Strategic information management company Stibo Systems has released the results of its 2012 UK consumer survey. 40 per cent of the survey respondents used a mobile device to make online purchases – a number that has gone up 10 per cent from the 2011 survey.

78 per cent of respondents use mobile devices to research various products before making a purchase, an increase of 18 per cent over a year previous. 67 per cent, meanwhile, rated product information as very important when purchasing high-value goods – and 16 per cent were stopped from making a purchase due to a lack of it – both figures which have remained consistent since 2011.

As adoption of mCommerce has grown – 20 per cent of respondents say a smartphone or Tablet is their preferred method of shopping online, compared to 8 per cent in 2011, and shopping on Tablets has increased from two per cent to five per cent – the level of consumer satisfaction has decreased. Only 25 per cent of shopper said they are satisfied with their mobile retail experience, a drop of two per cent from 2011.

“Retailers must pay attention to this if they are to continue to ensure customer satisfaction throughout the overall shopping experience,” says Mark Thorpe, UK managing director at Stibo Systems. “As the use of mobile devices becomes more ubiquitous in today’s world, it becomes crucial for retailers to meet customers’ rising expectations surrounding mCommerce. With this in mind, retailers need to ensure that managing master data is at the heart of their multichannel strategy for 2012. As the survey points out, consistent product information is something that consumers look for when shopping, whichever the channel.”