Now that the new year has started, it is possible to analyze the complete holiday shopping season.
With 2012 behind us, mobile commerce experts are beginning to take a look at the comparison between the success of the holiday shopping season last year in comparison with the one the year before.
What can be said for certain is that there was growth in virtually every area of the channel.
As many retailers consider the holiday season the defining time that will tell them whether or not they will be in the black that year, and whether or not they can truly consider the year a success, the fact that 2012 was supposed to be the year of mobile commerce means that it is important to gain a good understanding of the progress of smartphone and tablet shopping.
Holiday mobile commerce proved to be an explosive experience last year, and this indicates this year may be even bigger.
Retailers came to mobile commerce in droves this year and experienced massive successes as consumers researched products, found store locations, compared prices, and even made their purchases. T
hey received ads, took part in promotions, and redeemed discount coupons which encouraged them to look to the channel more often when they were seeking resources and deals.
Though the reports regarding the holiday season itself were relatively disappointing to retailers, mobile commerce certainly managed to hold its own. Though it may not have generated more sales, consumers behaviors indicated that it was a preferred method of shopping for many people. What this showed was that the experience that shoppers found more appealing, was that over their smartphones and tablets, so the retailers that catered to those wishes were those that were the most likely to draw those customers.
Offering mobile commerce options presented a major advantage to retailers this year, and at a time when sales aren’t as high as stores would like them to be, and when competition is fierce, any advantage – especially one that is proving itself to be as attractive to shoppers as mcommerce, should be seen as vital. It could cause a consumer to choose one retailer over another when deciding to make a purchase, which is exactly the type of advantage that these companies need.
