Increased consumer interest in using shopping applications means retailers must adapt to meet the rising expectations for specialized mobile shopping experiences, according to research released today by Adobe Systems Incorporated. The U.S. study, 2013 Digital Publishing Report: Retail Apps & Buying Habits has revealed insights on perceptions and attitudes toward mobile shopping using retail apps and browsers, providing new direction for retailers to develop their digital publishing strategies. The research is based on an online survey with a nationally representative sample of 1,003 consumers who own a smart phone and/or tablet.
The survey results indicate that tablet users (55%) are almost twice as likely as smart phone users (28%) to use their device to purchase products and services. Across both mobile platforms, the use of retail apps and catalogs is increasing – more than half of all mobile shoppers are likely to make a purchase using a shopping app in the next year (56% of smart phone shoppers and 60% of tablet shoppers).
Smartphone shoppers cite the slow speed of browsers and the ease of navigation on apps as reasons for their interest in using apps and digital catalogs.
Terry Fortescue, Director of Product Marketing, Digital Publishing at Adobe said, “Our research shows retail apps and catalogs serve different purposes on tablets and smart phones, providing value to the consumer depending on the device they’re using .Using Adobe Digital Publishing Suite, leading companies like Sotheby’s and ASOS are producing tablet and smart phone catalog apps to engage customers with their brands and bring their content to life as shoppers become increasingly mobile.”
Retail apps and catalogs provide a platform for retailers to develop deeper connections with their customers. Survey results show 67% of tablet and smart phone shoppers only use apps for their favorite stores.
