Juniper Research On Mobile Retail Purchases (Interview)

Juniper Research provides research and analytical services to the global hi-tech communications sector, providing consultancy, analyst reports and industry commentary. Juniper Research’s latest report released that Mobile Retail Purchases are expected to Exceed $700bn Annually by 2018. The report found that leading retailers were increasingly developing mobile strategies using it as a ‘hub’ facilitating payment, product discovery and customer retention.  

Juniper’s Report Highlights:

Leading retailers were increasingly developing strategies built around mobile, using it as a 'hub' facilitating payment, product discovery and customer retention. As a result, it found that the size and scale of purchases across both smartphones and tablets was increasing strongly. However, for users owning both devices there was a strong trend towards browsing on the mobile while completing the purchase on the tablet, and that by the end of 2013 global per month retail spend on tablets had eclipsed that on handsets.

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How do you feel about the impact that mobile has had on our lives?

“I think mobile's impact can be summed up in the simple fact that it is the one item that we will not leave home without: it has become indispensable to our daily existence,” Holden told Droid Report in a recent interview. “ It wakes us up; it is the first thing that we reach for in the morning and the last thing that we put down at night; we play games on it; we take photographs with it; we store our photographs on it; it is our address book and our primary channel of social engagement; we buy our train tickets on it; we might even make the occasional phone call on it.” Holden also said, “ In developing markets, it is bringing first time internet access and financial inclusivity.” He also stated that it has transformed the way we interact with the physical and digital world, and the way those worlds interact with one another.

What are your thoughts on mobile payment security concerns and cyberthieves with mobile retail?

Holden explains that what is still a concern is that there is still a fundamental disconnect between the proportion of the public who state that they are concerned about mobile security (high) and the proportion which has actually installed a security solution on their device (low). “As more eCommerce migrates to mobile and tablet devices, those devices will inevitably become more attractive to cyberthieves,” said Holden.

Mobile has accepted the growing trend in “showrooming” according to Juniper Research:

The report also highlighted the increasing trend towards ‘showrooming’, where consumers examine retailer products in-store while simultaneously browsing on their mobiles to compare prices online. It argued that retailers need to adapt their strategies to incorporate this activity, by deploying tablets equipped with mPOS (mobile Point of Sale) capability throughout the store, while also introducing a price match option. According to report author Dr Windsor Holden, ‘This means that not only is the retailer proactively offering the consumer the opportunity to price check in-store, but that the purchase can be made immediately, without having to queue elsewhere in the store.’ However, the report cautioned that while retailers were increasingly optimising their sites for mobile handsets, only a small minority had done so for tablets.

How do you see the mobile technologies and strategies impacting retailers?

Holden said that mobile technologies and strategies are impacting retailers  in a number of ways. “Firstly, it is incumbent upon retailers to offer consumers as much choice on how and where there buy product as they can. Optimising websites and apps for mobile/tablet purchase is critical.” Many retailers that have created mobile-friendly sites and mobile-friendly purchasing interface, Holden said and they are seeing both migration to mobile and net increases in sales volumes. Those that don't offer those options will be left behind.

“Secondly, mobile devices are increasingly being used in-store for showrooming, where consumers examine a particular product in-store, then compare prices online (while in-store) on their mobile devices, before finally going home to buy it from an online competitor (via their tablet!) said Holden. He also stated that some stores have developed strategies to accommodate this, equipping staff on the shopfloor with tablets and inviting consumers to price check - and then matching competitor prices. “More than that, they can even use those tablets to buy the product there and then, bypassing queues at the till” said Holden.

Mobile strategies are impacting consumer purchases through such strategies. As a result, the size and scale of purchases of both smartphones and tablets was increasing strongly. According to author, Dr. Windsor Holden, for users owning both devices there was a strong trend towards browsing on the mobile while completing the purchase on the tablet, and that by the end of 2013 global per month retail spend on tablets had eclipsed that on handsets.