UK consumers leading the world in mobile spending

More than 40 percent of online spending in the UK was via a mobile in 2016, according to Adobe’s latest Digital Index.

In the run-up to Christmas, for every 10 pounds spent online in the UK, 4.10 pounds was done so over a smartphone. In addition, the data reveals that just under two-thirds (60 percent) of online visits to UK retailers during the holiday season were made on a mobile device.

That’s a huge increase compared to Q2 of 2016 when smartphones were responsible for just over a third (36 percent) of traffic to UK retailers, and only 1.70 pounds of every 10 pounds spent online.

The UK’s mobile spending and visits to retailers over Christmas was also substantially higher than the rest of the world, for instance 3.10 pounds in every 10 pounds, and 50 percent of online visits to retailers came via a mobile in the US, while the Nordics recorded 3 pounds in every 10 pounds and a 49 percent share of traffic, and Germany saw mobile revenue drop to 2.70 pounds and traffic to 44 percent.

John Watton, EMEA marketing director, Adobe, said: “2016 saw an unprecedented surge in online Holiday shopping, and mobile shopping in particular. Consumers’ desire to purchase items on mobile devices is clearly there.

“In an increasingly competitive retail market, it’s critical that retailers continue to personalise the shopping experience – across all devices and touchpoints – so that users are compelled to purchase more on their smartphones throughout the whole year.”

Overall, the report notes that it was a strong holiday season for the UK, with 24.48 billion pounds spent online during the period, an increase of 11 percent compared to 2015. It adds that the strong growth was partly driven by a surge in last minute Christmas shopping, with the amount spent on the last Monday before Christmas, December 19, increasing by 50 percent in 2016.