Company News • 20.10.2014

Consumer buying trends for 2014 online shopping season

MarketLive released results from its annual online shopper survey for the 2014 holiday retail season. The survey data highlights key buying trends for the upcoming holiday season and provides merchants with a roadmap for engaging shoppers during the next few months.

Survey results show 36 percent of shoppers intend to buy gifts via their mobile device, up 29 percent from last year, and 49 percent will make purchases based on a social referral, mandating that retailers focus on the experience they provide their customers via these two channels. While competition from Amazon and its influence on pricing is always an issue, the survey shows that retailers can have a great holiday season by focusing on key areas that will affect shopping behavior.

"The survey results highlight key strategies we are suggesting our merchants implement for the holiday season. Providing an engaging and optimized mobile experience is paramount given that online purchases completed on a mobile device continue to sharply trend upward, as well as pre-purchase activities on mobile such as researching prices and looking up store inventory to see if that special gift is in stock," said Ken Burke, founder and CEO of MarketLive. "In addition, we are advising our merchants to pay attention to their social channels this season. Revenue from the channel may still be growing slowly, but the survey underlines interesting changes in the role of social influence on gift purchases this holiday season. We may have finally turned the corner on social commerce."
Highlights of the mobile, gifting, and social network findings from the 40-question survey report follow below.

Survey Methodology:

The 2014 MarketLive holiday shopper survey consisted of a random sample of 1,000 U.S. consumers who had shopped online at least four times within the past year, own a smartphone, and typically spend 250 dollars or more online annually. The sample was balanced 50 percent male and 50 percent female, and all questionnaires were completed during September of 2014. Median age of the sample was 40.6, median household income was 66,146 dollars, and 61 percent attained a college degree or higher.

Mobile Trends – Now a critical revenue producing channel:

The bottom line is that more than ever, shoppers will purchase via their mobile devices – retailers must ensure a user friendly, optimized mobile experience or risk losing critical revenue this holiday season. Pre-purchase research and actual purchase transactions made from smartphones, tablets and mobile apps continue to increase each year. For 2014, we see 36 percent of respondents planning to purchase half or more of their gifts via a mobile device, a sharp increase from the prior year:

• 70 percent are likely to research on their smartphones the gifts they find in retail stores
• 56 percent are likely to reserve products from their smartphones for subsequent pick-up at retail stores

Social Influence – Social Networks are coming into their own and influencing buying behavior:

While social networks have long been rumored to influence consumer behavior, that influence has not been reliably documented at the cash register – until now. Our 2014 survey showed significant proportions of shoppers being influenced by (and participating in) social sites and friends during their upcoming holiday shopping: In terms of importance (very + somewhat), survey respondents reported the following:

• 30 percent of shoppers have made a purchase via social in the last year, an increase of 12 percent over 2013
• 49 percent will make a purchase because of a social referral
• 44 percent intend to discover new products via social networks

Social Participation:

In addition to receiving influence from social networks, respondents also showed a heightened obligation to contribute to social sites as well:

• 52 percent feel it is important to review products they have purchased
• 48 percent say it is important to share product recommendations with friends/family via social channels
• 42 percent will pin items on Pinterest

Gifting Trends:

Consumers' choice of which online retailer to purchase gifts from is often driven by where the 'perfect gift' is in stock and how close at hand is the holiday shipping deadline. However, retailers can capture a larger Average Order Value by recognizing that holiday shoppers are often buying for themselves even as they shop for others:

• 60 percent intend to purchase 11 or more gifts
• 55 percent will spend 500 dollars or more on gifts this holiday season (both online and offline)
• 43 percent will pay full price in order to get the "perfect gift" for someone on their list
• High shipping costs (64 percent) or hidden shipping costs (52 percent) are top reasons why consumers will abandon gift items in their cart

"This year's survey results underline the need for retailers to prepare to be able to meet consumers' online shopping expectations across all channels. It is critical that consumer experiences online, in-store, via mobile and social are all exemplary and aligned to optimize their business," said Lauren Freedman, president of the e-tailing group, a market research firm that conducts the annual shopper survey for MarketLive.

Source: MarketLive

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