Article

Commentary: The tech and features that shoppers want

A new large-scale shopper survey sheds light on consumers who mix online and in-store shopping in whatever way is most convenient for them.

January 30, 2015

By Debjyoti Paul, General Manager and Head for Solutions and Platforms, Retail, CPG and Manufacturing at Mindtree

When the advent of smartphones made browsing the Internet an anytime/anywhere proposition, the assumption was that it would bring very bad news for traditional retailers. The nightmare scenario was "showrooming" — that shoppers would go to a physical store and look at an item they were interested in, but then pull out their phone, order it from an online retailer, and go home without buying anything. (This made the traditional store a de facto showroom for online retailers like Amazon or eBay.)

But the true picture of the new age shopper that has emerged over time is less alarming. Yes, the average customer reaches 10 different touch points for every purchasing decision. But online purchases only represent five percent of all retail spending in the U.S. In fact, even among shoppers who research potential purchases using a smartphone, 77 percent of them go to a brick and mortar store to make the actual purchase. At the same time, 60 percent of US shoppers fall in the category we call truly "phy-gital" — those who are as comfortable shopping online as in the store.

Now, a new large-scale shopper survey by Mindtree sheds even more light on what we like to call "phy-gital" shoppers — those who mix online and in-store shopping in whatever way is most convenient or efficient for them.

The study surveyed about 4,000 shoppers across the U.S., U.K., Germany and Benelux, focusing on four distinct market segments: apparel and footwear, grocery and home supplies, home and garden, and electronics. It asked these consumers to rank more than 70 online and in-store features in terms of how likely each feature would "influence you to shop more." Each shopper was then asked to choose a Top 3 from both the in-store features and the online features. Their responses confirmed the assumption that the majority of shoppers today are phy-gital, and it also gave insights into how they want to use technology to shop.

Technology in the store

Although the popularity of different features varied somewhat by region as well as across market segment, our survey indicated a deep craving for technology that can make the in-store shopping experience faster and more efficient:

• Self-checkout:Whether via kiosks or a roaming store associate with a checkout-enabled tablet, this feature was ranked as a Top 3 by shoppers in the U.S. (33 percent), U.K. (20 percent), and Germany (25 percent).
• Endless aisles:Shoppers want to be able to order unavailable or out-of-stock items from kiosks inside the store, for delivery to home. This was ranked as a Top 3 for 33 percent of U.S. shoppers, 20 percent of Benelux shoppers, and 8 percent of German apparel shoppers.
• Crowd sensors: Retailers love crowded stores but shoppers do not, and the ability to find out how crowded a store is before a shopper decides to go proved to be popular, in particular in the U.S. (18 percent ranked it a Top 3) and Benelux (20 percent).
• Product location: Whether via their mobile device or a store kiosk, shoppers want to use technology to find specific products inside the store (ranked as a Top 3 by 33 percent of shoppers in the U.S., 20 percent in the U.K., and 25 percent in Germany).

Better online trials

One might assume that shoppers are more or less satisfied with the typical feature set of online retailing, but it would seem that they crave more. This is no surprise, as we have always thought of a phy-gital retailer as one that brings not just the best of the online world into the physical store, but also the best of the physical store to the web or mobile experience.

One of the highest-ranked features online was 360-degree view of products, with good zoom quality. This was ranked as a Top 3 feature by almost 20 percent of respondents (in particular among apparel shoppers), but only 5 percent of the retailers we reviewed provide this feature.

Beyond better views, shoppers showed a desire for better ways to simulate products in their lives, such as seeing how furniture will fit in their living room or how a shirt would look on them.

Personalized, omnichannel service

Personalization and omnichannel are big buzzwords in retail, but whether customers want it — or how they would use it — has remained unclear. Our shopper survey is starting to tease out what features are desired, and by what shoppers.

Grocery shoppers in particular are interested in personalized recommendations. These include product advice and recipe ideas based on what they are purchasing, both online and in-store.

Beyond personalized recommendations, shoppers also want a seamless, personalized experience across channels. In fact, one feature that was often ranked as a Top 3 was the ability to redeem loyalty points regardless of whether the shopper was online, on a mobile app or in a physical store. Shoppers also expect shopping carts that travel with them across channels. And in fact, grocery shoppers would like to be able to make a shopping list at home on a mobile device or PC, and then have the option to get it pre-filled for pick-up at the store, or use the list while they find the items in-store themselves (or a combination of both).

Be remarkable, and they will spend more

Before closing, one thing I want to emphasize is that our survey didn’t just ask shoppers what features they like or don’t like. We very directly asked them to rate features that would "influence you to shop more." It’s an important distinction, because that is ultimately what retailers are most interested in — more conversions.

The insights above give a few specific ideas about where trends are headed for today’s shoppers, but from a broad view the lesson is: Be remarkable. It’s obvious that the "phy-gital shopper" wants more information and less friction in their shopping experience, across all channels. And technology can provide that better than anything else.

(Photo of New Balance flagship store by Angel Navedo.)