The Dominance of M-Commerce and the UK Market

Predictions have become notoriously difficult to make, that too with the advent of the pandemic. Given the continuous economic and industrial turmoil caused by the worldwide pandemic, and governments continuing lockdown restrictions across the world, we can be sure of the first quarter witnessing large-scale digital content consumption. If not amplified, the eCommerce trends of last year will at least continue.

Coming to m-commerce (mCommerce, or mobile commerce), there was a surge in the industry last year due to various factors, the major one being a worldwide lockdown. The UK will witness unprecedented growth in mobile app purchases, most likely surpassing $23bn or £17.8bn in the coming year 2022. These statistics promise a rewarding future for the mCommerce industry and might be enough to nudge your business in the right direction.

mCommerce is not the ‘next big thing’, a fad or a trend that will be forgotten soon. Instead, it is the changing present and the coming future. Let’s take a deep dive into the mCommerce industry and UK mCommerce market.

There is a thin line between mCommerce and eCommerce. You can define mobile commerce as a natural progression of eCommerce. Being somewhat identical, both have significant differences as well.

Both mCommerce and eCommerce fulfill the same function of carrying out commercial transactions online. Yet eCommerce allows the consumer to carry out these transactions, that is purchase, sell, or exchange of goods and services, whereas, mCommerce is when the consumer uses mobile devices to carry these same transactions.

We can surely expect to see greater usage of mobile devices by the Millennials and Gen Z, With continued lockdown restrictions still in play across the globe, and better digital infrastructure in the market. Although the mCommerce transaction volume was already increasing before the pandemic, we saw quite a surge during lockdowns. According to Statista, mCommerce sales were expected to expand to almost 73% of the total eCommerce retail worldwide in 2021 from 70.4% in 2020 and 67% in 2019.

This is not it, these numbers are certainly expected to rise further by the end of this year. As shopping through smartphones and other mobile devices is increasing, online retailers are working on enhancing the customer experience and improving small screen transaction processes and interfaces. Identity verification has become crucial to purchases, embedded biometric mechanisms in smartphones playing a role in validating logins and financial transactions.

Because of COVID’s health concerns, the majority of brick and mortar stores have upgraded their point-of-sale (POS) infrastructure to facilitate contactless payments, with most of them refusing to accept cash altogether. This trend has passed in the first quarter of 2021 and many people are using their smartphones to encourage contactless payments.

According to Mordor Intelligence, a CAGR of almost 27% for the mobile payments market is expected between 2020 and 2025 worldwide.

In the UK, 2020 was proved to be the biggest mobile shopping year to date, with customers spending a whopping 82 billion hours using shopping apps, a 30% increase from 2019.

In the UK, Amazon showed 55% year-on-year (YoY) growth, Tesco Groceries witnessed a 150% YoY growth whereas SHEIN was right there with a crazy 490% YoY growth.

Amazon, eBay, Wish, Groupon, Argos and UNIDAYS are some of the top shopping apps in the UK at the moment and becoming the top mCommerce players.

Some of the top UK based brands also dominated the mCommerce market till now and are expected to keep performing with the same zest this year. Take a look at the below examples:

One of the top clothing lines in the UK, Pretty Little Thing’s business grew many folds after they launched their official online shopping app. With a no clutter interface, the app promises a good shopping experience throughout the journey. The interface and the product line is very attractive and the numbers support the success of the mobile app

Making a way into this list is Babla’s Jewellers, with one of the most attractive and mobile responsive online stores. Their eCommerce store has been built on the Magento platform, proudly developed by Krish’s Magento experts. The store offers an enhanced customer experience for those who are looking for a way to shop from their mobile device. To top it all, Babla’s Jewellers’ eCommerce store also gives a multi currency support for the ultimate checkout experience.

One of the world’s well recognised and decades-old brands, The Body Shop never fails to serve their clients with unmatched web and mobile experience. With a responsive website that works well on all devices, The Body Shop has a fully-functional mobile application to cater to its mobile users. Krish is again proud to recognise The Body Shop as one their esteemed clients.

Almost 59% of the shoppers said that mobile shopping is essential for eCommerce while comparing brands, retailers, and prices, in a survey conducted by Google.

