Think a responsive website doesn’t matter? If you have been experiencing frustration and e-commerce traffic seems to fall flat, perhaps it’s because you are not capturing the attention of the mobile device market. Just take a look at what happened in the world of  devices in 2016:

• 51%: The percentage of time spent by users engaged with mobile digital media, outpacing the 42% spent surfing the web on a desktop.
• 80%: How many people prefer to perform online searches with their smartphones. Smartphones rank #2, right behind PCs and laptops.
• 57%: This is how many people “multi-screen”, using PCs and mobile devices equally.

Interpreting The Stats:

Numbers are great. However, the power of the numbers is in what they actually mean. Industry professionals look at more data than just how much time consumers spend online with a mobile device. Of expanded data, the most important information is that research revealed conversion rates on devices are relatively low. Desktop conversion rate is 67% as compared to 33% for mobile devices.

This implies that consumers spend just as much time browsing and researching a purchase with a mobile device as they do with their PC. When it comes time to make the actual purchase, they prefer to do that with a PC or laptop.

Adapting to Mobility:

Although mobile device use is growing, websites must not overlook the importance of a responsive site for desktop users. In other words, businesses are not trading in one for the other.

To keep up with what consumers are doing online, a company must adapt their website to be responsive for those visiting via smartphone or tablet.

Do You Have An App For That? 

Adapting to a mobile device market might also mean creating a app. 90% of a  device user’s time is spent using online apps. Most apps are developed for both platforms, Android and iOS (Apple iPhone).

In addition to considering having an app created for your e-commerce website. You may want to engage in taking advantage of exposure through other apps. Of the most popular tablet apps, Facebook gets the largest share of the time pie. Creating ads designed for mobile social media and entertainment apps is where the largest audience of mobile device users can be reached.

“Are you in the group of e-commerce businesses who are missing out?”

Where Are You?

In 2015 companies dedicated about $28.7 billion on device advertising. This year marked a rise in spending to $40.5 billion.

By 2019, marketing experts are predicting more than $65 billion will be dedicated to digital smart-device advertising. Have you joined these big spenders or are you in the group of e-commerce businesses who are missing out on the mobile device market?

The First Step:

When mapping an e-commerce journey, data indicates that devices are increasingly becoming the first step along that path. 48% of consumers begin their shopping experience with search engine exploration. 33% went directly to a branded website and 26% started their journey on a branded app. Find an experienced designer to help convert your website to a mobile responsive one.

Keep In Mind:

These numbers definitely indicate the power of the handheld device user. One thing to keep in mind, however, is that this industry research was based solely on the data available for smartphone users. If tablet use had been included, mobile device numbers could have been considerably higher.

Although PCs are still out-selling tablets, that is only because consumers are limited in the kind of tablets they prefer. Apple and Microsoft both saw sales of tablets double in 2016, as compared to the previous year, for models that mimicked the capabilities of laptops. As tablet design becomes more refined and attractive to consumers, sales will increase.

This will result in handheld digital media use continuing to rise. A post-PC society could eventually evolve into digital media dominating the e-commerce market.

Conclusion

Having a mobile responsive website is essential to business growth. Get connected with the perfect web designer. It all starts with a visit to a site like DesignQuote where thousands of  web design professionals have their portfolios on display. Post a project, get a quote on web design, for free. It’s as simple as that.