Research from IMRG and Capgemini found that 23% of all online retail sales in Q2 2013 came from mobile devices and interestingly, while tablets account for 85% of all mobile sales to date, smartphones have seen a greater rate of growth in mobile transactions. 

YOY Growth: Total e-Retail & e-Retail excluding mobile

With the consumerisation of IT, people are now more sophisticated than ever when it comes to mobile and expect a good user experience when shopping on smartphones and tablets.

According to the Jumio Consumer Mobile Insights study, users will abandon their mobile baskets if the checkout process is too long or too difficult to navigate on the device. This is why it is so important for retailers to implement a smooth mobile payment process when it comes to mobile apps and the mobile web, as well as responsive websites.  

Simple design

When thinking about delivering a great mobile web or native app shopping experience, it’s best to take a mobile-first approach. This means starting from scratch when it comes to mobile.

The mobile shopping experience is very different to the desktop shopping experience so marketers need to be understanding of mobile shopping behaviours in order to create a seamless mobile payment experience. 

Findings from IAB Research in 2012 show that the home is the most widely used location for mobile activity. But it’s important to remember that people are still using their mobile devices while on the move as well. Marketers need to find the right balance when thinking about the different types of devices content is viewed on and where.

This means analysing the situations users are in when using their mobile devices and the behaviours they adopt in those contexts. 

A simple design should make it easy for consumers to find what they are looking for. The key is ensuring users have a good mobile experience. Keeping an app or mobile website simple is key to providing a smooth payment process. 

Don’t redirect to pay

When users are redirected from an app to a web page to finish their transaction it disrupts the payment process.

Consumers expect web pages to load quickly and being redirected outside of an app could lead to a loss of a sale, not only this but it might make consumers feel worried about the security of the payment if they are being redirected to somewhere unfamiliar. 

Seek relevant info at the right time

By the time the user reaches the checkout screen, it’s likely they are going to continue with the transaction, unless of course the process isn’t made easy for them. No one wants to be greeted with a really long form to fill in. Brands can always request additional information at a later stage.

Some companies are now making it easy to integrate secure payment systems that only ask for the relevant information ensuring the user’s time isn’t wasted. 

The key details needed to process transactions online are the delivery and billing address, as well as the long card number, expiry date and CVV number. Clearly labelling what needs to go in each of the form fields and in what format is also important; some users may not know what a CVV number is or they might not know whether to include spaces in between their card number for example.

Threadless does this well by instructing the user exactly what needs to go in each form field.

Threadless mobile website 

Create seamless transitions between screens

Keep the user informed

Ensuring the user knows exactly where they are and how long they have left before the process is complete will decrease the chance of drop offs. Including a progress bar helps in most cases and a lot of retailers already do this.

Topshop mobile checkout

Show clear delivery options

Make sure the user knows exactly how much their delivery costs and when the product will be delivered. A survey conducted by Econsultancy and TolunaQuick found that 74% of shoppers would abandon a purchase if delivery charges were too high – this shows how important it is to show delivery costs from the beginning so the user isn’t misguided.

The John Lewis iPhone app shows clear delivery options for each product with the option to click for further details.

John Lewis mobile app checkout

Checkout as a guest

Making users register an account before they checkout is a proven way of reducing conversion rates. As mentioned earlier, no one wants to waste their time filling in unnecessary form fields just to register in order to make a purchase and there is clear evidence for this. ASOS managed to halve its abandonment rate on the registration page by removing any mentions of creating an account.

Remove distractions at checkout

By the time the user has reached the checkout, they are probably going to want to buy.

Brands no longer need to attract the user’s attention so the checkout area can be kept minimal, only showing the required fields so as not to distract the user from the checkout process. 

Communicate security assurances

Consumers need to feel protected throughout the checkout process and know that their debit or credit card information is completely secure. According to a 2013 white paper on basket abandonment by Jumio, the top reason for users failing to complete a mobile transaction is not feeling comfortable entering credit card information. 

The key to making sure customers feel safe is providing constant reassurances as well as providing alternative payment options, like PayPal for example, which doesn’t involve the user sharing card details directly. Make sure there is always an encrypted connection for users at the final checkout page and use padlocks and familiar logos to communicate the site is secure. 

According to the Jumio Mobile Insights Study, abandonment of mobile transactions is at a level of around 66%. This figure is so high for a number of reasons, the main one being that many consumers are still cautious when making payments on mobile devices. What we can do as marketers is encourage a secure shopping environment and make the checkout process as easy and as smooth as possible.