Study breaks down mobile preferences by in store vs. out, smartphone vs. tablet, Android vs. iPhone.
Retale, a location-based mobile platform connecting shoppers with their favorite local retailers, announced the results of a commissioned study examining anticipated consumer shopping behavior during the busy holiday season.
The study focused on two key areas—the use of mobile devices and overall spending trends. It polled 1,000 adult men and women across the U.S. between Oct. 20-27, 2014.
Holiday Spending
According to the survey, 82% plan to spend the same amount or more on holiday spending as compared to last year, while just 18% plan on scaling back and spending less.
Some 25% prefer to get a head start on their gift buying by shopping year round, while 60% wait until November; 31% start shopping “around Nov. 1″ with 29% waiting until the day after Thanksgiving. 15% wait until the last minute to do their shopping.
When asked where they would do their shopping, 22% said online only, 24% said brick-and-mortar retail stores only, and 54% said they would shop both online and in-store.
Top Mobile Shopping Activities
Among those owning a mobile device, 73% plan to use them for holiday shopping, with the most common mobile shopping activities of those users being finding deals (97%); comparing prices (96%) researching products (96%); accessing coupons (92%); finding stores (89%); and buying directly from the device (85%).
On average, 60% of these activities take place both in and out of stores as mobile devices are increasingly used to support both experiences. A full look into location preferences for holiday shopping habits is shown in the chart below.
MOBILE ACTIVITY | IN-STORE | OUT-OF-STORE | BOTH |
Find deals | 8% | 20% | 69% |
Compare prices | 11% | 18% | 67% |
Research products online | 8% | 27% | 61% |
Access coupons | 14% | 16% | 62% |
Find store locations | 12% | 26% | 51% |
Buy directly from device | 9% | 30% | 46% |
The top activity conducted out-of-store is buying directly from a mobile device (30%), with the most common in-store activity being the accessing of coupons (14%). The least likely in-store mobile activity is finding deals (8%) and researching products (8%), while accessing coupons (16%) is the least likely out-of-store activity.
“During the holiday season, mobile is increasingly critical for shoppers, whether in-store or out,” said Pat Dermody, president of Retale. “There is no doubt that mobile must be a part of everyone’s holiday strategy from giving customers an opportunity to find deals to helping them find your stores to buying from their devices, mobile is where it’s at this year.”
Smartphone Versus Tablet
When asked what kind of device— smartphone or tablet—they prefer for mobile shopping activities, respondents indicated the smartphone is the dominant format. On average, 47% prefer using a smartphone for shopping activities, with just 32% opting for a tablet. The full preferences, based on device format, are:
MOBILE ACTIVITY | Smartphone | Tablet |
Find deals | 48% | 33% |
Compare prices | 47% | 35% |
Research products online | 41% | 42% |
Access coupons | 48% | 26% |
Find store locations | 61% | 21% |
Buy directly from device | 36% | 33% |
The top smartphone activity is finding store locations (61%), with researching products online (42%) the preferred context for tablet use, and the only area where tablets exceeded smartphones (by a single percentage point).
Android Versus iPhone
In analyzing responses based on mobile platform ownership/use, Retale discovered a number of differences among Android and Apple users, specifically. Android and Apple owners accounted for 89% of those surveyed.
- Apple users (89%) are more likely to buy directly from their devices than Android users (85%)
- Android users (51%) prefer mobile shopping on a smartphone more than Apple users (48%)
- Apple users (86%) are more likely to spend the same amount or more on holiday spending this year than Android users (80%)