Mobile Shopping Drives Jump in Online Buying

RAPAPORT… US e-commerce sales grew 19% in the first five weeks of the
holiday season, making it the biggest online-shopping period of all time,
according to Adobe Analytics.



Revenues came to $80.3 billion between November 1 and
December 6, compared with $67.7 billion a year ago, the
data provider told Rapaport News Thursday.


Sales by smartphone grew 55% to $23.7 billion. Shopping on
mobile devices accounted for 58% of site visits, an 18% increase over the
previous year. Of those, 49% occurred on smartphones and 8% on tablets, Adobe
added. It based the results on a survey of more than 1,000 consumers.


Total US online sales will hit $124.1 billion for the entire
season from November 1 to December 31, the group predicted.


“Retailers are reaping the rewards of their investments in
mobile, and have seen unprecedented success in converting mobile traffic to
sales,” said Taylor Schreiner, director of Adobe Digital Insights. “Smartphones
are driving this season’s impressive growth.”


Adobe also noted a 46% increase in shoppers buying online
and picking up goods in-store. Meanwhile, a fifth of US shoppers plan to carry
out more than 75% of their purchases through big online retailers such as
Amazon and eBay, it found.

Customers in Alaska, California, Washington, New York and Wyoming spent the most per order, on average, Adobe added.

Image: Online shopping on a mobile phone. (Shutterstock)