Making mobile part of your holiday strategy

Mobile e-commerce sales broke records during the holiday season last year, as Black Friday 2016 became the first day in retail history to drive over $1 billion in mobile revenue. Overall, mobile devices accounted for more than $24 billion during the 2016 holiday season.

With the 2017 holiday season right around the corner, there is no time to waste to ensure you are delivering a pleasant mobile experience to shoppers. Failing to do so means your e-commerce business is leaving money on the table. Here are some things you can do to optimize the mobile experience for holiday shoppers.

Test Your Website’s Mobile Experience

If you have not already done so, the first thing you need to do is check to see what the mobile experience is like for consumers visiting your website. You can easily do that using an online tool like Google’s Mobile-Friendly Test or MobileTest.me, which shows you how your site appears across a number of different mobile devices.

Check Your Website Speed

Nothing will turn away online shoppers faster than a slow website. In fact, 53 percent of mobile site visitors leave a page that takes longer than three seconds to load. In addition to losing traffic, having a slow website will also hurt your Google rankings.

Use Google’s Test My Site to ensure that your website is up to speed. Based on the results of your speed test, you can quickly make improvements based on Google’s suggestions.

Fine Tune Your Product Pages

If you want to sell more product on mobile, then start by fine-tuning your product pages. Keep your product descriptions focused and brief, so the space needed to view the information is limited. You should also use strong imagery that shows your product in its best light. When applicable, use product swatches to relay any product options that are available, so shoppers have better insight to what they are purchasing.

Don’t Forget Search

To help mobile shoppers find the items they are looking for more quickly, enable search functionality on your mobile website. By doing so, users will be able to easily find the items they want and add them to the shopping cart.

Simplify the Checkout Process

The smaller screens on mobile can often make the checkout experience difficult. The need to fill out numerous forms for billing, shipping and credit card information often sends people away without completing their purchase. To enhance, and simplify, the experience, consider adding features like one-click purchasing, or allowing users to register post-sale or by using social media profiles.

Mobilize Your Marketing

As important as it is to ensure that your website is mobile optimized, you also need to take a look at your mobile marketing efforts. From your email marketing campaigns to Facebook ads, ensure that you are using text and images optimized for mobile users to help increase conversions.

For many online retailers, the 2017 holiday season could add a much-needed boost to overall sales and the bottom line. To take full advantage, make sure you are giving mobile users a pleasant experience that makes it easy for them to purchase what they want. If you do, not only will you increase sales, but you may gain a customer for life.

About Endicia

Endicia is a leading provider of internet-based postage services that make it easier and more affordable to ship parcels through the U.S. Postal Service®. We know that shipping can be complex and our goal is to simplify your shipping operations so you can focus on doing what you do best. Visit us at endicia.com to learn more.