High gas prices and the rotten economy will push just over half of Americans to shop online this holiday season, according to a new survey that underscores the need for retailers to maintain an effective online and mobile presence.
Fifty-one percent of Americans will shop online for economic reasons, with 71 percent believing they'll find better deals there than in stores, according to the survey by Harris Interactive.
The study, commissioned by Soasta Inc., a mobile and cloud testing company, surveyed 2,346 Americans over the age of 18 between September 17 and 19. It found only 2 percent of Americans didn't feel the economy was in bad shape.
"The results of our holiday and the economy survey have shown that more Americans will be relying on retailers' online mobile and Web presence for holiday shopping due to the bad economy than not," Soasta CEO Tom Lounibos said in a statement. "With millions of Americans planning on using these Websites, it's more important than ever that they are fully optimized to make sure shoppers get the best experience possible."
Mobile will play an even bigger role this year than last, when IBM estimated that 67 percent of Black Friday shoppers would use mobile phones to buy the best deal. The new study found a similar percentage (68 percent) will use mobile apps this year for such reasons as: finding deals on Cyber Monday and Black Friday (52 percent); avoiding checkout lines (46 percent); and taking pictures of gifts they want for themselves (33 percent).
And it won't stop there. Juniper Research reported separately this week that it expects mobile shoppers to rise by 50 percent over the coming two years, to 580 million by the end of 2014 from about 393 million today. Total mobile transactions will reach $730 billion within five years; mobile sales already exceed those on desktops and laptops, Juniper said.
The key message for retailers is: be ready, especially on the mobile front. Mobile commerce in the US is expected to reach $11.6 billion this year, according to Forrester Research.
What works?
Succeeding in mobile is all about strategy and trends. The best retail Internet and mobile sites display innovation, creativity, and technology.
Much can be learned by following industry leaders, particularly in making it easy for customers to check out. For example, Econsultancy recently reviewed mobile checkout and other features at the Top 10 US retailing sites.
It found Walmart's pages were "extremely basic," so they were easy to navigate. Office Depot forced customers to set up an account but had a speedy, one-page checkout. Sears was the only store that accepts PayPal, which is wildly popular with younger shoppers.
Econsultancy offered this advice to retailers:
- Don't require customers to register before checkout
- Keep forms to a minimum
- Reassure shoppers about security, and
- Offer payment options beyond credit and debit cards.
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Editor in Chief Tom Murphy contributed to this report.
Re: The Brick&Mortar Advantages
We should expect to see comparison shopping this holiday season with both online and brick and mortar stores. There is a new normal and an old normal. Where in new, fewer shoppers would change spending plans. By old, shoppers have adapted to budget lifestyles cutting back on purchases, embracing deals, changing spending habits. Consumers are better prepared for economic changes today & future.
Tom Murphy
10/18/2012 12:14:38 PM
User Rank Blogger
Re: Holiday Sales Will Be Better Than This
Thanks Steven. I hope you're right. As you know, that depends on a perfect storm of good news for retailers. Among them: 1) the ability to fend off online competitors, 2) The ever-fickle mood of consumers, and 3) The price of gas. My own guess is that for ever additional dollar average consumers spend on gasoline, it's one dollar subtracted from the holiday shopping budget. But as noted earlier: I hope your firm's upbeat estimate is on the mark.
Holiday Sales Will Be Better Than This
Internet holiday sales should be strong again this year, perhaps +13-15 percent over last. But the survey sited basically states that stores are dead, which is hardly the case. And while most retail sales forecasts for this year are conservative (in the 3-4 percent range), PRI is a bit more optimistic than most: We look for a 4.4-4.8 percent increase.
See our summary analysis at: http://www.plattretailinstitute.org/blogs/entrydetails.phx?itemid=33&navid=102
Re: The Brick&Mortar Advantages
@Tom, you always make the best catch phrase lol. Though I wish that would come true. But this coming holiday, getting additional discounts might be in the hands of the sales clerks especially if you try to bargain with them. Also, retail stores like Best Buy and etc. offers coupons, so that would be another way to get discounts this coming holiday.
