Half of UK shoppers prefer app over website

In the United Kingdom, 53 percent of consumers prefer to shop online using a brand’s app over its website. This is mostly because they experience complex processes for signing in and setting up accounts on the website. Still, 40 percent get frustrated when shopping or paying on a mobile.

This is one of many conclusions from the study ‘Pocket Shoppers: eCommerce on the Move’ [pdf], research conducted by Elavon. It questions 2,000 adults in the United Kingdom on their mobile shopping experience. It turns out that two-thirds will abandon a transaction “out of principle” if the order process is too difficult. Customers nowadays have increasing expectations that payment should be simple and secure.

Main concerns with mobile payment experience

According to Elavon, the main concerns with the mobile payment experience include repeatedly re-entering personal details, forced sign-up processes, no payment confirmation and long loading times. “The days of queueing being tolerable are gone”, the payments company writes. “Digital queueing, for example in the shape of form filling, is rejected by many.”

Mobile consumers feel time-pressured

Paying for something on a mobile phone also offers other disadvantages. A third of consumers say they are often distracted whilst shopping on their mobile, while a quarter say they don’t have enough time. Retailers need to face the demands of customers who are increasingly time-pressured, as 36 percent of adults say they feel less patient when buying products on a mobile device.

Shopping on the go is becoming more popular

Although UK commuter commerce is predicted to be worth €5.2 billion by 2022, this study by Elavon shows that 63 percent of adults still prefer to transact on a mobile phone or tablet at home. But, commuter commerce is gaining ground, as the number of people who prefer to shop and pay whilst on the move is increasing. One in four young adults are most likely to do during the commute, on lunch breaks or when they are waiting for a friend.

“Most of the ecommerce problems highlighted by this study are not difficult to get right”, Kevin Salaman, Head of Global Omnicommerce for Elavon, comments. “Having simplicity in design, multiple payment options, fast page loading times as well as removing barriers to purchasing, like mandatory registration processes and multiple forms, greatly improves ecommerce.”

The main frustrations for mobile shoppers in the UK:
• Sites that force me to repeatedly re-enter my details (69%)
• A forced sign-up process to enable me to make an order (54%)
• No confirmation message after payment (51%)
• The payment page hangs or server times out after clicking pay now (47%)
• Being interrupted by multiple new pages or page refreshes (46%)
• Forms requiring unnecessary or totally irrelevant information and marketing questions (45%)
• Limited or restrictive payment methods (41%)
• Consent checkboxes that are impossible to understand (29%)