Retailers struggle to keep pace with clued up Brits, Salesforce
56% of Brits plan to buy their Christmas presents online, according to Salesforce research.
The company surveyed 1,053 people in Germany, 1,020 in France, 1,079 in the Netherlands and 1,043 in the UK, among whom 529 were millennials (ages 18-36), 530 Gen Xers (ages 37-52), and 737 Baby Boomers (ages 53-71). It found that British retailers are facing increasingly knowledgeable, discerning customers. They are doing their homework, over a range of channels, well ahead of time, making them more empowered than ever before. 77% research products prior to purchasing from a retailer in-store, and 84% do so prior to purchasing online.
Retailers are, in many cases, failing to keep up with these increasingly savvy customers. 61% of shoppers said that retail experiences are disconnected from channel to channel. 65% agreed that retailers don’t truly know who they are. 47% believed store associates do not have the tools needed to deliver an excellent customer experience. 50% claimed that they typically know more about a product than the store associate. And 35% took this a step further by adding that they thought robots could replace human store associates
19% of Brits would use AI to search merchandise in a physical store or online catalogue using an image. Millennial shoppers are more than twice as likely as baby boomer shoppers to find AI technology appealing (29% vs. 12%). 16% of shoppers would find mobile wallets appealing, with this rising to 26% among millennials. 20% of millennials would welcome drones delivering their shopping, compared to only 6% of the baby boomer generation.
UK’s love affair with Amazon
In terms of how consumers shop online, Amazon emerges as the most popular retail e-commerce channel. 91% of UK adults use or have used Amazon to buy items. 56% did so because of product affordability. And 70% of Amazon consumers plan to buy the same amount or more gifts during the Christmas period.
