Among all the analyses we performed for the just-released edition of the Ecommerce Quarterly, the one big takeaway was this: Desktop still dominates.
That may not come as a surprise to those paying close attention to your customer’s buying habits, but there’s been so much talk about mobile (i.e. the buzz around the announcement that Apple Pay is coming to the web), that we’d forgive you if you are tempted to neglect the good ‘ol desktop PC.
Despite its un-sexiness, you ignore desktop at your own peril. Here’s why.
Surprising desktop stat #1: Desktop’s revenue per session is up 12% YoY
Since Q1 2015, revenue per session on desktops has gone from $ 4.57 to $ 5.13, a 12% jump.
The reason for that change? Shoppers are spending less time (but more money) on desktops, as more non-converting traffic goes to tablets and smartphones. Consider: desktop’s overall share of website visits dropped YoY from 60.21% in Q1 2015 to 52.96% in Q1 2016. Revenue generated from desktop visitors, meanwhile, jumped nearly 6%.
Mobile and tablet, which combined made up just 26% of all ecommerce revenue, both trended similarly. But neither did so at the same scale as desktop.
Surprising desktop stat #2: At its peak, desktop’s share of page views hits 84%
That’s at around 2pm every day.
While mobile is eating into desktop’s overall share of website visitors and its overall share of page views, the above stat shows just how far we have to go before desktop plays second fiddle to anything else.
There’s a trickle-up effect at play here, as well.
During that same, daily 2pm window, 93% of all ecommerce purchases are made on desktop. In fact, that overall desktop dominance is pretty much constant from 8am–4pm every day. It’s only outside of normal working hours that mobile and tablet do much to even the distribution.
Surprising desktop stat #3: Desktop conversion rates are more than double mobile
In Q1 2016, desktop visitors converted at 3.89%, up nearly 10% from Q1 2015 (3.55%). Meanwhile, mobile conversion rates improved 24% over the same time frame (from 1.15% in Q1 2015 to 1.43% in Q1 2016). Still, that improvement in mobile conversions did little to alter the landscape. Desktop visitors still convert 63% more frequently than mobile visitors.
It’s a huge discrepancy and one that warrants your attention, especially when it comes to paid acquisition tactics. But it’s also one that’s worth looking at more globally. Because as we found in the just-released EQ, customers in more than six million purchases made during Q1 2016 used more than one device to complete their shopping journey.
Want to know more about mobile’s role in converting visitors to shoppers? Or how long after their first visit it takes most people to make a decision to purchase? Or how one major retail brand is targeting their very best customers across all devices to improve their shopping experiences?
We cover all that (and more) in the latest EQ. Grab your copy today.
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