Adobe Scene7 Mobile Commerce Survey reveals more than 80% of businesses have deployed or are developing mobile websites

Adobe Scene7 Mobile Commerce Survey reveals more than 80% of businesses have deployed or are developing mobile websites

Adobe Systems has published the results of the first annual Adobe Scene7 Mobile Commerce Survey, detailing leading businesses’ strategies for capitalising on the emerging mobile channel over the coming year.

Respondents across several industries indicated an overwhelming preference for developing websites as their predominant mobile commerce presence, with more than 80% planning or having already deployed a mobile website compared with other types of mobile properties, including downloadable applications. Merely 8% of respondents cited a downloadable application-only mobile commerce strategy.

The survey uncovered four key areas of focus for businesses’ mobile strategies: promotions, commerce, product information and branding. Three quarters (75%) of the nearly 450 respondents questioned named promotions as the core of their mobile strategy, validating the mobile channel as an important method to drive traffic and support multichannel commerce.

Waking up to lucrative segment

“Multichannel shoppers tend to purchase more; therefore, companies must effectively engage customers by delivering consistent, rich experiences across all channels – including mobile – to maintain and fuel current double-digit e-commerce industry growth rates,” said Sheila Dahlgren, senior director of product marketing at Adobe. “The survey results demonstrate the opportunities that exist for companies to fully leverage rich visualisation features to improve their emerging mobile presences and drive cross-channel sales.”

Mobile user experience findings from the survey point to full-screen image zoom and videos as the most important way to browse or display products on mobile devices. For example, more than 55% of respondents cited full-screen image zoom and videos as indispensable viewing features for driving conversion.

In addition, 96% of respondents asserted the most effective visual merchandising features were catalogues and brochures, alternative images, and zoom and pan. While only 18% of respondents currently use rich visual merchandising features for mobile commerce, up to 81% of respondents cited plans to deploy these features, implying richer mobile experiences will be created and offered over the next 12 months.