A majority of retailers believe mobile shopping should form an essential part of their business, research finds.

A majority of retailers believe mobile shopping should form an essential part of their business, research finds.

More than three quarters (76 per cent) of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) do not have a mobile site, but 89 per cent believe mCommerce to be essential to the future success of their business, according to a survey by mCommerce solutions provider MoPowered.

Digital think tank comScore reports that more than 28 million smartphones are currently in use across the UK, an increase of 38 per cent on a year ago.

Furthermore ,Google estimates that at least 15 per cent of all online traffic is now coming through mobile, meaning not being handset-optimised is equivalent to shutting your online store for a day of every week.

According to the research, 79 per cent of retailers say they had had bad experiences of accessing non-optimised sites from a mobile device.

Barriers to going mobile include security concerns (33 per cent) and lengthy optimisation process (36 per cent).  

One SME retailer that has integrated into the mobile channel is speciality hat and accessory business Zaini. Founder Miranda Harper comments, 'We were acutely aware of the how many people accessed the internet through their mobile phones and were keen to exploit this to generate more business.'

Dominic Keen, chief executive of MoPowered adds, 'SME businesses are right to think that creating an m-Site for consumers to shop on their smartphones has now become essential to the success of their business.

'They recognise the importance of increasing the touch points with potential customers and the importance of becoming mobile-friendly in order to survive.'

See also: Guide to mobile working