For eCommerce enterprises, the sky is the limit. Today, more people are shopping online than ever before. This remark holds in all businesses around the world. You may now reach customers anytime, from any location, via any device, thanks to the Internet’s power. However, the devices you choose to target them on will have a significant impact on your success.

It’s no secret that our lives have been taken over by mobile consumption. According to a recent study, 96 percent of American adults own a mobile phone. A smartphone is owned by 81 percent of the population. Take a look around. These devices are attached to everyone’s hands almost all of the time.

As a business owner, you must be aware of this and adapt accordingly. What are some ways you can use this data to boost your eCommerce sales? The answer is straightforward: your eCommerce store needs a mobile app.

With just a website, your eCommerce store will never attain its full potential. If you look at the most recent eCommerce trends, you’ll see that everything is moving toward mobile.

Is a mobile app, however, essential? Yes, it is essential!

All too frequently, I work with business owners who are satisfied with their eCommerce site’s growth, sales, and revenue. As a result, they don’t see why a mobile app is required.

That was the motivation for me to write this tutorial. You must develop a mobile eCommerce app if you want your brand and website to remain relevant in the following years. This is why:

1. Mobile commerce is on the rise.

Mobile device sales have thoroughly dominated the eCommerce business.

Examine your sales data to identify what devices your customers are using to shop. There’s a fair likelihood that many of those folks are using smartphones and tablets to browse and shop. In fact, mobile devices account for 67 percent of all eCommerce sales worldwide.

App for mobile commerce

Within the next two years, mobile commerce will account for 73% of all global eCommerce sales. People are already accustomed to purchasing on their phones. It’s simply handier than waiting for a computer to open. Our phones are always within reach, whereas a laptop or desktop computer isn’t always the case. Consumers purchase from a variety of sources. People can shop on the bus, train, or Uber thanks to mobile commerce. They are buying online during their lunch break or while walking down the street with a cup of coffee. It’s just too simple.

Mobile app development is the ideal solution for your eCommerce site to obtain a piece of the pie as mobile sales continue to rise in the future years. What is the reason for this? On the other hand, mobile shopping applications are rising at 54 percent year over year. In comparison to any other app category, this is the highest rate. Allow me to put that in context for you. In all industries, the average year-over-year growth rate of mobile app usage is 6%. As a result, shopping is 48 percent greater than the national average. Making a decision like this can often be as simple as reading between the lines. The eCommerce sector is dominated by mobile sales. Shopping applications are becoming more popular than any other form of software on the market. So you’ll know that eCommerce apps will contribute to mobile commerce sales by default.

2. Consumers Prefer Mobile Applications

Are you currently generating eCommerce sales from mobile devices without a mobile app? I’m going to assume the answer is yes. Some of you may look at that data and be satisfied knowing that you’re reaching smartphone and tablet users with your mobile site. However, you’re only scratching the surface. Please don’t get me wrong. Whether you have an app or not, you must have a mobile-friendly website. In fact, 85% of individuals believe that a website should appear as well as or better than its desktop counterpart.

Furthermore, after a terrible encounter with a mobile site, 88 percent of customers are less likely to return. A mobile site should load in two seconds or less, according to 47% of users. As a result, having a user-friendly mobile site is a must for earning eCommerce sales from mobile consumers.

Well at the end of the day, this is the most crucial figure:

Consumers would instead buy from an eCommerce store via an app than via a mobile website, according to 78 percent of respondents. 78 percent, to be exact. Allow that to sink in. This suggests that if you presently have 100 mobile transactions every week, about 80 of those users would prefer to purchase using your native app. And those are your current clients. Consider how many folks you’re missing out on because you don’t have a mobile app.

