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June 11, 2024
Should Mobile Shopping Be Emphasized To Drive Impulse Buys?
A Wall Street Journal article, “Retailers Hate That You Buy Big Things on Your Laptop,” details how consumers are being encouraged to make online purchases on mobile phones over laptops to increase impulse buys and reduce price checking.
“Online shops as well as airlines and hotels have upgraded and pushed apps or mobile-optimized websites as a way to get our attention — and access to our wallets,” according to the article. “By using push notifications, mobile-only deals and other levers, vendors can tempt customers to make quick, unplanned purchases.”
Last year, mobile shopping reached a milestone by accounting for 51.1% of all holiday season sales placed online, up from 47% in 2022, according to Adobe.
“The preference for shopping on mobile devices goes beyond simple accessibility. Psychological factors play a significant role,” wrote Youshie in a recent study. “Smartphones fill the micro-moments of our day — waiting in line, commuting, or during short breaks. The ability to instantly browse and make purchases caters to our desire for instant gratification and our tendency towards multi-tasking. Furthermore, mobile shopping creates an environment conducive to impulse buys due to its ease and frictionless nature.”
Also driving mobile shopping and related impulse buys is social media, which is generally accessed through smartphones with their convenience and constant access. A survey last fall from Bankrate found that 48% of social media users have made an impulse purchase of a product they saw on social media, and 68% of those people regretted at least one of the purchases.
In comparison, laptop shopping lends itself to “more mindful” purchases that support the decision-making process required for big-ticket items while offering more of a chance for consumers to pause before making rash purchases, according to the WSJ article.
On laptops, the bigger screens and keyboards enable consumers to tap browser extensions to search for coupons and evaluate price changes, per the report. Opening multiple screens on laptops enables laptop users to compare hotels and flights but also price check across CPG, apparel, and other categories.
Alexander Lewis, a 31-year-old technology writer, told the WSJ that he often saves an item to his shopping cart and decides the following day whether to commit to a purchase. He said, “Having the internet always around us is an easy way to mindlessly spend our attention and also spend our money.”
According to research conducted in 2017 by Dynamic Yield, the biggest barrier to mobile shopping was “pages and links being too small,” cited by 67%; followed by security concerns, 42%; interruptions from messages, apps, and other programs, 36%; and “difficulty finding what I am looking for,” also 36%. When asked why they shop on their mobile phones, the top answer was “it saves me time,” cited by 76%; followed by “it gives me something to do,” 29%; and “I find it enjoyable,” 27%.
Discussion Questions
Does mobile shopping lend itself to significantly more impulse purchases than shopping on laptops?
Should retailers be incentivizing mobile to capitalize on impulse buys or adding safeguards to reduce them?
What should a mobile-first strategy entail?
Poll
Loading …BrainTrust
Melissa Minkow
Director, Retail Strategy, CI&T
Nikki Baird
VP of Strategy, Aptos
Kai Clarke
CEO, President- American Retail Consultants
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I’m not sure mobile shopping should be emphasized as such, it should simply be a part of a retail ecosystem that encompasses many channels. However, offering a good mobile experience – one that is tailored to, and specifically designed for, mobile – does encourage purchasing. This is partly because transactions are so easy with integrated payments, and partly because many people always have their cell phones on them so can shop when the mood takes (or when they get some kind of notification!). Newer product discovery tools, like Google Lens, which are on cellphones also make them a valuable shopping tool.
I’m not sure that this is about “impulse” so much as about discouraging research and informed decisions. In general, I would say that it’s bad practice to rely on a strategy that discourages your consumers from making an informed decision. That will only lead to larger brand dissatisfaction later on.
No. I do not. There should never, in truth, be a “mobile-first” strategy with very rare exceptions. First, those who buy in store will always buy more. Is it better than purchase on a laptop? I can’t imagine it — there is some immediacy but the horridly limited screen space of mobile (even a tablet) primarily removes any advantage.
Mobile may be a good addition for a minority of customers. But we need to ensure we don’t believe it is more than that. I am quite concerned, in fact, that Starbucks is making exactly this mistake at the moment — separating store sales into silo’s by how the order is placed and forcing stores to manage to goals for each. That detracts from Starbucks’ power — which is an overall power as shown by the mobile, drive-thru, and walk-in orders all together.
Doug, in your statement that ‘those who buy in store will always buy more’ I believe you’re missing 1 key point – you’re assuming the store has high in-stock and enough labor to answer the customer’s questions and upsell them accordingly. If either of these are missing, the in-store sale will likely be significantly less, possibly $0. With the increased efficiency of Gen AI chatbots, retailers that have acknowledged their in-store limitations may be best served to invest more here.
Why not? If the product lends itself to mobile purchases then it’s the merchant’s responsibility to make it happen.
Yes, mobile shopping leads to significantly more impulse purchases than laptop shopping. Mobile devices, with their convenience, push notifications, and ease of use, create a frictionless environment that encourages quick, unplanned buying decisions. Retailers should add safeguards to reduce impulse buys on mobile, prioritizing consumer trust and long-term relationships over short-term gains, fostering responsible spending and avoiding potential customer regret and dissatisfaction.
A mobile-first strategy should prioritize optimized user experiences, personalized interactions, push notifications for timely engagement, seamless checkout processes, robust security measures, integrated social media marketing, and continuous analytics for ongoing improvements.
Mobile shopping can spark more impulse purchases than laptops because it allows spontaneous product discovery, often while our guards are down.
