|
Restaurants/food |
Cinema, theatre, music |
Average |
||||
| Sales
Loss |
eCommerce Mobile Profits Loss | Sales
Loss |
eCommerce Mobile Profits Loss | Sales
Loss |
eCommerce Mobile Profits Loss | |
| A poor mobile application | -17.7% | -24.6% | -8.8% | -13.6% | -13.3% | -19.1% |
| A poor mobile enabled website | -26.8% | -28.0% | -24.4% | -27.6% | -25.6% | -27.8% |
Expected Sales and Profit Loss from sub-standard mobile offers
Restaurants and entertainment businesses in the UK could be missing out on more than a quarter of their mobile sales as a result of not enabling their website successfully for mobile, research from VoucherCodes.co.uk and the Centre for Retail Research (CRR) has found. This lost opportunity comes despite mobile retail becoming increasingly important to the sectors, with both predicted to experience huge growth in mobile sales.
| Restaurants/
food |
Cinema, theatre, music | Average | |
| proportion of sales 2014 | 28.6% | 23.7% | 26.2% |
| proportion of sales 2017 | 62.6% | 48.7% | 55.7% |
| expected % online 2017 | 72.0% | 73.0% | 72.5% |
Importance of mRetail for Restaurants and Entertainment
Mobile sales to double
The study, which looked at restaurants, cafés, cinemas, theatres, takeaway meals, hospitality and ticketing for events, showed that by 2017 sales via mobile are expected to nearly double. In 2014, 28% of online restaurant and takeaway food sales and 24% of online entertainment sales were ordered on mobile. By 2017, this will grow to 63% of restaurant and takeaway food online sales collectively, with Brits becoming increasingly reliant on their mobiles and tablets to organise and pay for all areas of their social lives.
Although a poor mobile-enabled website affects sales and profits more severely than a weak app, losing 27% of sales and 28% of profits in the restaurants and food sector, and 24% of sales and 28% of profits for entertainment sectors, it is still a mistake to ignore an app’s potential. Music venues, theatre and cinema chains are missing a trick by not targeting mobile savvy consumers with only one in three having a mobile app, compared to just under 70% (69%) of restaurants.
Employees working in these sectors do recognise the importance mobile retail plays for their companies however, with over half stating in the VoucherCodes.co.uk and CRR research that mobile retail had helped their businesses.
Mobile a ‘huge opportunity’
Claire Davenport, Managing Director at VoucherCodes.co.uk:
“Mobile represents a huge opportunity for the leisure and entertainment industries, however our research has found that it is not a priority for many businesses within these sectors. Having a weak app has been shown to be less important than not enabling websites properly for mobile, which can be disastrous for profits – losing businesses over a quarter of potential mobile sales. However businesses should still be considering how to make apps work for them.
“It’s vital that companies sit up and take notice of where payments are headed, and invest in their mobile offers to make sure they aren’t falling at the final hurdle.”
‘Mad to Miss Mobile’ report
The ‘Mad to Miss Mobile’ report by the Centre for Retail Research and VoucherCodes.co.uk identifies that the markets for leisure, entertainment and retail have experienced major changes, and will continue to do so. The growth of online retailing in the UK and around the world has produced both opportunities and risks for businesses, thanks to a combination of changes in consumer behaviours and changes in technology.
For the Mad to Miss Mobile report click here