Fashion Retail on the Go:

Analyzing Last-click Channel

Contribution via Mobile

Contents

INTRODUCTION . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4

FASHION RETAIL ON MOBILE: PAID VS. UNPAID

SHOPPING SESSIONS: ALL FASHION STORES . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6

FASHION RETAIL ON MOBILE: ENTERPRISE

PAID VS. UNPAID SHOPPING SESSIONS:

ENTERPRISE FASHION . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10

THE SOCIAL SPOTLIGHT: PAID VS. UNPAID

MOBILE PERFORMANCE ACROSS SOCIAL NETWORKS . . . . 13

THE SOCIAL SPOTLIGHT: PAID VS. UNPAID

SOCIAL PERFORMANCE ACROSS

ENTERPRISE FASHION . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18

REFERENCES . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22

FASHION RETAIL ON THE GO: ANALYZING LAST-CLICK CHANNEL CONTRIBUTION VIA MOBILE2 FASHION RETAIL ON THE GO: ANALYZING LAST-CLICK CHANNEL CONTRIBUTION VIA MOBILE 3

FASHION RETAIL ON THE GO: ANALYZING LAST-CLICK CHANNEL CONTRIBUTION VIA MOBILE FASHION RETAIL ON THE GO: ANALYZING LAST-CLICK CHANNEL CONTRIBUTION VIA MOBILE4 5

Introduction

Like many digital commerce verticals, online fashion shopping has

recently reached a global tipping point — mobile-savvy consumers in

the fashion industry alone now generate an average 62% of traffic share

for online fashion retailers worldwide1. This essentially smashes an old

stereotype that mobile is only used as a means of browsing products.

And with social media a critical part of today’s mobile customer

journey — 96% of Facebook visits alone are made on a smartphone2 —

benchmarking mobile traffic and conversions by channel is critical for

retailers to understand how they are performing. This is what Fashion

Retail on the Go aims to achieve.

HOW WE MEASURED THE DATA

In this report, we measure mobile traffic, conversion, and order value

across Nosto-powered fashion retailers, both overall and enterprise-level

(the latter defined as stores generating more than $50m in annual online

sales). This data is analyzed on a “last click” basis — e.g. traffic and

ensuing purchases are attributed to the last referring site driving the

shopping visit.*

This data was sourced from a sample of 1.19 billion visits to

Nosto-powered online stores from November 2018 – January 2019.

Using this data, we analyzed performance across both paid and unpaid

shopping sessions as well as performance across major social media

networks as well as direct/affiliate traffic. Sources analyzed included (but

were not limited to):

• Facebook

• Instagram

• Snapchat

• Pinterest

In addition, each analysis is broken down into the following KPIs:

• Number of site visits

• Conversion rate

• Number of orders

• Average order value

• Total order value

All channel definitions are on a last-click and tracking parameter basis:

i.e. where the shopper came from directly prior to arriving on a retailer’s

site as inferred from the referring domain and URL tracking parameters.

Thus, the percentages reflected in these results do not have a 1:1

relationship to the value of the channel in question. They do, however,

serve as a valuable benchmark for fashion marketers. Additionally, this

data can give context for marketing attribution decisions and help

identify the reasons behind some of the differences data marketers see in

web/mobile analytics systems vs advertising system reports.

Now, let’s dive in.

*The f igures presented in th i s repor t a re unaud i ted est imates and sub ject to ad justment . V i s i t s der iv ing f rom the ema i l channe l

a re not b roken out separate ly and inc luded in “Other ” .

FASHION RETAIL ON THE GO: ANALYZING LAST-CLICK CHANNEL CONTRIBUTION VIA MOBILE FASHION RETAIL ON THE GO: ANALYZING LAST-CLICK CHANNEL CONTRIBUTION VIA MOBILE6 7

Shopping Sessions: All Fashion Stores

FASHION RETAIL

ON MOBILE: PAID VS. UNPAID

*Pa id and unpa id sess ions a re based on l ast c l i ck .

