PayPal Australia have just released their first report on mobile payments in Australia, and highlight there is a significant gap between consumer willingness to use mobile payments, compared with business capability to receive them. Once again, in the digital disruption stakes, consumers are ahead of the curve!
Almost three-quarters (71%) of respondents are using their mobiles to make payments, however only 49% of businesses are optimised to accept them.
The number of consumers transacting on mobile is perhaps not surprising, considering that Australia is a country with one of the highest levels of mobile penetration globally with 80% of the Australian 18+ population having a smartphone. Among consumers aged 18-34 the use of mobile devices for payments at 85% is significantly higher than the 71% average.
Despite these impressive consumer mCommerce levels, 51% of businesses state that they are not optimised for mobile sales. Furthermore, almost one-third (31%) of businesses state they have no plans to change this. This gap is reflected in the proportion (26%) of businesses which have zero sales via mobile device.
When it comes to the devices that Australians prefer for making online purchases, desk and laptop computers are almost equally the favoured choice with 69% of respondents preferring to make payments on them. The remaining 31% of consumers prefer to make payments on their mobile phones (18%) or tablets (14%).Of those who prefer to use a mobile phone, those aged 18-34 dominate at 30% preference, compared to 15% preference for those aged 35-49 and 7% for the 50+ demographic.
The PayPal mCommerce Index finds that those with an income of over $100k show the highest preference for mobile payments, at 37%. Nonetheless, those with incomes under $30k make up almost one-quarter (24%) of those preferring to use their mobiles for payments.
More than a third (36%) of respondents are making mobile payments at least once a week, while one in five (22%) make mobile payments more than once a week. Millennial consumers (18-34) are the most prolific mobile shoppers with nearly half of this group (47%) making a mobile payment at least once per week. High frequency mobile payments are not limited to the young, one quarter (24%) of 50+ respondents are making mobile purchases and payments at least once a week.
The average mCommerce spend is $330 per month and 22% of respondents are spending more than $500 per month. These figures establish a benchmark against which we will continue to track in ongoing PayPal mCommerce Index reports.
When reflecting on levels of consumer mCommerce spending, age is not a strong contributing factor to high spend. In fact, across the age groups surveyed, consumers who are spending more than $500 per month, were notably similar at 23%, 26% and 19% across the 18-34, 35-49 and 50+ age groups, respectively.
Bill payments is the category dominating mobile transactions. Almost three-quarters (74%) of respondents made phone, utility, insurance and other bill payments via a mobile device over the last six months. Other categories strongly supported by mCommerce are Tickets (53%), Clothing & Accessories (43%) and Travel (38%).
These top performing categories represent consumer transactions with major, mainstream businesses with well-established online commerce platforms. Regular and familiar use, plus lessened concerns for security by consumers, are believed to be factors in promoting mCommerce within these categories.
When Australian consumers get time to themselves, they are more inclined to make an online purchase or payment by mobile device – with ‘dual-screening’ being commonplace. Eighty-two percent of respondents said they engaged in mCommerce when relaxing at home or watching TV; almost half (45%) noted that they were engaged in mCommerce when taking a break at work or school; and just over one-quarter (26%) used the time when commuting on public transport for mobile purchasing or payments.
The data shows that although the majority of consumers do not indicate that a mobile is their preferred device for online purchases, they are using their mobile devices to shop when they are at home, presumably when they also have access to a laptop or desktop computer. Understanding the prevalence of dualscreening can help to inform future mCommerce positioning, marketing and consumer targeting.
Social commerce is rapidly emerging as the new frontier for online commerce. Already, 11% of respondents have made a purchase via a social platform. As channels including Facebook, Twitter and Pinterest, where consumers are highly engaged, emerge as commercial avenues, Australian businesses need to adapt if they want to maximise their online commerce opportunities.
Currently, 7% of surveyed businesses accept payments via social media sites or apps.
Despite consumer appetite, the PayPal mCommerce Index finds that 89% of businesses have no intention of accepting payments via social media within the next 6 months.
The survey was executed through Roy Morgan Research Ltd based on the survey responses of 996 consumers and 106 businesses using an online self-completion survey.
