being that some friction, in the right place, is beneficial (such as using smart recommendation engines to suggest other purchases).

#3: Boosting sales with social validation

The best ecommerce experiences constantly reassures customers that they are making a good decision. Yes, it’s okay, treat yourself! Marketing copy, images and UX should all point in that direction.

But don’t overlook social validation. User-generated content such as testimonials and reviews from other customers, as well as social media widgets showing who else has liked a product or is following a brand’s profiles, all help conversions. When it comes to sales, highlight how many other people purchased a deal; all these tools provide extra validation that customers find reassuring.

#4: Ensure the checkout is simple and painless

  • Limit the number of steps from browsing to completing the sale;
  • Registration should be after the purchase, not before when additional steps make customers navigate away;
  • Adding items should be as simple as deleting them;
  • Recommendations should not distract from the purchase;
  • Shopping cart design should always be clear, simple, with each stage in completing a purchase clearly marked;
  • Mobile optimised versions are essential, a responsive website is not enough as the customer experience on mobile devices cannot be a scaled down version of a desktop website.

If you want some inspiration for boosting mobile sales? Have a look at these interesting examples of retailers taking the customer journey to the next level.

For more on mCommerce and taking mobile payments online, read our post: Mobile Payments And Our Multi-Channel World.