To start, we’ve mapped out an overall look of the state of the market in

mobile fashion shopping — specifically, the contrast between paid and

unpaid shopping sessions via mobile.

The analysis and attribution of traffic sources remains a challenge for

a number of mid-market and enterprise-level retailers; just one of the

complex layers of the digital customer journey. Shoppers may traverse a

number of channels before landing on a retailer’s website (for instance,

discovering a product via a blogger’s Instagram page, which may lead the

shopper to search for that product via a search engine).

The data shows that the majority of traffic to online fashion stores

derives from unpaid sources like Search and Direct (the latter being a

catch-all for any traffic that does not have referral or tracking parameter

data — either visitors came directly to the site or it was untracked). While

this shows where shoppers click last before they land on a retailer’s

website (as mentioned already in the intro) these are not the only sources

retailers should focus on to increase product discovery and performance.

(More on this point in section 3.)

A noticeable difference between paid and unpaid shopping sessions can

be seen in terms of orders, order value and conversion rate. This suggests

that fashion retailers are less reliant on paid sources to drive traffic and

conversions on a last click basis; however, this does not suggest any

conclusions about the role of paid sources in driving marketing ROI. In

contrast, AOV between paid and unpaid mobile shopping conversions are

relatively similar. When it comes to shopping on mobile, organic traffic

drives the biggest share of visits and volume of orders, but it’s not the

channel that drives the highest order value on a last click basis.

TO START, WE’VE MAPPED OUT AN OVERALL

LOOK OF THE STATE OF THE MARKET IN

MOBILE FASHION SHOPPING — SPECIF ICALLY,

THE CONTRAST BETWEEN PAID AND UNPAID

SHOPPING SESSIONS VIA MOBILE* .

FASHION RETAIL ON THE GO: ANALYZING LAST-CLICK CHANNEL CONTRIBUTION VIA MOBILE FASHION RETAIL ON THE GO: ANALYZING LAST-CLICK CHANNEL CONTRIBUTION VIA MOBILE8 9

PAID

2 1 %

1 7 %

1 7 %

1 . 3 1 %

$74

1 .79 %

$73

8 3 %

79 %

8 3 %

VIS ITS

ORDERS

SALES

CONVERSION RATE

AVERAGE ORDER VALUE

UNPAID

THE ANALYSIS AND ATTRIBUTION OF TRAFFIC

SOURCES REMAINS A CHALLENGE FOR A NUMBER

OF MID-MARKET AND ENTERPRISE-LEVEL

RETAILERS; JUST ONE OF THE COMPLEX LAYERS

OF THE DIGITAL CUSTOMER JOURNEY.

FASHION RETAIL ON THE GO: ANALYZING LAST-CLICK CHANNEL CONTRIBUTION VIA MOBILE FASHION RETAIL ON THE GO: ANALYZING LAST-CLICK CHANNEL CONTRIBUTION VIA MOBILE1 0 1 1

Paid Vs. Unpaid Shopping Sessions: Enterprise Fashion

PAID

1 5 %

1 1 %

1 2 %

1 . 2 8 %

$78

1 . 8 3 %

$73

8 8 %

8 5 %

89 %

VIS ITS

ORDERS

SALES

CONVERSION RATE

AVERAGE ORDER VALUE

UNPAID

When analyzing performance across enterprise-level fashion retailers

(those who generate more than $50m in annual online sales), the contrast

between paid and unpaid shopping sessions is even greater. When

comparing AOV between paid sessions for enterprise fashion retailers

($78) and fashion retailers in general ($74), the former could indicate that

enterprise fashion retailers deploy more tactical up-selling/cross-selling

strategies on paid traffic.

