When do people buy using their smartphones? What’s the best time to schedule your mobile promos and sales? Undoubtedly, the trend is that mobile shopping is still gaining in strength but what was the exact growth of the market in 2014? Does the holiday season play a role? Opera Software provides answers to all of these questions. The findings are based on anonymous research of 270 million Opera browser users with the help of data aggregation.
While Mondays are the most popular day for laptop and desktop sales, with a gradually falling trend for the rest of the week, the situation is quite the opposite for mobile applications. Sunday is the top day for mobile shoppers while the least activity is seen on Fridays.
Image Courtesy: Trak.in, Mobile Shopping Trends: 106% Growth, Sunday Most Popular, Friday Least
It is also notable that mobile traffic peaks in the US and Europe during Christmas. By the beginning of 2015, the number of users who shop via mobile will be about 35%, according to the Opera Software Mobile Use reports.
Mobile shopping is at a maximum in Western Europe in November and December, and Germany is the leading nation, with activity growing by 28% during the holiday season. The leading mobile retailer is Amazon with local businesses in second or first place in some countries.
The most impressions for mobile advertising were received for mobile games followed by electronics and computers. Meanwhile, the highest spends were for mobile phone services and home improvement stores. The brands that spent most on mobile ads include Burberry, Belk, New Balance, T-Mobile, Target, Samsung, Microsoft, CVS Pharmacy, and Pandora.
The latest Mobile State data from Opera are available here.
What do these facts truly mean for us? Companies that had been adapting all of their technology to the web environment now face a new challenge – the need to adjust to the requirements of the new mobile world. On the other hand, mobile apps are a kind of “closed universe,” which makes them significantly different from desktops and the traditional web. You need to rethink where you invest your effort and money in the upcoming year, whether you are a developer or an entrepreneur. Building a simple HTML app might not be the answer to your troubles anymore, as there is considerable risk from locking out large customer groups because of the limited functionality and poor design.
What are your predictions for the ecommerce and online landscapes for the next 5 or 10 years? What will the world be like with the rise of “closed” mobile apps?