Retailers spend more on mobile and social commerce but returns remain modest

Forrester study shows improved uptake in social media and mobile tools, but ROI is "muddy"

The number of retailers experimenting with mobile and social technologies is increasing but these initiatives have yet to deliver major dividends, according to research firm Forrester.

The company reported that nine out of 10 (91 per cent) retailers currently have a mobile strategy in place or in development, up from 74 per cent a year ago, according to "The State Of Retailing Online 2011: Marketing, Social, and Mobile."

The report was conducted by Forrester for Shop.org, a community of online and multi-channel retailers.

Some 21 per cent of all mobile traffic is currently from tablets, particularly significant given that the first of a new breed of tablets, Apple's iPad, was only launched a year ago.

However, the overall amount of mobile traffic and revenue has not increased dramatically, indicating that investment levels in site optimisation may still be inadequate, said Forrester.

In addition, 72 per cent of retailers say they will increase their spending on social networks in 2011 from last year.

However, it is not clear that they are seeing a return on investment associated with social commerce, with 62 per cent of retailers saying that returns on social marketing are unclear, with the same percentage arguing that the primary reason for using social media is to listen to customers and gain a better understanding of their needs.

"Retail executives should have modest expectations for the benefits of social commerce," said Sucharita Mulpuru, vice president, principal analyst at Forrester Research.

"With regard to mobile, retailers should be working to increasingly integrate features and functionality into the physical store experience.

"While consumers may not be extensively exploring product information yet, basic store information, transparent pricing, and easy checkout capabilities are likely to be the most pressing opportunities for most sites in the near term."