Mobile Is A Must In 2016, Says Online Shopping Expert

With 2016 well underway, it’s important for small business owners all across Canada to be aware of the new trends that will shape the ways in which our nation’s customers shop. Just before the New Year, eBay Canada’s managing director, Andrea Stairs revealed what she believes are the top five retail trends to expect in 2016. In a special to The Globe and Mail, Stairs notes that “key trends that affected retail in 2015 will continue to shape the landscape in 2016.”

Among the pieces of advice that she includes based on these trends, Stairs advises business owners to be wary of fierce competition and to focus on event shopping. Planning for big shopping days such as Black Friday and Cyber Monday should be on the menu as they’ve become pretty popular with Canadians in the way they have with Americans. Stairs also notes that online sales in Canada are steadily increasing and that companies should make mobile online shopping a “must”.

“Along with increased online purchasing, sales are increasingly ‘digitally influenced’ by mobile sites and applications built for product research, deal comparisons and efficient purchasing,” she informs, “An Apptentive survey found that 51 per cent of respondents on retail mobile apps use them while shopping in-store, allowing retailers to engage customers, build loyalty and improve the overall shopping experience.”

Stairs highlights the fact that online shopping is not only growing in popularity, but smartphones and other handheld devices are also increasing in their use for making purchases. As a result, Canadian business owners are encouraged to create mobile apps so that Canadian consumers can find very easy ways to connect with their business websites and make purchases with ease. This has been proven to be a successful strategy.

“For retailers, persuading consumers to download and use their mobile apps is the holy grail of online shopping,” Stairs insists, “In the United States, Sears recently announced upgrades to its mobile app and online platform as it continued to see in-store and catalogue sales decline. Companies such as eBay, Amazon and Wal-Mart that invested extensively in mobile app development are reaping the rewards. Far from being an edge case, mobile purchasing is now part of the mainstream.”

As far as Stairs is concerned, it is imperative that Canadian business owners not only have strong online presences, but also allow for their customers to make purchases online as well. Having websites that are easily attainable through mobile devices will only prove to increase sales. She points out that this is a growing trend in Canada, but there is still a lot of growth to be had, according to statistics.

“Even as the ranks of Canadian smartphone users grows, Statistics Canada reports that just 19 per cent of Canadian companies have websites optimized for mobile,” she reveals, “Canadian businesses should all be online – that’s a must – but to stay competitive and effectively reach their consumers, they also need to have strong mobile offerings.”

If you haven’t yet begun to sell your products online, Canadian POS Corporation can offer you the ideal e-commerce solution so that you can begin reaping the benefits of Canada’s fascination with online shopping. For more information, please don’t hesitate to call us at 1-877-748-2884 or email us at info@localhost.