Tom Murphy
10/16/2012 1:58:00 PM
User Rank Blogger
Re: The Brick&Mortar Advantages
Michael: Glad you liked my comments. I think if you go to the store now, you'd find many merchants -- like Best Buy -- openly saying they'll be happy to match any online price and, perhaps, adding in freebies to your order. For example, a sales clerk at Best Buy told me that if my wife and I both bought tablets, he'd give us an added discount.
My prediction: this holiday season, you'll see stores opening competing with online merchants in ads, saying things like: "Find your best price online, then come into the store and take your merchandise home today -- plus get another 10% off anything in the store." That would be smart.
Re: The Brick&Mortar Advantages
@Tom, Thank you for pointing out B&M advantages. I honestly love to shop online since prices are way lower than those stores inside the Mall. However, you are right about the advantages over online retail. I do hate to wait when orders arrive at least 3-5 days after my payment is sent; which is why I prefer to buy in Brick & Mortar stores when I really want something and would like to use it ASAP. In addition to that, I can test out products prior to buying them, that way there will be no need for returns. Lastly, I can enjoy store perks and freebies which online retailers very rarely offer.
Tom Murphy
10/15/2012 5:27:13 PM
User Rank Blogger
The Brick&Mortar Advantages
OK, OK, we all know that online is eating the lunch of the brick and mortar world. The days when retailers could slap on a 40 percent markup are gone, gone, gone. So get over it. This is 2012, time to move forward.
Let's look instead on how to fight back. In other words, what ADVANTAGES does the store in the mall have over their cut-rate online rival:
1) Cash and Carry. Buy what you want and carry it home right now. Instant gratification. No 4-6-day wait for free shipping. Some people actually like to play with the new computer they just bought instead of waiting for it.
2) Shopping Options: Buy online, buy on mobile, or buy in-store -- all the same price, same merchandise, same availability. This requires technology that can combine the three revenue streams -- the concept of omnichannel retail. See my blog last week.
3) Bring it Back: I love stores that say "If you don't like it, bring it back. No questions asked." The truth is I never bring stuff back, but I LOVE having that option. It gives me a sense of security. Try finding that online! Even if you can, you have to go through the hassle of shipping it -- almost always at your expense.
So, retailers, stop whining....start winning. The holiday season is here...are you ready to compete? Or should you just cut your losses and close your doors now?
KrithiS
10/15/2012 2:04:54 PM
User Rank Live to Shop
Re: Online Shopping
Yes, I agree. In COD, the seller bears the risk but it is a useful payment mode for new customers. Even though I am a regular buyer of products online, I opt for COD to avoid the followups with the vendor in case the item is undelivered or out of stock after the order is placed. Possibly a ESCROW system will work better. What do you think?
Sage
10/14/2012 7:53:12 PM
User Rank Window Shopper
Re: Online Shopping
@ KrithiS. Cash on Delivery is one option, however the seller bears all the risk and costs should something happen. Also UPS doesn't take cash, so a scammer could give USPS a bad check and as far as UPS is concerned, it's a done deal.
These terms of service apply to C.O.D.:
- UPS will accept C.O.D.s for amounts up to US$50,000.00 per shipment.
- UPS will accept a business or personal check, or another negotiable form of payment.
- At the shipper's request, UPS will accept a cashier's check or money order only.
- UPS will not accept currency in any amount.
- The shipper assumes all risk related to the collection of the payment, including non-payment, insufficient funds, and forgery.
Registering for online retailing is a waste of time
This is a great article and I could not agree more with Ecoconsultancy's advice to retailers to not require customers to register before checkout, to keep forms to a minumum and to reassure shopppers about security.
The whole essence of online shopping is that it is quick and convenient, but how convenient is having to spend time filling out long and unnecessary forms to have to to register and remember usernames and passwords in order to proceed to the checkout?
Keep the procedure as simple and quick as possible and provide plenty of reassurance that customers' payment details are going to be sure.
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