Increase Add-to-Cart Rates: Killer Features for Mobile Commerce Apps

That said, when ecommerce software development is in its discovery phase, one should clearly define feature scope to ensure the app will make the cut.

Let’s dive right in and discover what improves the conversion rates of mobile commerce apps and which m commerce technologies can win the long-term loyalty of consumers.

It’s worthwhile to learn from top-grade e commerce applications. Below, you’ll find a list of the leading m commerce apps featured in Google’s Play Store.

Wish’s shopping app places first. Today, it boasts over 100 million downloads and an average satisfaction score of 4.5.

This m commerce app functionality includes a simple signup; a handy item search with a good filter logic and related products for impulsive buying; push notifications with personalized promos; various payment methods, including e-wallets, PayPal, Amazon Pay, credit, and debit cards.

In fact, Wish is a marketplace that helps sellers and buyers stay connected. Inspired by wish lists, the mobile commerce app has a few more perks:

• a wish list for shoppers;
• advanced search algorithm based on consumer likes and dislikes;
• instant discounts on specific products;
• personalized item feeds;
• a range of “clone” apps with a specific product assortment like Geek, offering gadgets for sale; and
• a separate mobile commerce app for merchants and wholesalers to handle their inventory, products, etc.

These features engage users, but they do not impact a mobile app conversion rate at wider scale. In its latest report, Qubit claims that page loading speed and product discovery are primary factors that influence buying decisions.

The slower a page loads, the lower the conversion of mcommerce apps becomes. Google has long been encouraging website and mobile app owners to optimize for speed, especially after a mobile-first index was launched in 2018.

Not all mobile users have a smooth internet connection and powerful mobile devices, so load tests must be run in harsh conditions. BigCommerce suggests using a variety of tools to give a big picture: Page Speed Insights for both desktop and mobile speed testing, Test My Site to assess time to interaction via a 3G connection, and Pingdom to run website performance tests that return lists with bottlenecks to work on.

Other improvements that will enhance mcommerce apps performance include optimization of:

• mobile commerce software code (CSS, HTML, JavaScript, etc.);
• load priority of mobile elements (with interactive elements loading prior to social sharing buttons, etc.);
• product images resolutions and text descriptions, making them responsive on mobile devices used by target audience;
• third-party analytics tracking tools; and
• functionality and features.

To boost app efficiency, m commerce companies must conduct ongoing feature audits. The Capital One banking app is a good mcommerce app example, rolling out upgrades on a regular basis. Because they’re aiming to create a simplified user journey, they have enabled a quick sign-in feature through Fingerprint or SureSwipe® as well as a real-time credit card monitoring with instant purchase notifications.What other enhancements can attract more users to mobile commerce apps? Let’s proceed to our major findings.

Efficient mcommerce apps must be simple and handy. To achieve the desired effect, mcommerce companies, or mobile commerce software providers, should carefully plan app navigation and design.

Most people hold devices in one hand, which is why app functionality must be tailored to both right and left-handed users. Natural thumb reach is limited, therefore top-priority elements must be placed in the center of the application to avoid inaccurate tapping.

Thus, the add-to-cart or pay buttons may be placed right in the center. When planning tier 3 functionality, it is worth following another simple UX rule: no more than three taps to take a user to the place of destination. If it is a shopping app, then this menu structure would be a good fit: categories / subcategories / products.

A search bar alone is another essential design element that has a positive impact on mcommerce app add-to-cart rates. It’s widely recommended to use predefined navigation elements to prevent any confusion.

Generally, signups should not be mandatory, but they do require reading a statement on personal data processing. It is a good practice to let a user make purchases as a guest and sign up only when he or she is willing to do so. The signup form itself must be straightforward: an email and password to fill in, or a one-click registration via social media accounts.

A well-thought-out search makes a huge difference. When combined together with autocomplete, highlighting, and a spell checker, it becomes a real time saver for users and increases conversion of mobile commerce apps.

Amy Marks, Marketing Manager at Klevu, says “shoppers are 3 times more likely to convert with search.”

The question is whether you need to add something extra like visual search. Even though people have not fully accustomed to searching with images yet, the trend is growing. Hootsuite asserts that Pinterest’s visual searches have doubled since 2017, going up to 600 million visual searches by February 2018.

Lately, more mcommerce app users are requesting a visual search feature if an app does not support it. The idea behind it is pretty clear – users take a photo of a barcode, scan QR codes, or pictures of products and proceed to the catalog.

Voice search also shows big promise. Walmart and Target are teaming up with Google’s voice assistant, while Amazon goes all out to win other brands with Alexa.

In his interview to CNBC, Devin Wenig, eBay’s CEO, said that there has been a shift from text to voice and images.

Voice searches are also an invaluable source of analytics. The mcommerce technology allows customizing user experience by analyzing search queries and personalize searched items.

Augmented reality (AR) is the next big thing that’s being widely talked about in the ecommerce field. This m commerce technology is now being adopted by famous retailers and the result is stunning.

The Swedish furniture-selling retailer IKEA released its AR mcommerce application back in 2017. Powered by Apple’s new ARKit technology, IKEA Place allows people to experiment with new designs of any space, be it an office or a concert hall. First versions of the app had some glitches, but now the m commerce app has been significantly improved:

IKEA is not the sole adopter of AR, of course. In 2018, Shopify rolled out an AR product image creation feature that allowed its merchants to design 3D models of products to be sold. These tools are affordable for all retailers, no matter their size.

These m commerce technologies are being used to enhance personalization and automate the routine tasks handled by a help desk.

Searches on machine learning fetch far more accurate results. Together with artificial intelligence, they are now applied to chatbots resolving customer care issues, handling transactions, and providing recommendations. Thus, Facebook Messenger allows retailers to process payments without forcing customers to quit the messenger.

Here are more chatbot use cases. Some of them are likely to find application in mcommerce apps.

Need more chatbot mcommerce examples? H&M has launched such a shopping assistant. It helps customers create a nice outfit based on one piece of clothing uploaded and guide them all the way to purchase. Starbucks also allows orders to be placed via text messages or voice, while a chatbot informs customers about the order status and cost.

Furthermore, there are multitudes of standalone chatbots, like Tidio, which can integrate with marketplaces to support customers.

The benefits of chatbots are plentiful, including instant and timely support, increased sales, error prevention, better customer satisfaction level, and analytics built around customer preferences.

The barriers to mobile commerce software development have never been so low. Even if your company has no tech specialists to develop a mobile commerce app from scratch, you can reach out to digital solution providers, like Innovecs, and have the app delivered within a set time and budget.

We have been around for over 6 years and gained hands-on experience in the full-cycle of mobile commerce software development. Our software engineers are capable of handling:

• Product development from concept to final release and its submission to app stores
• Revamp your existing mcommerce app to add features powered by AI, ML, AR
• Expand a mobile commerce software functionality

Even if you have no clear idea for an mcommerce app, we can help spark some thoughts and transform it into a ready-to-go concept backed up by MVP.

Within the retail and ecommerce industries, you can also rely on us for:

• Shared team members (QAs, DevOPs, UI/UX designers)
• Strong expertise in new tech with proof of concept
• Well-defined work processes built in line with Agile best practices
• Well-grounded product requirements and user stories
• Instant cross-team expertise sharing to ensure tech stack is selected properly

Just drop us a line in the contact form below and receive detailed practical advice for mobile commerce software development.