Where is your phone? If it’s not in your hand right now or within three feet of you, you’re probably the exception to the rule. The process probably feels automatic when you open your phone, whatever your security method. Using your phone feels natural and convenient – much more so than sitting down at a desktop or even using a laptop. That feeling of simplicity and convenience was a big part of the rise of the smartphone, and it has undoubtedly played a role in the rise of mobile commerce.
In 2022, mobile accounted for $387 billion in eCommerce spending in the United States alone. Yet, despite the impressive numbers, mobile devices lag behind desktops and even tablets when it comes to conversion rates. Why? We could look at this in a few different ways, but the simplest answer is that, for many consumers, the shopping experience is still more convenient on a desktop.
Mobile functionality isn’t always up-to-par with desktop – anyone using the ‘request desktop version’ feature on their mobile browser gets that. An apparent solution to this is the deployment of mobile apps, but users prefer apps over mobile websites because of a poor mobile website experience in many cases. If given the option between using a smooth, highly functional mobile website or installing a smooth, highly functional mobile app, the user might very well defer to the website to avoid that extra step of searching for and installing an app.
If mobile is an afterthought for an SMB eCommerce site, visitors will look for an alternative. The ideal scenario is that they have a great shopping experience on your mobile site and don’t ever feel the need to look elsewhere. That’s why building a strong, customer-centric mobile commerce experience is so important. But where do you start?
Find the Right Partner
Many articles on mobile commerce highlight the importance of responsive website design. But responsive websites are pretty much standard – what you should be looking for first and foremost, whether you want to build the website yourself or have someone build it, is a website company that has all the tools needed for success and strong customer support to back it up.
For example, if you’re looking to go the WordPress route, you need to work with a company with strong support for WordPress, and packages designed from the ground up for WordPress hosting, with bundled themes and plugins. You don’t want to search for everything you need to get started; you want to set up and start selling.
A strong website partner will also be an excellent choice for mobile commerce, so start with some sound fundamentals.
Explore Examples
One great way to optimize the mobile website experience is by looking at the competition. Explore mobile commerce sites in the business vertical. Keep a log of URLs and note which ones you like and which ones you dislike. Call out features, good and bad, in notes, and look back at them as you work progress on the site.
From looking at effective mobile commerce sites, many are extremely simple. Mobile is all about optimization, clarity, and efficiency. While creating a visually complex, layered desktop site might be satisfying at times, it can get in the way of the mobile experience and maximizing conversions. That’s something the finest examples of mobile website design tend to bear out.
Put Mobile First From the Start
When putting an eCommerce website together, you should first prioritize mobile-first design principles. Constantly test out the mobile experience. Do the site and product images look good on mobile? Do the forms and product descriptions suit the mobile store? Is the website too text heavy? Is it fast?
These are important questions, but the most essential is how it feels. Test it on your device, and use the developer tools in the desktop web browser to see what it will look like on other devices. Ask friends and family to test the shopping experience out on mobile and ask them to describe how it feels. If they use words like ‘quick’ and ‘convenient,’ you’re on the right track. You have some fine-tuning if they tell you it’s a little complex or laborious.
The mobile site version should not be an afterthought; to create a genuinely customer-centric mobile experience, we need to put ourselves in the customer’s shoes. We’ve all viewed mobile websites where the content wasn’t served properly, the images and text were misaligned, and the shopping experience was confusing. If we wanted the product or service, we may have toughed it out or perhaps hopped onto a desktop or tablet to view the same site, but it’s likelier we just decided to shop elsewhere.
Ultimately, you don’t want the mobile website to be the reason a customer chooses another option. With a little extra effort and attention to detail, you can create a mobile commerce site customers enjoy, which lends itself to higher mobile conversions. That’s great for your customers and your business.
