By Liz Elting

Business 2 Community - May 31, 2013

Retailers know that when it comes to online shopping, they must implement a mobile strategy. A study by Forrester Research reveals that more than 20 percent of all e-commerce shopping sessions are already happening on mobile devices – and that figure is expanding every year. By the end of 2013, mobile will make up more than half of all e-commerce shopping sessions, essentially becoming the most popular way consumers shop online.

As retailers come to grips with the importance of optimizing e-commerce sites for on-the-go consumers, they are also faced with reaching shoppers on a global scale. Around the world, consumers expect to open a mobile browser or download a branded app and find content options that are customized to their language and cultural preferences. This dual need for optimized mobile content that also appeals to an international audience is driving a new trend: partnerships between e-commerce platform providers and language translation and localization providers. Here are three key benefits to integrating your mobile optimization and content localization strategies:

1. Boost conversion rates. Numerous studies of consumer shopping behavior demonstrate that properly optimized mobile e-commerce sites result in higher sale conversion rates. The Forrester Research study says that the percentage of shopping sessions that actually convert to a purchase falls by more than 75 percent without a mobile optimized shopping and purchasing experience. The same principle is true for offering international shoppers their choice of language. Some retailers have experienced up to a 40 percent increase in conversions by launching translated and localized sites for global consumers.
    
2. Support the “buy online, pick up in store” trend. Mobile e-commerce puts brands literally in the palms of their customers’ hands. However, on-the-go shoppers present a new challenge: offering them merchandise choices that are relevant to their physical locations. The new trend is for shoppers to make a purchase using a mobile device, and then head to a physical location to pick up the item. A properly optimized site that reaches customers in their target languages makes it even easier for retailers to maximize success rates for this trend.     
    
3. Create return customers. Most retailers agree that the technology and expertise required for properly designing a mobile site or app – and ensuring the accurate translation and localization of that site – falls outside of their core competencies. By investing in mobile optimization and content localization through a qualified third-party provider, retailers free up internal resources to focus on other aspects of the consumer shopping experience, such as loyalty and retention initiatives. Simultaneously, leaving the mobile optimization and language translation to professionals is also proven to improve customer loyalty rates.   

When mobile optimization and content localization providers join forces to offer a true one-stop solution for the mobile shopping experience, retailers see immediate results in sales and customer retention. Here at TransPerfect, we are forming relationships with leading e-commerce platforms such as Magento and UsableNet to make it easier than ever for brands to launch sites that are engaging mobile shoppers in the languages they prefer.