App Commerce by Poq – June Round-Up 2020
Over June we have seen the reduction in lockdown measures as non-essential shops in the UK opened on June 15th and social distancing to be reduced to 1m+ on July 4th. This month we examine the future of app experiences, the latest trends in consumer behaviour and the predictions for retail after COVID-19. Also, join us at the world’s first virtual festival dedicated to ecommerce apps this September for dedicated discussions about app commerce and consumer behaviour.
Future of Ecommerce App Experiences
Apple’s WWDC 2020 announcement had some interesting updates for apps and how we use them. What could have the biggest impact on retail is App Clips. Described as small part of an app launched on-demand without the need to download the entire app. Saving time when users just need to access one small feature of an app quickly in a time of need. But how could this work for retail?
App Clips will support the likes of Apple Pay and barcode scanners, so omnichannel retailers could use this tool to empower self-checkout in-store, or let shoppers scan a barcode for product information in-store. There are potentially lots of great ways App Clips could enhance the shopping experience. Additionally, by making some features available in App Clips for shoppers to try before committing to downloading the entire app, this should increase the likelihood of the user going on to download the app.
Current consumer behaviour trends
We’ve pulled together the top stats and trends in consumer behaviour during the lockdown period:
- Online shopping levels over April & May 2020 were 7% higher than during retail’s busiest time of year – the holiday period, November & December 2019. That’s $52 billion more spent online in April & May than expected. Meanwhile, more affluent shoppers are more likely to make more purchases online and maintain this behaviour after COVID.
- Online habits have changed. Lockdown internet usage in the UK during early mornings is down 25 to 34%. Meanwhile, daytime internet usage grew by 10-30%, and Nighttime usage from midnight to 3am increased by 25%. A similar story was seen across the US and Australia too.
- Several companies found data to support that shoppers preference for online shopping has grown over the pandemic.
- Visa found in the UK 41% are shopping online more frequently and 74% of those shoppers will continue to do so after lockdown measures are lifted and 31% have made their first online purchase during COVID-19.
- 39% of UK consumers have made purchases online during the outbreak that had not considered buying online before. This jumps to 63% in the US, according to global commerce services company PFS.
- 32.8% of consumers are making as many purchases as they did before the outbreak, just these are now online.
- Unsurprising there has been a drop in the use of cash and a rise in the use of cards and contactless payment methods in shops. Card and contactless accounted for 51% of payments in the UK in 2019, overtaking cash for the first time. Showing a movement towards contactless and mobile payments before the outbreak. Contactless payments actually jumped 10% as non-essential stores opened their doors again according to Barclaycard.
- Internet Retailing hails now as the ‘Golden age of m-commerce driven by apps’, as new research from Liftoff shows that the cost to acquire a user has halved (down by 50.6%) compared to last year.
- Meanwhile, install-to-purchase rates have grown 40%, showing higher intent to purchase on apps as well as app shoppers taking the decision to make a purchase after just 9 hours of downloading a retail app and registering within 16 minutes. This is much shorter than gaming and utility apps.
- Overall cost per install is down one-third meaning shoppers are more receptive to shopping on apps.
Learn first hand from app experts and retail’s industry leaders on what the future of app commerce looks like and how you can prepare your app to meet consumer expectations at our free to attend, App Commerce Virtual Festival this September.
Post-COVID-19 consumer behaviour predictions
Many expect the new behaviours we have adopted during the pandemic are here to stay and at the very least won’t return to pre-outbreak levels. Coronavirus has been a catalyst for services like curbside pick-up and BOPIS (Buy Online Pick-up In-Store) and demand is expected to continue to grow well into 2022 according to eMarketer.
Meanwhile, eMarketer also found that the time spent on mobile is expected to rise as time spent on laptops/desktops are expected to shrink a small amount and time spent with Radio, TV & Print are all predicted to decrease by 2021.
Meanwhile, McKinsey & Company reviewed how consumers expect to spend their time after COVID-19 and found that consumers expect to do more online shopping for both essentials and non-essential items after the COVID-19. However, activities like shopping in-store and going to the mall are expected to decrease.
