Online activity is a two way street: consumers are “showrooming”— browsing businesses and going online, and “webrooming”— researching online and purchasing in brick-and-mortar establishments. Following are insights about success in the connected commerce space.
What Consumers are Doing Online (activities scoring high):
- Looking up product information.
- Checking/comparing prices.
- Searching for deals/promotions/coupons.
What Consumers are not Doing Online (activities scoring low):
- Clicking on email ads.
- Subscribing to product/store emails.
- Liking/tweeting/commenting on social media.
Consumers Pursue Information All the Time (see chart):
- 87% before visiting a business.
- 79% while visiting a business.
- 35% after visiting a business.
Strategies for Omni-Channel (Online/Offline) Success:
- Be customer-centric: Understand consumers’ demographics, purchase habits, path to purchase.
- Prioritize personalization: Provide clients with relevant, personalized information/offers.
- Think digital, but don’t neglect in-store: Physical establishments maintain many key advantages over online-only channels. Customer service is a differentiator in every channel — providing exceptional service should be a primary focus for businesses.
Connected consumers = smart consumers, and they are using digital options to make informed purchase decisions, from reviewing products/services online to using in business establishments.
“Digital is viewed less as a threat to brick-and-mortar… and more as an opportunity. Today’s winning brands use a combination of on and offline strategies to… help consumers make more informed decisions… [and] add value throughout the entire [purchase] experience.”
— Patrick Dodd, President, Nielsen Global Retailer Vertical
Source: thinkwithgoogle.com