Rising Shopping Apps Boosting M-Commerce in India: Survey

With surging Internet penetration, mobile retail and shopping apps are becoming a new-age trend in the Indian retail market and about 74 percent of Indian respondents have installed two to five retail and shopping apps on their smartphones, a survey said on Tuesday.

According to the recent survey conducted by Criteo, the performance marketing technology company, a majority 80 percent of shoppers responded that they feel comfortable and secure using a mobile for online shopping.

Fashion (88 percent), electronics (78 percent) and health and beauty (54 percent) are leading categories in India encouraging about half of the respondents to purchase products and services two to five times a month, the report said.

"In this cluttered retail market, brands need scale and personalisation to compete on an equal footing with their competitors. To do so, they must tap into an open commerce marketing ecosystem and use technology and data analytics to help shoppers find products of their choice and need," said Siddharth Dabhade, General Manager, Criteo India in a statement.

A significant 75 percent of respondents believe that a bad retail and shopping app experience negatively impacts a brand's perception. Conversely, about 98 percent said that a good app experience positively influences their opinion of a brand.

Over 38 percent of respondents confirmed that availability of a wide range of products is what they valued most in a retail and shopping app.

Also, about 22 percent of Indian respondents do not feel comfortable submitting their personal and financial data on retail and shopping apps.

Apps must, therefore, be developed and marketed as trusted platforms for online shoppers, by having brands prioritise shopper privacy and data protection, the survey said.