It should come as no surprise that mobile sales are up. A report by the Pew Internet & American Life Project found that nearly half of American adults own smartphones. Statistics like these have inspired many retailers to court their phone-savvy customers more aggressively.Wal-Mart, for instance, has begun to offer special promotions exclusively to mobile shoppers.

Smartphones and tablets not only make shopping more convenient; they’re fundamentally changing how people think about shopping. Mobile shopping makes people feel more relaxed, productive and informed, as well as more open-minded and receptive to discovering new things, according to a new study by Latitude, Next-Gen Retail: Mobile & Beyond.

Expected mobile shopping over the next two years: [Source: Latitude, 12/2012

• 64% of respondents will do more shopping
• 34% of respondents will not change their mobile shopping
• 3% of respondents will shop less on mobile devices

Interestingly, more people say saving time over saving money as one reason to shop via mobile, regardless of income. Women are significantly more likely than men to go mobile because it eliminates waiting in line and because it’s something they can do while multi-tasking or accomplishing other things. On the other hand, men are attracted to mobile because it streamlines shopping by offering better-curated options, which means fewer items to sift through, says the report.

Many brands are sending push notifications or daily deals to heightening the sense of urgency around making a purchase. 60% of participants report that they’re spurred to shop or make a purchase at least once a week because they’ve received a mobile alert from a brand or retailer.

Some summary statistics include:

• 79% are interested in the possibility of having digital content delivered to their mobile phones while shopping in a store
• 79% want the ability to virtually try on clothes while shopping in a store
• 86% want their mobile device to alert them when they’re near a store selling recommended or sought-after items
• 80% would be interested in a digital wallet – especially if they could skip on carrying cash or credit cards entirely
• Currently, the most important features of a mobile shopping app are access to coupons (36%) and comparison shopping (35%)

How are you using mobile to engage with your customers?

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Mary Shaw

Mary has extensive digital and social media marketing experience and covers a periphery of topics. She writes about digital, online marketing, social media trends, content marketing, and customer relationship marketing.

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