The Digital Commerce Imperative: Seamless, Personalized, And Connected Customer Experiences

Transcription

1 The Digital Commerce Imperative: Seamless, Personalized, And Connected Customer Experiences GET STARTED

2 Overview Increasingly, customers experience brands products and services through digital touchpoints. The digital experiences that customers have online are vital to brands growth and profitability. With the emergence of mobile as a commerce tool on par with desktops for many aspects of the shopping experience, the importance of seamless, easy shopping enabled by personalization is greater than ever. But many brands are missing the mark when it comes to creating personalized consumer experiences. To succeed, brands must open up a dialogue and ask about the things that matter to their customers. This SAP Hybris-commissioned profile of individuals who shop online at least monthly and have used a mobile device to shop online in the last six months in the US, the UK, Austria, and Germany evaluates today s digital commerce experience from the perspective of customers, and what aspects of digital experience are most important to delivering superior customer experiences. Demographics Demographics Demographics Demographics Geography Living area Age Gender US: 25% UK: 25% Austria: 25% Germany: 25% City/urban: 41% Suburb: 33% Rural: 25% Under 35: 34% 35 to 54: 40% 55 or above: 26% Male: 50% Female: 50%

3 1 2 3 Lines Of Commerce Between Desktop And Mobile Blur Mobile devices are becoming as much of a commerce tool today as they are a social tool. Customers are getting more and more comfortable using their phones and tablets to interact with brands online. Our survey shows that mobile customers are just as willing to purchase a product on a mobile device as they are to interact with a brand on social media. In addition, over half of these customers will use a mobile browser to perform shopping activities online comparing prices, reading reviews, and doing product research. At the same time, it is important to note that mobile apps are still very much a work in progress; to appeal to mobile consumers, brands should focus on the mobile browser experience first. While 44% of mobile customers are likely to purchase products/services, over half are comparing prices, reading reviews, and researching products using a mobile browser.

4 1 2 3 But The Mobile Purchase Experience Lags Behind Desktop Despite a willingness to shop online, 62% of mobile customers prefer to make the final product purchase on a desktop/laptop. Why? Because it s more difficult to purchase on a mobile device today. Our survey shows that: This is space for a call-out. Thirty-nine percent of mobile customers say it s more difficult to buy on a phone compared with another device. A further 29% are concerned about entering personal information on their phone.

5 1 2 3 Mobile Customers Already Have High Expectations For Experiences Mobile customers willingness to channel hop while shopping online means that a seamless digital experience across devices is more important for brands than ever. Similarly, due to the perceived difficulty of making purchases on a mobile device, brands need to do everything they can to make shoppers experiences easier and better. One way to do this is by creating personal, tailored experiences for customers. Sixty-three percent of mobile customers said they are more likely to engage with brands that understand them and create better experiences for them. Eighty-two percent of survey respondents said that it is at least somewhat important for brands to deliver seamless cross-channel experiences.

6 1 2 Brands Struggle To Deliver Relevant And Personalized Content The challenge to create personalized, seamless content is magnified when you consider the number of channels brands must engage customers through today , social, website, text, and more. Unfortunately, despite mobile customers eagerness to interact with brands that can give them personalized content, brands struggle to deliver relevant and personalized content. Our survey shows that only 29% of mobile customers feel strongly that the content they are shown when engaging with brands is mostly relevant and personalized to them. Clearly there is room for improvement here. Only 29% of mobile customers feel strongly that the content they are shown when engaging with brands is mostly relevant and personalized to them

7 1 2 Brands Risk Alienating Customers By Using Data They Do Not Want To Share Compounding brands challenges to deliver personalized content is the fact that mobile customers do not want their online activity to be tracked and are extremely hesitant to share social media and demographic information. Brands today are overly focused on analyzing consumer click patterns and customer segmentation based on demographic and social information to provide personal experiences, which helps explain why so many are failing to deliver personalized, relevant experiences for their customers. Less than 10% of survey respondents will allow brands to track their online or social activities. Only 29% are willing to share demographic information in order to receive a more personalized experience.

8 1 2 The Best Way To Understand Your Customers? Ask! With customers unwilling to allow brands to track their activity, and hesitant to give demographic and social information away, how are brands supposed to deliver them personal content? The answer is simple just ask. We are in the age of social sharing, and customers are much more likely to engage in two-way communication with brands about things that matter to them. In fact, our survey shows that 57% of mobile customers are very likely to fill out a short questionnaire about their preferences in order to receive more relevant, personalized experiences and marketing from a brand. Fifty-seven percent of mobile customers are very likely to fill out a short questionnaire about their preferences in order to receive more relevant, personalized experiences and marketing from a brand

9 1 2 Customers Are Willing To Share Data In Exchange For Personalized Experiences Brands need to create personalized commerce experiences using the information that actually matters to customers. While they don t want to be tracked, mobile customers are willing to share very personal information about their favorite products, styles, and hobbies they have. They are even willing to discuss pricing with brands. These are things that brands rarely ask customers about but can be used to create personalized experiences in ways that demographic and click-through data cannot. In an age of social sharing, brands should enable two-way communication with their customers, and ask about things that customers are interested in sharing.

10 Conclusion Brands must find ways to deliver seamless, personalized experiences as mobile commerce rises to the levels of desktops and laptops. Making it simple and easy to shop and make purchases across all digital touchpoints and engaging with customers on a personal level are important today, and may determine success or failure in the near future. To create personal experiences, brands should engage directly with their customers, asking them about their interests, favorite purchases, and what they like, rather than trying to mine demographic information or track them online. Simply by asking, brands can get the information they need to craft digital experiences that will delight customers and engender brand loyalty. METHODOLOGY This Technology Adoption Profile was commissioned by SAP Hybris. To create this profile, we surveyed 2,011 consumers in the US, the UK, Austria, and Germany that shop online at least monthly, have purchased a product online in the past month, and used a mobile device to shop online in the past six months. The custom survey was completed in February For more information on Forrester s data panel and Tech Industry Consulting services, visit forrester.com ABOUT FORRESTER CONSULTING Forrester Consulting provides independent and objective research-based consulting to help leaders succeed in their organizations. Ranging in scope from a short strategy session to custom projects, Forrester s Consulting services connect you directly with research analysts who apply expert insight to your specific business challenges. For more information, visit forrester.com/consulting. Project Director Andrew Magarie, Senior Market Impact Consultant 2017, Forrester Research, Inc. All rights reserved. Unauthorized reproduction is strictly prohibited. Information is based on best available resources. Opinions reflect judgment at the time and are subject to change. Forrester, Technographics, Forrester Wave, RoleView, TechRadar, and Total Economic Impact are trademarks of Forrester Research, Inc. All other trademarks are the property of their respective companies. For additional information, go to forrester.com. [1-11P93HL]