And with time, more and more shoppers have started using their mobile phones for numerous tasks, including paying utilities. People are getting more comfortable with making purchases over smartphones and other mobile devices, and the dedicated call to action and ‘buy now’ buttons on social media platforms are adding an advantage to the cause.

Another interesting stat, the UK’s young millennials are the primary users of app payments with about 32 percent switching to mobile apps for online transactions. Whereas senior millennials, between the age of 27 to 37 make up for 38 percent of individuals to be avid users of app payments.

Mobile commerce is set to outpace other digital businesses in the coming years. And it is forecasted that from 50.36 billion British pounds in retail sales in 2019, the revenue will go up to a whopping 105.28 billion British pounds in 2024. Enough to let you know where the money is!

Enhanced Customer Experience

With the advent of eCommerce, shopping became easier and convenient with access to a wider variety of goods and services at a competitive price, that too from your comfort zone. But with mCommerce, things became better. Consumers do not need bulky desktops, instead, the shopping experience is literally at the fingertips. As long as the consumers have a mobile device, they can shop on the go, pay utilities without missing due dates and even carry out transactions from the safety of their homes during this pandemic.

Phenomenal Growth Potential

Sky’s the limit with mCommerce. Retailers have gone to lengths to please their customers and increase the overall revenue. Many retailers have even included augmented reality apps to support their mobile commerce business. Plus, with chatbots and messenger apps, businesses can interact with their consumers in real-time and enhance the overall customer journey. Studies have shown that retailers can expect a higher conversion rate and ROI in the case of mobile commerce than conventional eCommerce on computers.

The Omni-Channel Advantage

An omnichannel describes a business that runs both online and offline and sells through multiple channels. Retailers are now listing their products wherever consumers are already spending their time and money. This is a more strategic take on the omnichannel term and also known as contextual commerce. And mobile phones facilitate mobile commerce, easier than any other form of multi-channel transaction, buying or selling, or even marketing.

Multiple Payment Options

Mobile payment solutions are emerging at a fast pace. Consumers are getting a diversified range of payment options to choose from. The consumers have now moved beyond the cash and card options to mobile wallets, a one-click checkout solution in multiple stores. Consumers also do not have to enter their card and shipping details every time they make a purchase. Things have evolved when it comes to eCommerce checkouts and payment solutions.

Constant Optimization

There are so many factors playing an important role in the conversion rate. For instance, website load speed is crucial to convert into sales and repeat business. Retailers need to be aware of technological advancements and regularly change their online store or eCommerce website to ensure best practices. Faster and simpler the process, the superior the customer experience.

Multiple Payment Options

Multiple payment options are both a benefit and a pitfall in the mCommerce industry. Many geographical locations do not support numerous mobile wallets, while consumers in a particular location would prefer a particular payment option to another. All locations have nuances and it gets difficult for retailers to give the customers every mobile payment method they want, without cluttering up the checkout process. Hence, one-click solutions are generally preferred by retailers to make the checkout flow less cumbersome without ignoring location-specific payment options.

Consumers can Easily Compare Prices 

One advantage of mobile shopping is that it is easier hopping from e-store to e-store without moving physically. Consumers can compare ten different products from ten stores using a single mobile phone. Retailers need to be proactive of their competitors if they do not want to lose any business, not just from the same location, but even across borders.

Wide Range of Compliance and Regulations

This pitfall can affect both the eCommerce and the mCommerce industry. Retailers and businesses need to know and comply with a large number of tax laws and other regulations for various countries they want to ship their products to. If you want to limit your shipping countries to just your home country, then this limits the size of your market too. So, it all depends on a balance. If you want to expand your business, you need to know and comply with certain regulations and understand the feasibility of the expansion.

Final thoughts…

You do not need an article to understand and ascertain the importance of mobile commerce. mCommerce is taking over the industry and dominating the UK eCommerce industry. Mobile phones are the new driving force in the market and everyone from Gen Z to the millennials to even baby boomers are now switching to mobile transactions for everything from shopping to utility payments. Hence, eCommerce businesses need to understand that it is now or never for them. Either optimize their online stores to comply with the growing world of mCommerce or let their competitors win the race! And Krish is the right Digital eCommerce Agency  with you. We can help you not only convert your traditional brick and mortar store into a successful eCommerce venture but also optimize your online store to win the mCommerce race and be ready for the future.