Close-up Of African Young Man Surfing On Social Networking Site Using Cellphone

By Andrew Gazdecki

Mobile devices are literally the wallets of many shoppers. With mobile pay options making groundbreaking progress, it’s safe to assume that almost every shopper will have a mobile device while hitting the malls this holiday season. It’s also safe to say that most businesses need to learn how to make an app in order to take advantage of mobile shoppers. It only makes sense that you should beef up your mobile presence during this time.

This holiday season, mobile commerce is forecasted to surpass $600 billion in sales. Consumers are eager to browse and purchase during the holiday season, and you need to be armed with the information that will help you grow your mobile presence during this time. Here are 15 reasons you need to make sure your app is ready to handle the holidays.

November and December See 30% More Online Sales than Any Other Months

Easy to use retail apps will keep your customers coming back to your store—virtually that is. In fact, 47% of consumers prefer to use an app to shop over a web browser because they feel it is easier and faster.

92% of Consumers Will Research a Gift Online this Holiday Season

People don’t want to feel ripped off or send a friend or loved one a terrible gift. One of the best ways to make sure that doesn’t happen is to see what people who have gotten their hands on an item think.

25% of Shoppers Do Part of Their Shopping Prior to Halloween

Many people want to avoid the hassle and headache of traditional holiday shopping. And the best way to avoid shopping headaches even further is to buy online.

48% of Consumers Finish Their Holiday Shopping Before Cyber Monday

Again, we see the trend of getting holiday shopping out of the way early continue. Whether they are in a store or online, statistics have shown that online and mobile components play a strong part in how they shop.

Nearly Half (49%) of Ecommerce Marketers Have a Holiday Marketing Campaign Going on Before Halloween

Bad and weak economies mean that more retailers rely on the holiday season to see them through the year. The earlier the start, the better for some. This makes a ton of sense with the rise in the number of shoppers who do their holiday shopping before Halloween.

Almost All Companies (98%) Aren’t Equipped to Measure a Customer’s Intent on Their Purchase Journey

It’s hard to know when an online shopper goes from “just looking” to seriously considering making a purchase. Finding when that is, is a great way to give that customer that final nudge than turns them into a buyer.

71% of Shoppers Who Use Smartphones to Research Products In a Store Say it is an Important Part of the Experience

For many, shopping is a ritual. It is something that they do a certain way that triggers the reward centers of their brain. Facilitating this only helps when it comes to sales.

93% of Online Shoppers Say Free Shipping is Often the Final Push to Get Them to Make a Purchase

When people are offered something for free, they often feel obliged to take it. Much of the draw of online shopping is that many of the items are sold cheaper than they are in physical stores. Free shipping sweetens the pot.

The Average Shopper Will Wait an Average of 7 days for Their Order to Ship

In general, online shoppers expect a turnaround time of a week. This is the average, meaning some want it sooner. Assume it’s less, and ship orders ASAP.

Mobile Sales Accounted for 27.9% of Total Online Sales During Black Friday

Customers have busy lives, and mobile devices allow them to shop and buy from anywhere. Either they can find it online in the first place, or they can stand in front of an empty shelf and order it from an online seller who has it.

Cyber Monday Sales in the U.S. Generated $3.19 Billion in 2015

Cyber Monday keeps becoming a more prominent part of holiday shopping every year. As mobile technology grows and is used by more people, its own share of the Cyber Monday pie ($838 million in 2015) will continue to increase.

74% of Shoppers Search Online for Holiday Gift Ideas

If shoppers are searching online, they are at least half way there to buying online.

91% of Shoppers Say Low price is Important/Very Important

Value and saving money is more important to shoppers these days, especially for the tech savvy millennials. Online sellers who can offer deep discounts due to low overhead draw more customers.

1 in 5 Shoppers Will Buy an Item Seen in Mobile Email

Email marketing works, when it’s done right. Crafting the right email campaign can create a windfall of sales.

68% of Shoppers Favored “People Like Me” Product Review Videos

Most people trust their friends, neighbors, and peers over the word of an expert. Other buyers who have the same life experiences are seen to have a better perspective than someone who approaches a product review from a professional standpoint.

Andrew Gazdecki is the founder and CEO of Bizness Apps — making mobile apps affordable and simple for small businesses. We’re a do-it-yourself iPhone, iPad, Android & HTML5 app platform that allows any small business to simultaneously create, edit, and manage mobile apps without any programming knowledge needed. Think of us as “WordPress for mobile app creation.” Many of our customers mobile app resellers — marketing or design agencies that use our platform to cost effectively build mobile apps for small business clients.

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