An increasing amount of Asia-Pacific consumers are now using their mobile devices to make online purchases. That’s according to Visa’s 2015 regional ecommerce monitor survey that polled almost 12,000 people in 13 Asia Pacific markets.
The report discovered a regional 22% increase of shopping via mobile phones compared to the 2014 survey. Specifically respondents from Indonesia and Mainland China recorded the greatest rise in mobile shopping growing 36% and 34% respectfully.
"The results of the 2015 Visa ecommerce Monitor Survey show that making purchases on-the-go through mobile devices is becoming the norm in Asia Pacific,” says Conor Lynch, regional director for ecommerce at Visa.
The increased use of mobile devices for making online purchases signals a regional shift away from traditional devices such as laptops and desktops for conducting online transactions. The survey discovered that there was only a 9% and 8% gap between mobile online transactions and tradition ecommerce in Korea and China respectively.
“As consumers get more comfortable using their smart devices to research, browse and purchase, mcommerce should soon overtake traditional ecommerce habits, strengthening this channel of engagement between consumers and retailers," adds Lynch.
Visa’s survey also revealed that ecommerce in general was diminishing borders between retailers and consumers. In Asian developed markets of Singapore and Hong Kong, three out four (76%) consumers are more likely to make online purchases from retailers abroad above. The Asia-Pacific average of making online purchases abroad was 55%.
In terms of top purchases done via ecommerce, the survey in addition revealed that 74% of Asia-Pacific consumers used online channels for purchasing travel tickets and booking hotels, this was followed by bills (69%) and movies (52%).
"Across Asia Pacific, we are seeing that ticket size, as well as the nature of the purchase, impacts how consumers purchase goods and services online. Consumers in this part of the world, are already comfortable purchasing smaller ticket-sized items or everyday items by clicking the purchase button on an app or checkout button on a mobile device," Lynch said.
