Mobile devices accounted for fully 20% of the $84.3 billion in US digital commerce spending in Q3 2016, reports comScore. Needless to say, that’s the first time mobile devices have reached that mark, as e-commerce sales continue to shift from desktops to mobile devices.
There’s reason to believe that mobile devices could be even more influential, if some user experience problems were taken care of. Recent research from Monetate, for example, indicates that somewhere around half of e-commerce site visits come from mobile devices. Mobile’s smaller share of actual sales is a result of lower conversion rates relative to desktop, particular for smartphones, as mobile users struggle with navigation, difficulty with checkouts, and security concerns. These problems lead to lower shopping cart conversion rates, with just 1 in every 6 shopping carts on smartphones turning into orders, as opposed to 1 in 4 on desktops.
The report from comScore notes that spending has been strong on both desktops and mobiles this year, which signals a bright holiday period ahead. Indeed, most forecasts call for a robust season, with mobiles continuing to exert influence on shopping behaviors, according to our Holiday 2016 Data Hub.