The rise of mobile commerce over the past few years has gotten the attention of retailers. But there is still a significant number of merchants thathave not implemented mobile components into their operations, despite the fact that a majority of consumers now own smartphones or tablets.

Besides the prevalence of retail sales made through mobile devices, shoppers are also using their gadgets to browse for and compare different retail products, Internet Retailer reports. Research from Harris Interactive revealed that 45 percent of consumers use their mobile tools to research various goods. In addition, 67 percent of respondents stated they check their personal emails on their devices, meaning that retailer can take advantage of this behavior and send out relevant messages to shoppers.

However, it seems as though many businesses are ignoring the growth of mobile commerce, states Tech Vibes. A study by Skava found that only 7 percent of retailers have developed websites that are optimized for smartphones and tablets. If merchants want to stay competitive and bring in more business, they will need to incorporate mobile elements into their operations to accommodate device-carrying customers.