The top 10 mobile shopping mcommerce sites of 2015

Sticking with mobile retail and mcommerce this week, consultant OC&C released a set of figures indicating the top 10 mobile shopping (mcommerce) sites of 2015.

According to consumers, eBay has the best mobile shopping site, followed by Amazon and then Apple.

OC&C surveyed 400,000 people for their ‘Proposition Index’, making it one of the most comprehensive sets of data for this sector – and here are the top ten mobile retailers, according to their findings:

As you can see, there is a balanced mixture of online-only and multichannel retailers in the top ten. The John Lewis multichannel success story continues to unfold despite some controversial changes to their charges for online purchases last year – here is some proof that their strategy is working as they appear in the top five. Joining them in the line-up are Burberry along with primarily online-only retailers, Moonpig, ASOS and Boohoo.com.

Matt Coode, partner at OC&C told Retail Week that this was the first year in which the quality of a retailers’ mobile site or app had demonstrated a direct impact on how consumers rated their overall shopping experience, indicating once again that mobile sales and m-commerce are fast becoming a “critical battleground” for UK retailers.

As primarily online retailers, EBay and Amazon have invested millions in their websites and mobile apps and this has really paid off. With their wealth of user-friendly features such as effective search, one-click ordering and transaction speed being the main key to their success – and often emulated by newcomers.

However, Coode also suggests that it’s not just the way that the sites function that is pivotal to their success. Some brands are achieving something quite unique in their m-commerce approach, by connecting with customers at a personal level. He suggested that the appearance of brands including Burberry and Lush in the top 10 proved that these smaller brands have demonstrated that it is possible to achieve an emotional connection through mobile devices, trading on their reputation and popularity with certain market sectors:

“It’s challenged the perceived wisdom that mobile shopping is purely transactional. When you go on to the Lush mobile site you get the essence of the brand and that it is passionate about product.

No mobile app required

According to Retail Week, the OC&C’s Proposition Index also highlights the fact that mobile shopping apps are not critically important to consumers. If someone is purchasing a lot of different things from one site, such as Ebay or Amazon then they might go to the trouble of downloading and installing an app – but for the most part they do not want to clutter their device with dozens of different shopping apps – some of which might only be used once a year – for example at Christmas. Coode suggests that retailers should instead focus on creating responsive, mobile-friendly websites, geared towards sick and streamlined user experiences:

“For apps to be useful there needs to be a very high frequency of use. Outside of grocery or perhaps Argos, you’re not going to get that frequency.”

So it looks like 2016 is already shaping up to be the year of mobile marketing – and it looks like some British bands, including Lush and Burberry are already o top of their game – it’s up to everyone else now to pull their socks up and rise to the challenge to embrace m-commerce and acknowledge it’s significance as an important and valuable retail channel.