Coronavirus hit Brits miss physical retailers and diss e-tailers

UK shoppers are missing in-store experiences during the coronavirus pandemic. They are also want more convenience from online retailers, according to research from Fresh Relevance.

The company surveyed 2,000 people and found that 40% miss not being able to touch and try products before making a purchase.

We worked with Censuswide and polled 2000 consumers in the UK to identify what shoppers want to see from retailers in return for their loyalty.

Download the report now to make sure you’re giving shoppers what they want 👉 https://t.co/6iGQKPMvhi pic.twitter.com/hNNaHzQJOG
— Fresh Relevance (@FreshRelevance) February 2, 2021

Other top frustrations when shopping online are: stores that are difficult to navigate (38%); seeing exclusive offers aimed at new shoppers (38%).

Sold-out items with no information on when the product will be restocked (34%); having to wait for the order to arrive (20%); not being able to talk to a salesperson (19%); mobile sites that don’t function well (15%).

Things shoppers would like to see from online retailers in 2021 include: highlight spending thresholds that unlock an incentive; product ratings and reviews; highlight important order cut-off dates.

Recommend complementary products; make it easy to discover more products they might like; make it easy to return to an abandoned web session; help imagine how the product will look in real life; Click and Collect.

Mike Austin, CEO and Co-founder, Fresh Relevance, comments: “When it comes to fostering customer loyalty, convenience, personalised communications and targeted incentives are key.”

“Consumers want to sail smoothly through the customer journey and are unforgiving when it comes to frustrating online experiences.”

He concludes: “With a significant proportion of shoppers missing certain aspects of the in-store experience, e-commerce businesses who can bring the strengths of offline shopping online are more likely to encourage loyalty.”