While mobile holiday shopping was bigger than ever this year, a recent survey shows that 96 percent of those questioned plan to use their mobile devices to find better retail bargains in 2015.

While mobile will continue to play an increasing role in shoppers’ journeys, consumers have not completely erased the in-store experience. The survey was completed by couponing mobile application Shopular.

“We anticipate that 2015 will be a banner growth year in terms of the impact of mobile influence on retail,” said Navneet Loiwal, co-founder and CEO of Shopular, San Francisco. “Americans are understanding that by researching retail sales offers via mobile in advance of, or even while they’re on, their shopping excursion, they can put measurable dollars back into their pockets.”

Mainstream mobile
Six in 10 respondents claim they will making shopping with the aid of a mobile device job number one when it comes to their New Year’s “Shopping Resolutions.”

By a margin of 64 percent to 36 percent, consumers still prefer to conduct their actual buying in-store versus online, confirming consumers’ continued attraction to the in-store experience, according to the survey.

Experts note that consumers still love to touch and feel the merchandise before making a purchase. According to respondents, nearly two-thirds surveyed indicated that the role of mobile is here to stay, and being able to shop with mobile assistance will permanently alter the way America shops.

Surveyers deemed a few hot shopping categories for 2015, including women’s clothing signaling 85 percent of market share, children’s clothing at 55 percent, men’s clothing at 48 percent, housewares at 40 percent, toys and furniture at 23 percent and handheld electronics at 22 percent.

The survey also shows that consumers are actively integrating mobile technology into their purchasing as well. Forty-six percent of respondents made a mobile purchase via a mobile app within the last week, and 25 percent of those surveyed had made a mobile purchase via a mobile app within the last month.

Upping the bar
Retail saw high numbers of mobile usage for consumers’ shopping needs.

Amazon’s fast shipping Prime service gained more than 10 million members worldwide while Amazon.com saw nearly 60 percent of its consumers shop for the holidays via mobile devices, cementing its status as the mobile retailer to beat in 2015.

The brand recently unveiled a slew of new features to its Prime service that likely added to the surge in sales, including Instant Video, the Kindle Owners Lending Library, exclusive streaming content and unlimited photo storage for Prime members in Amazon Cloud Drive. Its recently released Prime Now mobile application aims to revolutionize mcommerce by promising users one-hour delivery in select Manhattan locations (see story).

Some retailers are especially getting mobile right by responding to their customers’ needs. This holiday season, Target has been one of them.

During the final week of the holiday shopping season, Target ramped up efforts to bring added convenience to last-minute shoppers via a variety of mobile services, including special offers, store pickup and gift cards.

According to a recent survey from location-based mobile app Retale, 20 percent of all holiday shoppers wait until the last-minute to buy their gifts and 58 percent will use smartphones or tablets to help them shop. Target, which let shoppers place mobile orders on Christmas Eve as late as 5 p.m. and pick them up that day, is a great example of how mobile can be used to capture last minute sales (see story).

“Finding better ways to fuel retail and keep consumers pouring into national merchant brands is a vital part of keeping our economy robust as we enter the New Year,” Mr. Loiwal said. “We believe that Deal Discovery will become an integral part of the technology-enabled retail landscape in the coming months – and bode well for a healthy 2015 market outlook.”

Final Take
Caitlyn Bohannon is an editorial assistant on Mobile Commerce Daily, New York