FASHION RETAIL ON

MOBILE: ENTERPRISE

FASHION RETAIL ON THE GO: ANALYZING LAST-CLICK CHANNEL CONTRIBUTION VIA MOBILE FASHION RETAIL ON THE GO: ANALYZING LAST-CLICK CHANNEL CONTRIBUTION VIA MOBILE1 2 1 3

Mobile Performance Across Social Networks

When we break down this data by individual traffic sources and analyze

mobile performance across major social networks, some interesting

observations arise.

While Pinterest boasts an impressive 250 million monthly active users3,

this channel doesn’t drive a significant proportion of traffic or sales when

measuring results by last-click attribution (both paid and unpaid). In

fact, Pinterest looks to drive very little directly attributable results when

looking at web analytics data across visits, orders, sales and conversion

rate; but when it comes to AOV ($140) it outshines all other channels.

Other research supports this — shoppers on Pinterest are known to spend

approximately 29% more than shoppers who don’t use the platform4.

Additionally, users enter Facebook and Instagram primarily to connect

with other users, but Pinterest offers a channel for both discovery and

purchase. In fact, 83% of weekly Pinners have made a purchase based on

Pins they saw from brands5.

Meanwhile, paid search yields the highest last-click conversion rate

(1.50%), which supports the assumption that fashion shoppers converting

via this search are lower in the shopping funnel with higher shopping

intent — typically searching for a specific product or product category.

THE SOCIAL SPOTLIGHT:

PAID VS. UNPAID

FASHION RETAIL ON THE GO: ANALYZING LAST-CLICK CHANNEL CONTRIBUTION VIA MOBILE1 2

FASHION RETAIL ON THE GO: ANALYZING LAST-CLICK CHANNEL CONTRIBUTION VIA MOBILE FASHION RETAIL ON THE GO: ANALYZING LAST-CLICK CHANNEL CONTRIBUTION VIA MOBILE1 4 1 5

Instagram enables shoppers to follow fashion influencers and discover the

next best styles and trends. While this “top of the funnel” activity won’t

appear in an ecommerce marketer’s website analytics data, they can still

drive these users to follow their brand, which then makes it easier and

inexpensive to re-engage them with paid ads or with organic Instagram

content.

One possible reason behind Instagram’s low percentage of orders and

visits is that shoppers may often discover products while browsing the

app, but then either search for those products directly (attributing the

traffic to Direct) or saving the product link for later (also attributing to

the traffic to Direct sources and contributing to challenges in measuring

dark social10: content shared over private channels that cannot be

traced by any web analytics tools). Additionally, this suggests fashion

brands using this channel across paid and unpaid shopping sessions

are experiencing an “attribution gap” — where brands are spending a

significant amount of money on influencer marketing but may see a

return via another source (such as direct traffic).

The conversion rate across “Other” paid sessions — a mix of affiliate

networks, display ads and smaller regional social networks —is the second

highest via paid (1.30%). For unpaid, “Other” represents a mix of direct

traffic, email and untracked sessions (as noted, the percentage of email

attribution is not broken down separately due to variances in tracking for

email referrals).

“Other” is highest via unpaid (2.13%), while Snapchat yields a significantly

lower rate (0.05% via paid and 0.11% via unpaid). While Snapchat’s

popularity has decreased over time6, the platform is testing strategies

that leverage influencer marketing to help increase usage. One example

of this is the launch of Official Stories7, where popular content from select

Snapchatters is pinned to the main feed.

On Instagram, last-click conversion rate ranks third lowest relative to

other social channels across paid (0.54%) and unpaid (1.00%) shopping

sessions. The recent launch of the Instagram Checkout capability8, which

makes it easier for shoppers to buy the products they discover within the

app, means that shoppers can now browse and shop a retailer’s products

without stepping a digital foot onsite. While this may result in a lower

last-click conversion rate from this channel and a decreasing amount of

referred traffic, retailers will most likely generate higher revenue on high

intent shoppers through this new capability.

