Shopping across multiple channel now the norm, BookingBug

Despite the increasing popularity of online shopping, physical stores are still the main buying channel for 52% of consumers in the US and 41% in the UK, according to BookingBug research.

A survey of 2,000 people across the US and UK found that 73% research online before buying in-store and 54% research in-store before buying online. It also revealed a gap between demand and reality when it comes to in-store events; 68% would attend hosted events by retailers, but only 23.5% have ever been invited to one.

“The biggest retailers in the world have already discovered the formula to make consumer offline engagement a crucial and valuable asset; you do not need to discount prices and compromise margins to get consumers into a store but provide them with a clear reason to spend time visiting. If retailers know that customers do research in-store before buying online, then it makes sense to create services that will make that insight easy to consume,” says BookingBug CEO Glenn Shoosmith.