The rise in smartphones has taken mobile commerce to a great new level. It is expanding rapidly and has been showing unprecedented growth in the last couple of years. New mobile trends and technologies get introduced at regular intervals, and with cutting-edge fields like Artificial Intelligence (AI) and IoT continuously evolving, it has allowed app developers to build even more robust and engaging mobile commerce applications. In this article, we would be discussing the future of mobile commerce, but before we talk about where it is headed and explore the surrounding mCommerce trends, let’s first understand what this term means.

What is Mobile Commerce?

Mobile Commerce, also popularly known as m-Commerce/mCommerce or mobile e-commerce, refers to any online transaction that takes place specifically via handheld devices such as mobile phones, tablets, or wearable devices.

How is it different from eCommerce?

The only difference between eCommerce and mCommerce is that the former is a parent category that involves buying and selling over the Internet whereas the latter term is the child category used for online purchases made using mobile devices. M-commerce not only comprises mobile shopping but also mobile banking and mobile payments/digital wallets. In fact, it involves all buying decision behaviors made using a mobile device such as browsing products, in-app purchases, reading product reviews on your smartphone, and more. With most of the things done on mobile devices these days rather than desktops, the discussion mainly revolves around the user experience associated with mCommerce. Let’s delve into some of its key benefits.

Advantages of mCommerce or a mCommerce Application

There’s got to be something about mobile commerce that has drawn the attention of investors from all around the world. Well, mCommerce provides ample benefits to businesses as well as their customers. Here’s why you should have a mCommerce app for your business.

1. Improved Customer Experience

Needless to say, mobile commerce has made online shopping way more convenient and seamless for customers as they can browse through a range of products and purchase whatever they desire without worrying about carrying a laptop or using desktops. However, with the power of Predictive Analysis, AR, and other technologies that are integrated into mobile applications these days, it has made it easy for the business to gain insights into user behaviour and offer them an enhanced mobile shopping experience.

2. Multiple Payment Options

With mCommerce, businesses can provide customers with a variety of payment options to choose from so that they do not abandon their purchase just because they couldn’t find the desired payment option. With mobile wallets like PayPal, Google Pay, and Apple Pay, the hassle of manually entering the card details every time the user needs to make a purchase is eliminated. This eventually leads to more conversions.

3. Quick Checkout

Unlike other apps and websites that usually follow a lengthy checkout process, mCommerce apps are designed with a short and simple checkout that help users place an order in a few taps and bridges the gap between a prospect and a customer.

Read: Ecommerce UI Design: Strategies and Best Practices

Mobile Commerce Stats You Need to Know

Take a look at some of the stats that highlight the potential of mCommerce and what the future of mCommerce holds. The stats have been collected from various sources.

1. By 2021, mCommerce sales will account for over half of the total eCommerce sales.

2. 49% of consumers use mobile devices for online shopping.

3. The mobile retail revenue in 2020 is expected to cross the $339 billion mark in the USA.

4. The second quarter of 2019 reported the average order value to be over $196 billion via mobile devices and tables combined in the United States.

5. mCommerce is expected to rise at a compound annual growth rate of 25.5% from 2019 to account for 44% of eCommerce volume in 2024, hitting the $488 billion mark.

6. It is expected that by 2021, mCommerce would generate a revenue of $3.56 trillion.

7. mCommerce will surpass eCommerce in the US by 2021 and will make up to 53.9% of the total retail eCommerce.

Mobile Commerce Trends

1. Augmented Reality

One of the major problems associated with online shopping is that consumers can’t really examine a product the way they could in a brick and mortar store, however, with the help of AR technology and its implementation in mCommerce applications, businesses are trying to ensure that consumers get an offline shopping like experience. AR is among the top mobile app design trends currently.

AR features can be witnessed in eyewear apps where users can click their picture and try out the different models to check how it looks on their face. This enables customers to make a more firm buying decision as they can try out the product before rather than waiting for the product to arrive and then trying it out.

2. Voice Search

Voice assistants like Amazon Alexa, Apple Siri, and Google Assistant have added an extra layer of convenience in users’ lives. Today, many people prefer to perform a search using their voice commands. With that being said, voice search is likely to become one of the popular mCommerce trends in the coming years.

It is estimated that more than 50% of the searches would be voice-based by 2020-21. This comes as a wake-up call for businesses to embed voice commands in their mobile applications to meet those voice searches and boost sales. Voice search tends to enhance the shopping experience and will play a crucial role in the expansion of mCommerce. Reports suggest that voice-based shopping might reach $40 billion by 2022.

3. Crypto-Payments

Adding to the list of mCommerce trends is Cryptocurrency which is a type of virtual currency that can be transferred directly from person to person over the Internet. Although some people still aren’t familiar with the concept of cryptocurrencies completely, the rapid growth in crypto-payments will likely outpace other payment options in the future. Many brands look forward to accepting cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin, Etherium, and Litecoin. It offers several advantages like quicker transactions, low transaction fees, local as well as international transactions, and higher security.

4. Social Commerce

Social media is an important aspect when we talk about the future of mobile commerce. Social media applications like Facebook and Instagram help businesses market their brand, products, and services to a wider audience, generate higher engagement, and allow them to communicate with their target audience to get useful insights that could help them upgrade their business strategies, improve ROI, and more. Research says that 51% of millennials are highly likely to make a purchase via social media. Likewise, brands with their social media presence have captured 32% more sales than the ones without it. This clearly signifies that social media provides brands with excellent selling opportunities. With things like Instagram Shopping Posts or Facebook shop/FB store, e-retailers are slowly realizing the potential of social commerce. It will allow users to shop right from the social media app they are using in a few touch taps.

5. Omni-channel Experience

Because of the fierce competition in the market, many businesses are using different channels to interact with their potential customers, drive better relationships, and deliver a rich user experience. Having an omnichannel strategy helps brands boost product visibility, and mobile commerce serves as a vital channel for omnichannel customers- who keep switching from one channel to another during their shopping journey. Such customers appreciate the many touchpoints that retailers offer in all places and combinations. As we move forward, retailers will merge both online and offline concepts into a single entity and ensure that customers get an amazing shopping experience no matter what channel they are present on.

6. Chatbots

Research studies suggested that by the end of 2020, nearly 85% of the customer interactions would be managed without any human intervention, i.e, through Chatbots with around 80% of the business already using or planning to use it. From the mCommerce perspective, chatbots can be a useful asset to send personalized notifications, reminders, and exclusive offers. Besides, integrating chatbots into their customer service will help businesses reap tons of benefits, such as higher user engagement, saving time by handling multiple users with ease, better customer analysis, better productivity, improved customer satisfaction, and more.

Final Word

Mobile commerce will continue to grow, enticing more users, and producing more sales. With people becoming more mobile-friendly and dependent on smartphones for many of their needs, the future of mobile commerce looks impressive and revolutionary. A majority of retailers have already built their mobile app while many are planning to launch it considering the importance of mobile apps these days. Don’t stay behind. Build your mobile app and scale your business. If you do not take advantage of the prevailing mCommerce market, you will only limit the opportunities for success, limit your profits, and will ultimately lag behind your competitors.