From a product discovery point of view, Instagram is a massive window

of opportunity for fashion retailers. After the platform rolled out their

algorithm-based news feed in 2016, brands on Instagram experienced

a 105% increase in monthly interactions9 - making it one of the most

crucial destinations for branding and product discovery in online fashion.

BRANDS ON INSTAGRAM EXPERIENCED A 105%

INCREASE IN MONTHLY INTERACTIONS - MAKING IT ONE

OF THE MOST CRUCIAL DESTINATIONS FOR BRANDING

AND PRODUCT DISCOVERY IN ONLINE FASHION.

FASHION RETAIL ON THE GO: ANALYZING LAST-CLICK CHANNEL CONTRIBUTION VIA MOBILE FASHION RETAIL ON THE GO: ANALYZING LAST-CLICK CHANNEL CONTRIBUTION VIA MOBILE1 6 1 7

CONVERSION RATE

AVERAGE ORDER VALUE

PA

ID

PA ID

UN

PA

ID

UNPAID

0.8

4%

$ 6 5 $ 5 6

$72 $ 6 4

$ 1 4 0 $ 6 5

$ 5 5 $ 5 8

$74 $ 69

$76 $75

1.1

5%

1.0

0%

0.1

2%

0.1

1%

1.2

5%

2.1

3%

0.5

4%

0.0

5%

0.0

5%

1.5

1%

1.3

0%

VIS ITS*

ORDERS**

SALES** *

PAID

PAID

PAID

UNPAID

UNPAID

UNPAID

*P in te rest (pa id) has a va lue of < 1% . P in te rest and Snapchat (unpa id) have a va lue of < 1% .

* *P in te rest and Snapchat (pa id + unpa id) have a va lue o f < 1% .

* * *P in te rest and Snapchat (pa id + unpa id) have a va lue o f < 1% .

Breakdown of pa id “Other ” : 80% = a f f i l i a te networks ; Rema in ing % a combinat ion of pa id sources (such as d i sp lay ads) and

sma l le r reg iona l soc ia l networks .

Breakdown of unpa id “Other ” : 95% = D i rect / unt racked / ema i l *

*Ema i l i s not b roken down separate ly due to var iances in t rack ing fo r ema i l re fe r ra l s .

1 0 %

6 %

5 %

6 %

4 %

4 6 %

1 5 % 79 %

4 8 %

1 6 % 76 %

4 6 % 4 6 %

7 % 5 % 2 3 % 6 4 %

4 0 % 47 %

FACEBOOK

SNAPCHAT

INSTAGRAM

SEARCH

PINTEREST

OTHER3

%2

%

2%

FASHION RETAIL ON THE GO: ANALYZING LAST-CLICK CHANNEL CONTRIBUTION VIA MOBILE FASHION RETAIL ON THE GO: ANALYZING LAST-CLICK CHANNEL CONTRIBUTION VIA MOBILE1 8 1 9

Social Performance Across Enterprise Fashion

When analyzing mobile performance for enterprise fashion retailers,

Search and affiliate networks continue to dominate paid channels.

Facebook drives the third-highest percentage of visits, orders, sales and

conversion rate across paid and unpaid shopping sessions. Similar to all

fashion retailers overall, Instagram and Pinterest drive lower percentages

of visits, orders and sales for enterprise retailers — though average

order value is the highest on these networks. AOV on Instagram via paid

($103) is higher across enterprise fashion retailers (paid AOV for overall

fashion retail is $72), once again suggesting that enterprise retailers may

invest more paid spend towards higher-ticket products or customers who

typically have higher AOV.

On Pinterest, conversion rate remains among the lowest via paid but

yields the highest AOV - this applies across both enterprise and fashion

stores overall. This, again, suggests that while fewer buyers originate

from Pinterest relative to other social channels, the ones who do are

inspired to either spend on higher-ticket products or add more items

to their cart via up-sell / cross-sell tactics. Snapchat continues to drive

minimal relative traffic and orders via last-click attribution for enterprise

and overall fashion retailers alike. However, as explained previously, this

platform also yields just as much discovery value for enterprise retailers.