Embedding ads into our entertaining social media content lets us see, like and buy in seconds. We’re more likely to be excited than analytical.
More sports and entertainment brands are migrating toward a mobile-first experience to make it easier for fans and guests to shop in the moment at events.
Sometimes, retailers don’t give consumers enough credit. Without much (any) instruction, consumers have instinctively relegated big ticket purchases to their laptops to facilate multi-tab research and price/product comparisons on what are often, serious investments or high priced items.
The thing is, big ticket items are rarely purchased on impulse and it’s unlikely this behavior is going to change anytime soon. I’d venture that most retailers know this, despite the rise in mobile shopping.
This research pretty much sums up mobile shopping: something to do or fill the time with room for the occasional regret. This is prime mindset for impulse shoping. However, very few consumers pull out a laptop to research a new HD TV because they need something to do or fill the time. The mindsets are different for impulse vs big ticket purchases.
The responsible thing to do here is be mindful of the mindset of mobile shopping and limit “incentivizing” a purchase that may soon lead to regret because that regret could also lead to unfavorable sentiment for both the brand and retailer.
“Retailers hate that you buy big things on your laptop.” Come on. So now we’re cheesed that people who shop online via laptop or computer make more thoughtful choices? That’s ridiculous. However they shop, be happy they chose you. Bonus: Better researched purchases mean less returns.
Retailers might want to bias the consumer for mobile rather than laptop, but not mobile over in-store shopping. That said, smart retailers know how to combine the dynamics of mobile with in-store shopping. Db
The best long-game policy is always to support the consumer, rather than attempt to drive quick profits in the short-term. Brands shouldn’t be striving towards encouraging impulse purchases, but rather providing best in class products and experiences that benefit the consumer. I personally prefer to shop on my laptop over my phone because I can open a bunch of tabs and compare items. Toggling between tabs isn’t an easy process on a phone.
I’m looking forward to the time when I can give my AI agent the task to research a purchase and find what I am looking for without spending time on a device doing that work myself. That’s the real win.
I am with you, Brian!
I seem to buy most of my airline tickets while I’m either in an airport or on an airplane – so for that mobile works, most of the time. For other shopping, I may research and shop on my phone, but not always. There are some retailer and travel mobile sites that simply are not as easy to use, or don’t have all the features, as their desktop counterparts. So why make it harder on myself? It can be helpful to see what’s on the mobile or website, as in-store prices may be higher (happened just recently at a national sporting goods retailer for a pair of shoes – they honored the online price). Retailers may prefer that you buy on mobile, but truly they’re happy for your business regardless.
People between 16-30 years old already make the majority of their purchases through mobile (from brand stores, through influencers, and streaming), and most of the purchases are impulse buys. This is more a matter of making mobile purchases a norm for other consumer segments.
Mobile shopping is key to the next generation retail market growth and standard. Consumers take their phones everywhere and being able to compare pricing and purchase products at will is a necessary convenience that is clearly shifting our retail focus and the template of our consumer expectations.
“Does mobile shopping lend itself to significantly more impulse purchases than shopping on laptops?” Of course. Does mobile shopping lend itself to significantly more impulse purchases than shopping in-store? Very Likely. Thoughtful purchases and impulse purchases are opposites.
Should a retailer initiate a mobile-first strategy? Only if it wants its business to be based on and rely on impulse purchases. I contend that is not the way to build a business. However, that does not mean that mobile should be ignored. Retailers should treat their mobile websites with as much care and thought as they treat their stores. A sale is a sale, no matter where it comes from.
In our constantly on-the-go society, an optimized and enhanced mobile shopping experience is a critical part of the discovery process. Considering that our mobile and digital-first is powered by ubiquitous smartphones, in the first quarter of 2024, smartphones represented three-quarters of retail site visits in the United States. They generated roughly two-thirds of online shopping orders. Desktop computers generated just 23 percent of retail website traffic but represented 34 percent of all purchases in the country.
Additionally, beyond the desktop experience’s capabilities, smartphones are an integral part of the immersive and social commerce experiences, as they intuitively connect with TikTok, Instagram, and other platforms. Shoppable media makes the social commerce experience much easier and more streamlined, taking the consumer from consideration to purchase in just a few clicks. On TikTok, influencers play a crucial role in social commerce’s momentum. TikTok Shop listings and affiliate links, for instance, provide TikTok with an opportunity to tap into influencer marketing by being part of those transactions.
Any retailer or DTC brand that does not have a mobile-first strategy is in peril of falling behind the rapidly evolving consumer and commerce landscape.
People should turn push notifications off. Firms have invested in mobile way more than web experiences and that shows. And yet, browser based shopping on a full keyboard is still a more robust experience for many.
Retailers should invest in all of it, and consumers should take ownership over how they shop…this is not difficult.
Mobile shopping definitely leads to more impulse purchases compared to shopping on laptops. The ease and speed of using a smartphone make it simple to buy things quickly without much consideration. A mobile-first strategy should ensure the mobile app or site is easy to navigate, use AI to suggest items based on browsing history, and send push notifications to alert customers about deals without being excessive.
To counter the adverse effects of impulse buying, i.e. returns, retailers can lay down clear policies that states which items are eligible for returns. Reminding users about items left in their cart can also encourage customers to make thoughtful decisions before buying. This way customers can save themselves from any post-purchase regret, retailers can drive sales by showing transparency and building trust among customers.