Report finds issues with m-commerce user experience

Friday, May 17, 2013 - 10:58 by Paul Tissington

The results of a survey published this month, suggest that there are still many improvements which retailers can make to modern m-commerce platforms, to enhance customer satisfaction.

EPiServer questioned consumers about their experiences shopping online from a portable device and found that there are various common complaints.

Forty nine per cent of respondents said that the speed with which mobile sites load is an issue, the cause of which can be traced to a combination of sluggish wireless connectivity and the lower processing power of smartphones, when compared with dedicated laptop or desktop computers.

Forty eight per cent of those questioned said that they encountered issues with the site design and layout of m-commerce sites, which indicated that there is a need for further optimisation in many cases.

Meanwhile, 54 per cent said that they would generally choose to stop using a mobile site without completing a transaction, if they find it to offer a less than satisfactory level of convenience.

Report spokesperson, David Bowen, told The Drum, that in spite of the issues many British consumers have encountered when carrying out safe shopping online from a smartphone or tablet, this market is continuing to increase in size.

Consumers are less willing to forgive retailers for having clunky mobile sites today because expectations about quality are increasing.

Bowen even suggests that some retailers are adopting an approach which prioritises the development of m-commerce sites and apps, over making improvements to desktop outlets.

Two thirds of respondents to the survey said that they use their smart device to browse the web at least once a day, although at the moment, the levels of retailer loyalty are relatively low on mobiles, which means companies need to offer impressive experiences to succeed.