eBay users are spearheading the trend for 24 hour mobile shopping – or ‘Mopping’ as the online retailer is referring to the phenomenon. UK eBay ‘Moppers’ literally shop around the clock, downloading over 36,000 of its iPhone apps each week and buying up to 80,000 items per day*– more than anywhere else in Europe.
Globally, ‘Moppers’ are expected to spend over $1.5bn though its mobile apps this year alone.
With a wide selection of shopping apps available to British consumers, 2010 has been the year the mobile truly became a savvy shopper’s best friend. There are up to 340,000 daily visits to eBay.co.uk via mobile apps, and more than 170,000 UK Moppers spend over £30 with the app per week. With Mopping growing at a rate of 400% year on year consumers are increasingly using their Smartphones for everything from price comparison, to trying on clothes in virtual changing rooms, to making the final transaction.
Research from the UK’s number one e-commerce site has found that the average ‘Mopper’ is female, between the age of 25 and 35*, with the most popular ‘Mopping’ items being fashion items. Sunday night has historically been the most popular time for eBay shopping, but mopping enables people to buy during their commutes, on lunch breaks and even in the middle of the night as they move from Facebook to Twitter to eBay without so much as pausing for a cup of tea.
Ruth Szyszkowski, spokesperson for eBay in the UK, comments: “The rise of social networking has led us to spend more and more time online. This has made us more comfortable with the internet, making ‘Mopping’ the default shopping method for many UK consumers. Consumers are being driven by a need for convenience and great value – which mobile shopping provides. This really is retail therapy 2.0.”
David Smith from IMRG comments:
“The emergence of ‘Mopping’ behaviour is driven by several wider consumer trends. Consumers are using their mobile for all aspects of their life from social network sites to calendar planning to keeping the kids entertained with games and now shopping. With the explosion of apps, it’s just as easy to shop on a mobile as it is on a computer. Those with a spare 10 minutes will not use them idly and are just as likely to pick up a new pair of ‘must-have’ boots or the latest album on their phone as make a call. Consumers need their shopping fix any time, any place – this brings a whole new meaning to the term ‘impulse buying’”
ENDS
For further information, please contact Shine Communications on 0207 100 7100:
Poppy Lewis: poppy.lewis@shinecom.com
Rachel Byrne: rachel.byrne@shinecom.com
Hollie Adamson: hollie.adamson@shinecom.com
Aimee Taylor: aimee.taylor@shinecom.com
Notes to Editors:
*Over 80,000 items were bought on eBay.co.uk via mobile on Sunday 29th November 2010
*TNS Data
About eBay
- Founded in 1999, eBay.co.uk is the UK’s number 1 e-commerce site, providing a platform for over 17.7m unique visitors per month (Nielsen / Netratings, September 2009) to buy and sell new, unique and used items in a fun and easy way
- Far from an online auction house, eBay currently has 17 million live listings on the UK site, with fixed price goods accounting for the majority (56%) of items sold globally
- Sellers of all sizes, including 120,000 registered businesses and 20 high-street retailers use eBay.co.uk to reach the UK’s largest online shopping audience
- eBay supports buyers and sellers by promoting the best value deals through Daily Deals, and the eBay Outlet sells products from well known brands at up to 70% off the recommended retail price. Follow www.twitter.com/eBay_life4less for alerts to great deals on eBay and beyond
- eBay campaigns on the issues affecting buyers and sellers in a number of ways, including the eBay Online Business Index and consumer choice campaigns as featured on http://consumerchoice.eu/uk/
- eBay.co.uk is owned by eBay Inc, which has expanded to include some of the strongest brands in the world, including eBay, PayPal, StubHub, Shopping.com, and others