Mobile Apps Expected To Impact Holiday Sales

By Christine Kern, contributing writer

Mobile marketing company Artisan Mobile has released the results of a September 2014 research campaign revealing that mobile apps will drive a bigger part of holiday sales this year. The survey shows 94 percent of the 500 consumers surveyed strongly agreed or agreed that they are purchasing and browsing products on apps more than ever before. And 91 percent intend to make purchases via mobile or tablet apps this holiday season.

Now more than ever, the study underlines the importance of a good mobile app in terms of loyalty to retailers. Consumers are moving beyond online showroom shopping to using mobile apps to browse, compare, and shop. VARs can help retailers develop and maintain these apps to increase conversions.

“Consumers are shopping on apps more than ever before, and we'll see apps play an even bigger role this holiday season than last year,” Bob Moul, CEO of Artisan Mobile, said in the press release. “Not only are consumers making purchases via apps, but they're also browsing on these apps before making purchases with that app's brand either on their desktops or in-store. Apps are becoming such a critical part of the shopping experience, and that’s why retailers and marketers need to understand how to deliver a personalized experience that will engage their app users — who also tend to be a brand’s most loyal customers.”

Survey results also include:

• Ninety-six percent of respondents intend to browse or research products via a mobile or tablet app — up 8 percentage points over 2013.
• Eighty-four percent browsed or made purchases on mobile or tablet apps during the 2013 holidays —18 percentage points higher than the year prior.
• Seventy-five percent are very or extremely loyal to the apps that they’ve browsed or purchased from on their smartphones or tablet, up 10 percentage points over last year.