Tablets and mobile phones have made up 28 per cent of clicks on retail paid search ads so far this Christmas shopping season, according to the early edition of Kenshoos 2012 UK Online Retail Christmas Shopping Report.

The report, which is based on data from retailers using the Kenshoo platform, found that tablets consistently perform better than mobiles across all metrics. In fact, tablets almost match up to PC across the board, but cost per click (£0.27) is five pence cheaper on the devices than PC.

Tablets make up 15 per cent of all clicks on the platform – while mobiles make up 13 per cent. They also make up 16 per cent of conversions, and 17 per cent of all revenue – compared to just three per cent, in both cases, on mobile.

The average conversion rate for tablets is five per cent, whereas on mobile its just one per cent, but both devices beat PCs average order value, of £75.93. The average order totals £85.55 on tablet, and £77.80 on mobiles.

“Tablet shoppers are a goldmine,” said Kenshoo EMEA managing director Chris Ward. “They convert at higher rates and spend more money than the average online shopper. Device segmentation should be a key search marketing strategy for UK retailers to adopt this Christmas shopping season. The savviest retailers are breaking out their keywords, ads and landing pages by computer, phone and tablet to better control budgets and bids.”

Overall, the retail paid search market has seen online retailers in the UK spending 20 per cent more year-on-year, with cost-per-click rates increasing by 26 per cent over the same period.