THE SOCIAL SPOTLIGHT:

PAID VS. UNPAID

FASHION RETAIL ON THE GO: ANALYZING LAST-CLICK CHANNEL CONTRIBUTION VIA MOBILE1 8

FASHION RETAIL ON THE GO: ANALYZING LAST-CLICK CHANNEL CONTRIBUTION VIA MOBILE FASHION RETAIL ON THE GO: ANALYZING LAST-CLICK CHANNEL CONTRIBUTION VIA MOBILE2 0 2 1

CONVERSION RATE

AVERAGE ORDER VALUE

PA

ID

PA ID

UN

PA

ID

UNPAID

0.7

3%

$ 69 $ 5 8

$ 1 03$ 6 5

$ 1 5 4$ 6 8

$ 57$ 57

$ 8 4$ 69

$75 $75

1.2

4%

1.1

8%

0.1

2%

0.0

8%

1.5

3%

2.0

5%

0.4

1%

0.0

7%

0.0

3%

1.3

1%

1.4

2%

Breakdown of pa id “Other ” : 80+% = Af f i l i a te networks and pa id a f f i l i a te re lat ionsh ips ; 1 1% = Other soc ia l networks ;

9% = Other pa id ad networks .

Breakdown of unpa id “Other ” 95% = D i rect / unt racked / ema i l *

*Ema i l i s not b roken down separate ly due to var iances in t rack ing fo r ema i l re fe r ra l s .

VIS ITS*

ORDERS**

SALES** *

PAID

PAID

PAID

UNPAID

UNPAID

UNPAID

8 % 2%

5 %

4 %

4 %

3%

3%

3%

4 2 %

1 6 % 78 %

5 4 %

1 7 % 75 %

39 % 5 6 %

7 % 5 % 2 0 % 67 %

3 8 % 5 0 %

FACEBOOK

SNAPCHAT

INSTAGRAM

SEARCH

PINTEREST

OTHER

*P in te rest (pa id) has a va lue of < 1% . P in te rest and Snapchat (unpa id) have a va lue of < 1% .

* *P in te rest and Snapchat (pa id + unpa id) have a va lue o f < 1% .

* * *P in te rest and Snapchat (pa id + unpa id) have a va lue o f < 1% .

References

1. THE STATE OF FASHION ECOMMERCE IN 2019. NOSTO.COM

2. DEVICE USAGE OF FACEBOOK USERS WORLDWIDE AS OF

JANUARY 2019. STATISTA.COM

3. PINTEREST IS A UNICORN. IT JUST DOESN’T ACT LIKE

ONE. NYTIMES.COM

4. MARKETING ON PINTEREST MEANS RETHINKING THE OLD

PLAYBOOK FOR SOCIAL MEDIA. SHOPIFY.COM

5. HOW PINTEREST WORKS. BUSINESS.PINTEREST.COM

6. 6 REASONS SNAPCHAT IS LOSING ITS POPULARITY.

BUSINESSINSIDER.COM

7. WHAT SNAPCHAT TEACHES US ABOUT INFLUENCER

MARKETING. FORBES.COM

8. NEW TO INSTAGRAM SHOPPING: CHECKOUT.

BUSINESS.INSTAGRAM.COM

9. INSTAGRAM ENGAGEMENT: EVERYTHING YOU NEED TO

KNOW. SOCIALBAKERS.COM

10. HOW TO IMPLEMENT DARK SOCIAL IN YOUR INFLUENC-

ER MARKETING EFFORTS. SOCIALMEDIAWEEK.ORG

FASHION RETAIL ON THE GO: ANALYZING LAST-CLICK CHANNEL CONTRIBUTION VIA MOBILE2 2 FASHION RETAIL ON THE GO: ANALYZING LAST-CLICK CHANNEL CONTRIBUTION VIA MOBILE 2 3

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