 The most common reasons why people prefer mobile apps to mobile websites. The top two factors are convenience and speed. In general, mobile apps provide a superior buying experience. Take a look at your own habits. Would you instead buy something for yourself from a website or an app when shopping online? Regardless of how fast or responsive a mobile website is, an app’s functionality will always give a better user experience. So, if your eCommerce site doesn’t have a mobile app, you’re missing out on a large portion of the market while giving your existing clients a bad experience. Even if you’re utilizing a renowned eCommerce platform like Shopify or Magento, this is true. Your online store will be taken to the next level with the help of an app builder.

3. Gain an advantage over the competitors

This is a follow-up to my previous point. Your eCommerce website is now at a disadvantage if it does not have a mobile app. Customers prefer to shop on mobile applications. Therefore it’ll only be a matter of time before they abandon your mobile site entirely. It’s good that you’re still generating mobile sales right now, but it won’t stay forever. Being an early adopter and developing an eCommerce mobile app, on the other hand, will provide you an advantage over other websites that do not.

If a customer can’t decide between your site and a competitor’s, the app will persuade them to buy from you. I understand what some of you are thinking because I’ve heard similar sentiments from other entrepreneurs. You don’t believe any of your major competitors have a mobile app. Therefore there’s no reason for you to get one now. For the time being, you’ll merely concentrate on building a better website than your competitors.

Unfortunately, that is the incorrect mindset.

I don’t mean to be rude, but if you don’t think your competitors have a mobile app, you’re insane.

Amazon is currently competing with every eCommerce shop on the planet. They sell pretty about anything under the sun. Amazon Prime is used by 95 million people in the United States alone. Sure, your branded products might not be available on Amazon. But how distinctive are you? Is it possible for a consumer to get something similar from a different brand on Amazon’s app? Most likely. As a result, people will associate your site with the “Amazon experience” anytime they come. If you can’t meet those requirements, the buyer will have no incentive to buy from you.

There’s one more thing to consider. Today, a mobile app will provide you a competitive advantage, but this will not be the case in the future. Everyone will have a mobile commerce app in the coming years. So it’s to your best advantage to make one right now so you can get a jump start on everyone else who arrived late.

4. Make a One-of-a-Kind Shopping Experience

Personalization is an essential part of eCommerce success. Some of you may already be employing tailored marketing strategies to boost eCommerce sales. When a customer signs up to receive emails from your company, for example, you might divide them into categories based on their age, gender, or location. Then, to improve their experience, you can send them customized emails. The bulk of eCommerce websites employ some of these fundamental strategies.

With an eCommerce mobile app, personalization is taken to the next level. You can use an app to track a user’s browsing and purchasing history to make personalized recommendations. This can be done from a website, but it requires the consumer to be logged in all of the time, so it’s much easier to do through an app.

When it comes to online buying, 63 percent of customers desire a personalized experience. This is an increase from 57 percent two years ago. As a result, this is a continuation of the increasing trend. Consumers can easily view their complete purchase history using an app, making it possible for them to swiftly reorder repeat purchases. These customer profiles may also track customer awards, which I’ll go over in more detail in the next section.

5. Improve Customer Satisfaction

Implementing a customer loyalty program is a terrific approach to entice your consumers to spend more money. Your clients are more likely to join this program if you have an eCommerce mobile app. Customers are also 82 percent more inclined to shop on sites that provide reward programs.

You should absolutely take advantage of this opportunity. Customers can check their progress in a program in real-time through an app, which connects to our earlier point about personalisation. A loyalty program encourages your consumers to spend more money to earn their next prize. Here are a few instances to demonstrate what I mean.

Transactions are one way to set up your loyalty program. It’s a virtual punch card if you will. If you order something 5 times using the app, you’ll get a discount on your 6th purchase. Another option to design a loyalty program is to reward consumers based on the amount of money they spend over a set period of time. Customers who spend $500 over a year will receive a reward or incentive. Customers who spend $1,000 over a year will receive even more benefits.

To reach the next spending tier, consumers are psychologically encouraged to increase their average order value as well as their buy frequency. On your website, some of you may already have a loyalty program. However, using a mobile app to execute the same offer will be even more effective.