More and more UK shoppers are using their mobile phones to visit web sites when out shopping - and many of them are checking competitors’ prices. That’s the conclusion of the latest eCustomerServiceIndex survey from research company eDigitalResearch and e-retail organisation IMRG.

The eCSI research shows that 24% of consumers used their smartphones to get onto the internet when out shopping, with email (59%), retail websites (50%) and social media sites (48%) the favourite destinations.

62% of people who went online said they’d accessed a mobile retail site while in the store of another retailer. 71% of these people said they were checking to see if they could get a product cheaper elsewhere, 14% were reading customer reviews and 4% were looking for a similar product elsewhere.

40% of these ‘mobile browsers’ went on to make a purchase, with 65% saying this decision was price-driven and 26% being influenced by a special offer.

David J Smith, Chief Marketing & Communications Officer at IMRG, said “The results of this research further reinforce our expectation that this could be the first truly mobile Christmas for retailers. The development of a multichannel strategy is becoming absolutely crucial for consumer engagement, as demonstrated by consumer willingness to shop around at alternative retailers even within another retailer’s store. QR codes are one to watch as, although only 46% know how to use them, they are increasingly becoming a staple in retail marketing. If they are felt to have serious potential by a large retailer, a campaign centred around scanning them to gain access to savings for example could really increase their perceived value to consumers.”