Mobile shopping: more and more Swiss are shopping online using their mobile phone

Alex Hämmerli

28.5.2018

Translation: machine translated

Four years ago, mobile shopping was virtually non-existent in Switzerland. Today, at digitec and Galaxus, one in five online purchases is made via a smartphone. Women and digital natives - children of the digital age - are particularly likely to make purchases using their mobile phones, preferably early in the morning.

Online shopping in Switzerland is rapidly migrating to mobile devices: today, the mobile phone is used for more than a fifth of all purchases made from online retailer Digitec Galaxus. By way of comparison: at the start of 2014, digitec and Galaxus customers were still making 99 out of every 100 online purchases from a desktop or laptop computer. Adding in tablet purchases, mobile shopping now accounts for more than 30% of online purchases.

Swiss consumers use smartphones far more often for research and inspiration than for online shopping, whether on the tram, on the sofa at home or during the weekday coffee break. Currently, smartphones account for over a third of all visits to digitec and Galaxus (including applications). If tablets are included, the share of mobile visits to the shops is now close to 50%.

One in four people have already placed an order using their mobile phone

These days, mobile shopping is by far no longer just the preserve of a few "heavy users" who buy very often on the Internet. On the contrary, this method of shopping has become popular with a large proportion of the population, who see it as a complementary option: since 2014, more than a quarter of Digitec Galaxus customers (26.6%) have ordered something at least once by mobile phone or tablet. In the first quarter of 2018, the rate was 22.6%. "This is widespread consumer behaviour," says Florian Teuteberg, CEO of Digitec Galaxus.

However, there are significant differences depending on the time of day and the days of the week: during traditional Swiss working hours - i.e. from 8am to 5pm - the computer remains the instrument used for e-shopping. The data for the first three months of 2018 are a good example of this (see chart). Early in the morning, however, mobile phones play just as important a role as computers. "The Swiss make purchases using their mobile phones, usually at breakfast or on the way to work," explains Florian Teuteberg. There is another peak in mobile phone use during the lunch break. Similarly, after work, shopping migrates back to mobile devices. mobile devices.

Moreover, during the week, the computer is clearly and almost always the tool of choice for online purchases: the proportion of computers used for purchases from Monday to Friday is just over 70%. On Saturdays, this figure falls to 62% on average, on Sundays to just under 65%, with the share of mobile phones on Saturdays and tablets on Sundays being particularly high.

Women and digital natives are often mobile shoppers

The differences in usage behaviour between genders and age groups are striking: women shop online with their mobile phone around 40% more often than men, and 35% more often with a tablet. By contrast, men use computers to make online purchases 15% more often. When it comes to visits, however, the difference between the sexes is barely noticeable: men use their mobile phone almost as often as women to find out about products they might want to buy.

The gender differences are probably linked to employment: digitec and Galaxus record a particularly high number of purchases during normal working hours. And according to the Swiss Federal Statistical Office, men in Switzerland, at 20%, have more frequent access to a computer.

When it comes to age, it's becoming clear that customers under 35 visit digitec and Galaxus more often with their mobile phone than with their computer. As a general rule, the older an online shopper is, the more likely they are to use a computer for their visits and purchases. The same applies to tablets: today, in one in six cases, people over 55 adopt this type of device to visit an online shop.

Mobile shopping expected to continue to grow

"We assume that mobile shopping via smartphones will continue to grow in importance," says Florian Teuteberg. Limited screen formats and restrictions in terms of handling and overview have, in the past, largely discouraged many online shoppers from making purchases using their mobile phones. "In recent years, the trend towards larger smartphone screens has become more pronounced," explains Teuteberg. "It should give an additional boost to online shopping."

More and more apps specifically dedicated to shopping are also helping to optimise the mobile experience. For example, apps from digitec and Galaxus now offer a feature that doesn't exist on computers: augmented reality shopping. This technology allows customers, on the screen of their smartphone or tablet, to see the rendering of a television in the living room, or a coffee machine in the kitchen, and all to scale. According to Teuteberg, "we're still in the infancy of these kinds of advances."

Alex Hämmerli

Senior Public Relations Manager

Alex.Haemmerli@digitecgalaxus.ch

At Digitec and Galaxus, I’m in charge of communication with journalists and bloggers. Good stories are my passion – I am always up to date.

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