Online Research leading to Offline Purchases

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Are your clients ready for the fourth quarter and the Holidays?  A lot of planning goes into competing but some new insight into consumer research may help them remain competitive against online sources.  MediaPost reports that making sure your prices and inventory levels are right will be key to taking advantage of online research leading to offline purchase...

We are barely over Amazon Prime Day, and retailers are already gearing up for the holiday shopping season.

Above all, they better make sure their content is mobile-friendly.

Half of consumers plan to purchase in-store. But most will utilize online channels, too: 84% plan to use their smartphones to research and find coupons and deals, compare prices and read product reviews — in the aisle — before buying in-store, according to a new study by Shopkick.   

One lesson is that brands better tailor their email for mobile devices and send personalized offers in real time based on intent, location and other variables. Text, too.

Shopkick surveyed nearly 30,000 users of its shopping-rewards app. It found that they plan to start shopping early in the season. 

Only 3% will do the bulk of their shopping on Cyber Monday. On the contrary, 35% will check items off before Thanksgiving, 23% between Black Friday and Cyber Monday and 19% on Black Friday itself.  

Overall, 35% will do the bulk of their buying before sitting down to Thanksgiving dinner. 

Meanwhile, 53% will do most of their shopping with big-book retailers such as Target or Walmart. But 20% will use Amazon.

As for the average holiday spend, 33% plan to shell out from $301 to $600 on holiday. And  31% will spend from $100 to $300 and 16% from $601 to $900. 

But they want incentives — 42% want low prices, and 31% week free shipping, 10% rewards programs and 6% easy returns.

And they crave inspiration, both on the phone and in-store. Of those surveyed, 25% choose brick-and-mortar stores for that feeling of uplift. And 25% like these retailers for easy price comparisons, 20% for overall convenience, and 14% to browse a wider variety of products.

In-store will be driven by some of both the oldest and the youngest—54% of baby boomers will go to physical stores and 55% of Generation Z members. But 76% of Gen Zers will use their phones in aisle, making them the leaders in this.

At the same time, 32% of millennials plan to do most of their holiday shopping on mobile phones.

What are they buying? Electronics will drive the most shoppers, followed by toys, apparel and accessories. 

"For the majority of shoppers, this holiday shopping season isn’t about choosing between online and in-store," said Shopkick CEO Adam Sand. "Instead, we’re seeing more and more that shoppers want the best of both worlds.