RichRelevance: 2012 Q1 Mobile Shopping Market Report

According to data released by RichRelevance, in Q1 2012, iPad accounted for 2/3 of mobile shopping volume and 89% of revenue. Mobile channels accounted for 4.6% of total e-commerce sales (compared to only 1.9% in April 2011). Other iOS devices generated 4% of sales revenue, and other mobile devices accounted for the remaining 7%. The report found that all mobile shopping processes accounted for 9% of the total online shopping process.

Data from RichRelevance Shopping Insights 2012 Q1 shows that the average customer spending for iPad users is $158, 50% higher than other iOS devices ($104) and other mobile devices ($105), and also higher than desktop and laptop computers ($153).

This finding coincides with a January 2012 study by Adobe Systems, which analyzed data from more than 150 U.S. e-commerce sites and found that in 2011, tablet visitors spent an average of $123 per purchase, 54% higher than smartphone users ($80) and 21% higher than users of traditional desktop and laptop computers ($102).

RichRelevance's report shows that iPad users are more generous in purchasing high-priced products. They order less than half the number of products per order than desktop and laptop users (3 vs. 6.9), and less than other mobile users. However, the average price per item ordered by iPad users ($53) is higher than that of other mobile (24$) and desktop users (22$).

By analyzing the shopping behavior of iPad users, it is found that they are most active on Saturdays, accounting for 7.6% of the process, followed by Sunday at 6.8%, and Wednesday at the lowest share, at 4.3%. The data also shows that tablet users open more emails and watch more videos at night. iPad users are also more inclined to shop at night. Half of iPad users' shopping behavior occurs after 5 pm to midnight, of which 9.5% occurs at 9 pm.

The conversion rate for iPad users is three times that of other mobile devices (1.5% vs. 0.5%), and lower than the conversion rate for desktop and laptop users (2.3%).

On average, 6% of weekend orders come from mobile devices (including iPads), compared to 4% on weekdays. For desktop and laptop computers, the highest value product is gift cards, with an average price of $100, while iPads and large-screen TVs are the main revenue drivers, with an average price of $310.

Data source: The study is based on more than 4.4 billion shopping sessions on U.S. retail websites from April 1, 2011 to March 25, 2012. The data includes both large and small retailers. Ten of the top 25 retailer websites were included in the study.