NEW DELHI: Indian mobile users much prefer apps to browsers when shopping and an increasing number prefer to pay for purchases via a mobile wallet, according to two new pieces of research.
Worldpay, the global payments processing business, surveyed more than 16,000 people across ten markets for its The Mobile Payment Journey report, in order to discover their most recent mobile payment experience and spending habits.
It found that Indian consumers lead the world when it comes to their affinity for apps, with 82% preferring this method to mobile browsers when shopping on their smartphones – far ahead of the global average of 71%.
They also had, on average, ten apps downloaded onto their mobile device, compared to seven in the UK and US.
And with two thirds (64%) of Indian consumers prepared to pay a premium for a “five-star” shopping experience, the report argued that there are significant rewards for those brands that get the app experience right.
“While India took longer to catch on to smartphone ownership, its citizens are now among the earliest adopters of a whole range of technologies,” said Phil Pomford, General Manager for Asia-Pacific, Global Enterprise eCommerce at Worldpay – and they have high expectations when it comes to service levels and user experience.
“Lack of preferred payment options was the number one reason for smartphone basket abandonment in India,” he added.
A separate survey from the Bernstein brokerage found that nine in ten (89%) urban respondents were using at least one mobile wallet with one in six switching between as many as three.
Some 28% of cinema tickets are purchased using mobile wallets, Bloomberg reported, more than cash (16%), debit cards (19%) or credit cards (20%); mobile payment is also advancing in other areas, including for utilities and taxis.
“As mobile-payment players go mainstream, they’re likely to attempt capturing payments across the value chain,” the study said.
It’s a process that is likely to accelerate, as following India’s demonetisation exercise, more players have moved into this area, including Google, whose Tez product launched in September last year and already claims 26% penetration; Facebook last month rolled out its WhatsApp Payments payments feature.
Worldpay, the global payments processing business, surveyed more than 16,000 people across ten markets for its The Mobile Payment Journey report, in order to discover their most recent mobile payment experience and spending habits.
It found that Indian consumers lead the world when it comes to their affinity for apps, with 82% preferring this method to mobile browsers when shopping on their smartphones – far ahead of the global average of 71%.
They also had, on average, ten apps downloaded onto their mobile device, compared to seven in the UK and US.
And with two thirds (64%) of Indian consumers prepared to pay a premium for a “five-star” shopping experience, the report argued that there are significant rewards for those brands that get the app experience right.
“While India took longer to catch on to smartphone ownership, its citizens are now among the earliest adopters of a whole range of technologies,” said Phil Pomford, General Manager for Asia-Pacific, Global Enterprise eCommerce at Worldpay – and they have high expectations when it comes to service levels and user experience.
“Lack of preferred payment options was the number one reason for smartphone basket abandonment in India,” he added.
A separate survey from the Bernstein brokerage found that nine in ten (89%) urban respondents were using at least one mobile wallet with one in six switching between as many as three.
Some 28% of cinema tickets are purchased using mobile wallets, Bloomberg reported, more than cash (16%), debit cards (19%) or credit cards (20%); mobile payment is also advancing in other areas, including for utilities and taxis.
“As mobile-payment players go mainstream, they’re likely to attempt capturing payments across the value chain,” the study said.
It’s a process that is likely to accelerate, as following India’s demonetisation exercise, more players have moved into this area, including Google, whose Tez product launched in September last year and already claims 26% penetration; Facebook last month rolled out its WhatsApp Payments payments feature.
Sourced from WorldPay, Bloomberg; additional content by WARC staff
