Despite 25% plunge in spending witnessed last year, a new AppsFlyer report reveals some positive global trends in a shifting economic landscape.
The 2023 State of eCommerce report released today has revealed the eCommerce App’s industry resilience Marketing spend approaches $5 Billion. The report aims at equipping the retail markets with key insights into global industry trends. As a result, retail markets have a guardrail into building applications that drive user engagements and sales in the second half of 2023, especially during the peak holidays.
Despite the uncertain economic landscape, there was an increase in-app purchases by consumers in the fourth quarter of last year as compared to the same quarter in 2021. This should offer some hope to retailers and encourage them to boost their marketing efforts as we approach the holiday season.
“The impact of the downturn on ad spend as seen during the first quarter of 2023 has been significant with marketers cutting budgets, but the success of the 2022 holiday season, even amidst the prevailing financial slowdown worldwide, should instill greater confidence in marketers as they plan for the upcoming holiday season,” said Shani Rosenfelder, Director of Content Strategy & Market Insights, AppsFlyer.
In-app purchases remained high throughout last year’s holiday season. This suggests that retailers should employ practices such as offering early discounts and continuous holiday incentives aimed at attracting new shoppers and retaining existing customers.
Netta Lev Sadeh, Managing Director EMEA SANI, AppsFlyer“It is critical for app marketers to start their planning now leading up to this year’s Black Friday if they want to maximize this vibrant shopping period. Disruptive user acquisition campaigns could be paramount in the months leading up to Black Friday, and if executed successfully, could be the defining point in the increase or decrease in app installs.”
Key Africa Insights From the 2023 Report on the State of eCommerce
- South Africa’s share of paying users peaked in November 2022, a testament to the month of Black Friday. This period registers a marked increase across all platforms, with iOS numbers outpacing Android. On November 25th alone, Android installs rose by 30% over any other day of the month in South Africa, while iOS saw a steeper climb of 78%.
- In South Africa, eCommerce app installs on iOS devices surged significantly by 81.5% from Q1 2022 to Q1 2023, dwarfing the 15% rise seen on Android devices within the same period of time.
- Surprisingly, in Algeria, there was huge growth in total eCommerce app installs from Q1 2022 to Q1 2023 on Android devices, recording a whopping 54% increase.
- In South Africa, non-organic installs rose by more than 60% during the summer of 2022.
- South Africa’s remarketing share peaked at 76% in April 2022, but by February 2023, had dropped down to 65%.
- Nigeria recorded a 22.3% rise in total eCommerce app installs from Q1 2022 to Q1 2023 on iOS.