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What consumers want when shopping online
Consumers have come to almost expect free shipping and free returns, and they prefer a responsive website to a mobile version or app. These are just a few of the things comScore and UPS discovered when they surveyed 5,800 online shoppers.
New York--Consumers engaging in e-commerce today want free shipping, the ability to purchase online and pick up in the store, and they prefer a responsive website to a mobile version or app.
That is what comScore Inc. and UPS learned earlier this year when they surveyed thousands of online shoppers in the United States, evaluating their habits from pre-purchase to post-delivery.
According to the survey results, which were released last week, free shipping continues to drive online shoppers’ purchasing decisions, with a total of 58 percent of survey-takers adding items to their cart to push the total to the free-shipping threshold.
In addition, the survey shows that consumers are willing to wait longer if it means they won’t have to pay for shipping, with 83 percent stating they would wait an extra two days for an item if it meant the shipping would be free.
Consumers also are looking for a seamless omni-channel shopping experience. According to the survey, 40 percent of purchases are made by crossing channels, meaning people look in stores and purchase online or vice versa.
Susan Engleson, a senior director at comScore, said that the retailers who “embrace the various channels” will be the ones who drive sales and brand loyalty.
When it comes to the mobile experience, the survey found that online shoppers prefer to shop from their desktop computers rather than their mobile devices because the images on the desktop are bigger and clearer. When they do choose to go mobile, however, retailers should take note that consumers prefer their full website (41 percent) vs. a mobile version of the site (34 percent) or a mobile app (25 percent).
This means that retailers who want to engage in e-commerce should create responsive websites, meaning sites that automatically size themselves to the device on which they are being viewed.
Other survey findings include:
--Consumers now expect free returns; 82 percent of shoppers said they would only complete their purchase if they could return the item to a store or have free return shipping.
--A total of 66 percent of respondents said they view a retailer’s return policy before making a purchase.
--When it comes to social media, one-third of all shoppers, and 50 of consumers who are members of the Millennial generation, say that the medium influences their purchasing decisions.
--In addition, consumers are likely to share their opinions about brands
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on social media, with the greatest percentage, 86 percent, posting on Facebook, followed by Twitter (34 percent), Google+ (23 percent), Pinterest (21 percent) and Instagram (19 percent).
“While retailers have had a hard time connecting social media to sales, the study clearly shows that it does have an impact,” a release on the survey results states.
Reston, Va.-based comScore and UPS released the findings of their third annual joint study on the behaviors and preferences of online shoppers on Wednesday. The results are based on the 5,800 consumers surveyed by comScore earlier in the year.
To view the full survey results, visit UPS.Uberflip.com.
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