“Device Hopping” is a technical shopping term referencing online shopper behavior. A New York Times article titled “Retailers Try to Adapt to Device-Hopping Shoppers” (December 2012) refers to the “device hopping” process as researching and shopping on one device and purchasing on another.
A Barilliance study from June of this year found that 41% of Smartphone Shoppers started their shopping session on a different device than the one they ultimately purchased from. Add in tablet users and almost 1 of every 3 shoppers completed their purchase on a different device than that it was initiated on.
What does this mean for retailers, service providers and self service companies? What can be done to increase conversions and move those shoppers more quickly from a smart phone environment to a tablet or PC where the product is more easily viewed and the purchase process more easily navigated?
1. Invest in improving website checkout navigation and purchase processes. Studies, testing, and redesign improvements need to be made to retailer websites to improve the shopping experience and increase conversions.
Baymard Institute reports are a great place to start with this research.
2. Improve the website’s mobile experience. If the mobile experience can be improved, perhaps fewer users will “device hop” – completing their purchase without hopping to a new device.
3. Increase the availability of preferred devices. If users prefer to purchase from a PC or tablet, make those devices available for customers in locations where they might be useful. This could be in-store, or in relevant peripheral locations where customers can be targeted. Areas of congregation such as train stations, waiting rooms, lobbies, and more are other opportunities to convert users from mobile shoppers to device hopping purchasers. Since the website is already created, set up kiosks using kiosk software (like KioWare) and configure to allow users to swipe credit cards (rather than manually enter) in order to speed up the checkout process.
To benefit from device hopping, a bit of innovation and imagination is required. What other types of device hopping are there? What other methods are available to increase conversions from those that device hop?