Business Insider reported that mobile commerce sales in the US totalled $359 billion in 2021 and made up a whopping 38.5% of all eCommerce sales. Any online retailers that don’t prioritize mobile commerce are going to start missing out on a significant portion of the market if they don’t update their sites to be mobile-friendly.
Mobile commerce involves any kind of transaction that is completed using a phone or tablet. Mobile banking, online shopping, and all types of mobile payment methods are all examples of mobile commerce in action. Not only is mobile commerce becoming more common among consumers, but it’s actually becoming the preferred method for many customers.
As you work on making your store more accessible to mobile consumers, be aware of some common mistakes that other eCommerce sellers have made when it comes to mobile commerce in particular. Here are 5 of the most common (and most easily avoidable) things you should avoid or immediately fix on your site:
1. Difficult site navigation
Your site layout may look beautiful on a laptop or desktop, but do you know what the mobile version of your site looks like? Too often, retailers forget to customize and optimize the mobile version of their online stores, which makes sites difficult to navigate and use.
The best thing you can do for your site design is to use a responsive theme. Responsive themes look nearly identical across all kinds of devices in order to give customers a unified experience — even if they switch from their laptop to their phone to complete a transaction.
When you’re reviewing your mobile site, make sure that:
- Users don’t have to zoom in to read product descriptions.
- Photos load quickly.
- The site navigation menu is neatly labeled with large buttons.
- Any CTAs you have are above the fold.
- Your FAQ page is easy to find.
2. A long checkout process
A cumbersome checkout process can be irritating for typical online shoppers, but it’s even more frustrating for mobile customers who might be in a rush or on the go. If people are frequently abandoning their carts during checkout, this is a surefire sign that there’s a major barrier or issue with your current checkout.
To give mobile customers a more streamlined experience, follow these best practices:
- Keep the checkout to a single page.
- Don’t surprise buyers with shipping fees or taxes at the very end of the checkout.
- Don’t require buyers to create an account before purchasing.
- Only require the most essential fields to complete the order.
- Use autofill tools to ensure that people type in their addresses quickly and accurately.
- Let people review their orders after putting in their payment information.
- Offer a variety of payment methods, such as payment installments for larger purchases, PayPal, Apple Pay, and Google Pay.
- Don’t ask for feedback until after the customer has finished paying.
3. No customer support
When you have a visitor on your page with a question about a product, you don’t want them to exit the page in order to look for answers. Mobile users need customer support or a 24/7 chatbot just as much as desktop users! Make sure your customer support phone number is clearly located on your site’s mobile home screen and give people the option of texting with a customer service rep or chatbot, too.
This simple practice will increase the likelihood of someone staying on your page and completing a purchase instead of going to a competitor’s site to look for an answer to their questions.
4. Unoptimized product pages
On a smaller screen, high-quality product photos are a must. Customers need to be able to see each item from every angle and read the exact dimensions for each product before they’ll be convinced to purchase anything. A stellar product description, customer reviews, and additional recommended items should also be standard on every product page.
If your product pages don’t have many photos and don’t have any customer reviews, new shoppers will be hesitant to buy anything from your brand. Social proof is necessary for mobile commerce, and it’s one of the most influential marketing tools you have at your disposal.
5. Using the wrong eCommerce platform
If you’ve outgrown your current eCommerce platform, it can show to your visitors. Sites with outdated designs, broken links, unoptimized URLs, and slow loading times can send the wrong message to consumers. To stand out to a modern customer base, you need to pick the right platform for your unique business and your target audience’s most important wants and needs. If your mobile site is floundering and in need of a serious upgrade, a Wagento developer can help. Wagento specializes in Adobe Commerce and BigCommerce, and our experts can create a customized plan that will work best for your timeline, budget, and business goals. Connect with a developer today to build a mobile site that converts!
