DALLAS--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Kibo, the world’s leading cloud-based unified omnichannel commerce platform, today announced the release of its second annual Consumer Trends Report - 2017 Edition. Based on responses from nearly 3,000 consumers in the U.S. and U.K., the report found that personalization, price, and fulfillment are key influencers on the path to purchase, and that today’s consumers are increasingly gaining high expectations for a unified shopping and brand experience across all purchasing channels and touchpoints.
Other key purchase influencers included individualizing offers and recommendations throughout the online experience, providing multiple fulfillment options and having an interactive yet simplified shopping experience. Consumers also indicated a high expectation of retailers to access a global view of their online and offline behavior.
Many organizations have omnichannel plans or implementations in progress, and this year’s report explored the pulse on consumer behaviors and trends to help business decision-makers determine and understand how to best move forward with omnichannel initiatives. Key highlights from this year’s survey revealed the following:
- Individualized Shopping Experiences: Personalizing a consumer’s experience can have a big impact on their path to purchase, with 85% stating they are influenced by personalized home page promotions and 92% stating personalized shopping cart recommendations influence them to complete a purchase.
- Pricing is a Driving Factor: Price was a top factor for consumers when considering a purchase, followed by product brand and retailer website brand. The survey indicated that 76% of consumers regularly price-check competitors, up from 66% from last year’s survey.
- Online and In-Store As One Seamless Experience: 94% of consumers state they do research online before visiting a store, up 8% from last year. Nearly three quarters of consumers expect store associates to be able to access their customer history when they visit a store after purchasing online. Almost half of consumers surveyed had store associates find an item in another store for ship-to-home in the past six months.
- Inventory and Fulfillment: 81% of consumers said they have looked up inventory on a retailer’s website before visiting the store and 80% are less inclined to visit a store if a website does not provide current product availability (up 24% from last year).
- Influencers on the Path to Purchase: Top influencers on completing an online purchase include interactive content (92%), product reviews (82%), simplified shopping cart (78%), and multiple fulfillment options (66%).
“As consumer behaviors, expectations, and demands continue to rise, retailers and brands equipped with the latest data will be better prepared to win in the new year,” says Tushar Patel, CMO, Kibo. “In order to satisfy consumers with high expectations of a cohesive experience no matter the touchpoint, merchants need to do a holistic evaluation of their commerce programs. Knowing where to focus efforts will allow them to make changes that provide the biggest impact to customer satisfaction, loyalty, and ultimately the bottom line.”
Survey Methodology
The Kibo Consumer Trends Report includes survey feedback from 2,994 consumers, 1,993 in the U.S. and 1,001 in the U.K., ages 18-65+, with 53% of the respondents female and 47% of the respondents male.
Download your copy of The Kibo Consumer Trends Report--2017 Edition.
About Kibo
Kibo empowers retailers and branded manufacturers to achieve optimal performance of B2C and B2B commerce through unified consumer experiences. With over 40 years of innovations, Kibo provides a complete omnichannel commerce platform delivered with the lowest total cost of ownership and the fastest time to market. By leveraging cloud technologies, individualized buying experiences, and true enterprise scale, Kibo enables you to reach higher peaks of sales and consumer loyalty. No matter the challenge, Kibo powers your success. For more information, visit kibocommerce.com
