The Speed-Performance Connection
Prioritising mobile site performance metrics continues to be a challenge for most brands. Should the focus be on design, content, functionality, UX or perhaps something else? With mCommerce estimated to double between 2019 - 2023, ultimately accounting for three quarters of total ecommerce sales, it is essential that we understand the correlation between mobile site metrics and mobile site performance.
Key Research Findings
Over a 4 week period, Deloitte analysed mobile site data from retail, travel, luxury and lead generation brands across Europe and the US. The purpose of the study was to isolate speed as a performance metric and to observe if there was a true correlation to conversion funnel progress, spend, page views and bounce rates.
Based on a 0.1s natural mobile site speed improvement, they observed the following key improvements to conversions and customer engagement:
- Mobile site speed improvements had a direct correlation to improved funnel progression
- A positive change in the number of page views, conversion rates and average order value across all verticals
- Retail conversions increased by 8.4% and average order value increased by 9.2%
- Travel conversions increased by 10.1% and average order value increased by 1.9%
- Luxury brand page views per session increased by 8.6%
- Lead generation information pages bounce rate improved by 8.3%
Rising Customer Expectations
Consumer expectations have risen dramatically in the last decade, and will continue to do so. In response, consumer-centricity continues to evolve as one of the most critical and influential business principles. Competition, technology and the evolution of digital channels are amongst the key drivers, however, arguably the main catalyst has been the increase in consumer expectations, or rather the decrease in tolerance of a mediocre experience.
The Competitive Advantage
Increasing expectations and use of smartphones are amplifying the need for mobile speed. To stay ahead, brands need to make site speed a priority across the organisation. They should adopt a mobile-first mind-set; introducing the right processes and allocating resources to constantly monitor and optimise their site speed.
The competitive gap will widen between brands who provide great mobile experience and those who don't.