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News: Mobile Shopping Hot With Consumers - Credit-Land.com

A few years ago shopping with your phone may have seemed like something out of a sci-fi movie, but these days using mobile technology to buy everything from latte's to airline tickets is trending with consumers, according to a new study. Almost half of the people are actively shopping with their smartphone or tablet, and just about a third actually buying a product after seeing it via one of their social media streams.

The 2015 Digital Study was commissioned by Synchrony Financial, and took a look at how consumers felt about mobile technology when it came to shopping. The study offers insights into how people are using their tech to shop, but it also provided information on how retailers can more effectively engage their customers.

“It’s clear from our research that shoppers across every segment are becoming more mobile-enabled and savvy, using all digital resources available to them to shop and purchase in and out of the store,” said Toni White, chief marketing officer, Synchrony Financial. “Retailers who focus on creating an integrated customer experience across all channels can differentiate themselves.”

Mobile shopping on the rise

The number of people using mobile devices to shop is growing, with 45% of people indicating that they have used their smartphone or tablet, to do everything from researching, sharing and reviewing purchases, to actually buying something – up 4% from last year and 9% from 2013.

The number of people actively using their technology to make a purchase has gone up too, with 18% having no qualms about doing just that, which is up from 16% from last year and 12% in 2013.

While text offers may seem a little old school these days they are also popular with some consumers. Rather than putting them off a third of people reported that they have actually inspired a shopping expedition. Whether shopping in real time or via their mobile tech for many personalized offers, loyalty programs and free shipping are still very important.

For retailers social media is key

Social media also plays a key role when it comes to helping retailers reach out to consumers, with 85% of respondents indicating that they access social media, and 45% actually use their social media streams to follow brands.

What about making purchases? Regardless of their age thirty percent of peopled said that they have bought something after coming across it on one of their social media platforms. But as you may expect the numbers increased for the younger set, with 52% of Millennials and 42% of Gen Xers getting shopping inspiration via social media.

The 2015 Digital Study was conducted between March and April 2015. They gathered data from just about 7,000 Synchrony Bank cardholders and random shoppers across the country.